HG

Yes, you have them listed.

Yes, we call it Ng Long Ba Gwan Gwum/ Fifth Brother 8 Diagram Pole. Wong Fei Hung at age 13 defeated a famous teacher known for his left handed fishing pole technique named Sifu Gwam Dai Hung. It's one of the longer forms in Hung-Ga, single ended pole - think of strong spear like movements without the sharp blade tip. 6 & 1/2 points for fighting.

Yes, there are schools like that but not all of them hide behind the shroud of Chinese mysticism. Kung fu is so intertwined with Chinese culture, poetic names for techniques & secret skills will never go away, it's what makes Kung fu....Kung fu. You control the art not the other way around. Basic fight skills should be enough for most situations. If it's needed, lethal techniques are readily available provided proper training & corresponding intent. The CMA have adapted due to the Buddhist/Taoist influence on principles & philosophy. Another factor to be considered is the legal ramifications.

We call this seizing/stealing the breath. Real nasty stuff.

There are Sifus out there that will fight if challenged. I don't know anything about throat ripping & our style places a heavy emphasis on tiger claw training. How one 'tests' oneself can only be determined by the individual. There is no right or wrong answer.

A Sifu won't demonstrate their skills just to appease the curiosity of a skeptic. Opinion not fact. A Pro boxer just has more opportunities to KO people. Martial arts in general seek to avoid fighting.

Consistant training is the key. You can't sprint for miles. So as the intensity of training increases, the time/duration proportionally decreases. Just put your overall health first on the list & do whatever it takes to improve it.

Yes, there is some truth to this. However, Traditional-Fist comes from a Wing Chun background which is arguably the most pugnacious of all southern Chinese martial arts. Their theories are time tested & just as sound as any martial arts you practice.

Your doctor has given you the ok to train? Arthritic knee joints is going to be an issue to work around. Strengthen the muscles, ligaments & tendons surronding the knee - train smart. As a beginner you are training quite a bit. I'd scale back & see if the extra recovery doesn't help. Your knees probably have something to do with this. Kung Fu can be difficult to get the hang of at first & can be frustrating. Just keep training & the results will come. Bring up your concerns with your Sifu.

I've had some success with finding out what other interests the student has & relate it back into the movement explanation. It can get kind of creative when the only other hobby is video games.

Both of your posts bring up excellent points. The logic & methodolgy is lost on non practitioners or those who briefly dabbled in kung fu. Putting in the time IMO is only way to see the kung fu way clearly enough to be understood.

Iron is a general term in Chinese martial arts for a conditioned part of the body or extremities. Results come gradually over time without adverse effect on long term health. Other arts have similar training just named different. Specifics of the methods are best learned from a qualified instructor.

You can have a high level of martial skill & have no moral fiber what so ever. Martial skills are not dependent upon good ethics. What defines a martial artist is subjective to the personality, value judgement & enviroment (just to name a few) of the individual.

Nobody likes to lose but sparring in class is for learning & fixing shortcomings in your fighting - it's not a competition. Don't get too down on yourself. You have a portion of the puzzle down footwork & blocking are important. Now put them aside & focus on becoming an offensive fighter. To keep things simple, just for now experiement with going in with a move you have confidence in. For the entire sparring session - think attack. Notice what was different when compared to your normal way of sparring. Another thing you might try is start in the corner or with your back against a wall. Don't move back so much or take such a wide angle away from your opponent. Yes, you are getting out of the way but you've also taken yourself out of counter attacking position. Have a trusted training partner observe what your are doing. Even better bring up your concerns to your instructor. Maybe. Could it be you are afraid of getting hit? No belief in your technique? Or hitting someone might hurt them & you just can't do that?

I'm so glad football season has started. GO GIANTS!!! The penalty on Eli Manning's pass to Tim Carter was a horrible call.

Analyze- Know yourself, know your opponent - 100 battles 100 wins (Baak Jin, Baak Sing). Control- This important step is commonly skipped over by focusing on the hit. Controlling your opponent just makes things easier. Destroy- This is crux of martial art success or failure. The attack must cause pain. Adrenaline is flowing. Strikes aren't going to have the same effect as in the sterile enviroment of class sparring - full contact included. The problem is not everyone has the killer instinct to hurt another human being. A timid martial artist must commit to overcome this. Pain leads the mind. It's not a bad plan. As for Kung Fu's effectiveness. If you belong to a good school & train correctly - you already know the answer. Don't put too much effort in trying to convince others.

Yes, the san shou I saw was amateur.

Congrats

I remember San Shou having lots of protective gear: Head,Chest,Shin & Gloves. After watching those videos maybe things have changed.

Who won season #3. The last episode I saw was when the the deaf fighter(name?) went to the hospital after winning his first fight.

Strike first in most cases. If it's for self defense do what it every it takes to survive. Something not so serious, maybe leading the opponent to a false opening might be the best course of action.

Everyone has their opinions. I'm not bashing grappling - it's a proven method. I'm also going to defend the effectiveness of what I've experienced first hand. Any movement can be countered in a multitude of ways.

This is just par for the course. Breaking through a plateau is a struggle. I'm in the same boat as you, I'm away from my school so all of my training is solo as well. When I hit periods like you are going through. I try to focus on past workouts when everything clicked & generating power felt almost effortless - anything to keep the motivation up. Another thing I'll do is split the workout to once in the early AM & after work. The shorter training periods feel less draining.

We have students that grapple or came from grappling schools & have learned there are some arts out there that can deal with a rush, single/double leg takedown, sweep or throw. Those types of grappling techniques have weakness like any other martial art technique especially when taken out of the octagon or sporting arena. The effectiveness of counter grappling is inherent to the amount of pain/damage inflicted preventing the grappler from completing the takedown. The obstacle in demonstrating moves casually with saftey in mind is the grappler doesn't acknowledge the technique & follows through with the takedown. Then dismisses the move as ineffective. When applied with intent counter grappling is vicious. The quality of a Hung-Ga practitoner is kinda judged by the stability of the stance & footwork.

The advatage of PP or DM only comes through when it's gradually integrated with a decent level of fighting skill. If you can't fight then all the PP knowledge is pretty much useless. The PP & DM I've witnessed is traditional Chinese medicine points hit with a conditoned fist, fingers or grip.