Justin Treadaway

Actually we train the combat application of it. It is incorperated in our style. We learn every form and break the whole form down and apply its combat application. Also we incorperate a lot of older styles such as gung lee that were inbetween the seperation of tai chi and kung fu. If you trully understand kung fu softness/circuler most of the chinese styles are very similar.

What a lot of you are doing is comparing styles to mma.... I mean mma is good and all but what happens when i pull out a stick and hit you in the face, or four of us jump you? or i pull out a knife? what are you going to do then.... I mean in mma you are practically naked in a cage with rules... I mean there is nothing to compare there. Half the stuff we train they cant do. Also a comment on making all ma do mma style fightiing just wouldnt work in our style of kung fu. I mean just about everyone would either be dead or seriously hurt (broken neck, knee, fingers, eyes etc etc. Our style of kung fu is straight from the shaolin temples. My teachers teacher was a monk. So our stuff isnt fancy and just flashy it is meant to seriously hurt someone. Most things we train are for self defense not tourniment sparring. So for me to tourni spar i would have to forget just about everything i have learned and just kick box, and grapple. Our first rule of fighting is grab a weapon. Our style is meant for survival not just punching someone till he falls, we are going to break bones, rip throats out, gouge eyes etc etc. We do spar dont get me wrong, but its a lot different than just kicking someone and then calling a point...

Its not just about how hard you can hit, its knowing where and when to hit.

Our school does have muscle work training. We are told to be in good shape and stay strong. I am not saying that. But technique will beat out muscle strength any day. I am not saying we don't have muscle strength and stamina. I mean if you are out of shape and weak then you probably aren't going to be a good martial artist. I run 6 days a week and muscle train 4 days a week.... I am just saying your strength and speed will only take you so far. If that is all your relying on then why not just run, workout and punch a punching bag instead of taking a martial art. I do both of following but I don't rely on my strength to defend myself because there is always someone stronger and faster out there. And by the way our school is about as far from a Mckwoon as you can get. He actually speaks against mckwoons all the time.

If your techniques are right then yes. If you know how to be relaxed until impact and your train for this, then yes you are practicing your chi. But Boxing for instance even though they punch the bag 254235324 times they are relying more on strength and not chi. Thats why you see those little 80 year old chinese masters that can still hold their own. You won't see someone who practices a "hard Style" doing this. Because when you rely on your strength at 80..... then its pretty much useless.

I am a scientific researcher and developer for the Central Intelligence Agency and I teach a martial art called Montgomery Style Karate. From what I have been told, our soldiers do utilize blocks in combat situations from time to time. There are simply situations where blocking is convienient. The SCARS system that was once used by the Navy SEALS did not utilize blocking, but rather it intercepted attacks or took an offensive approach by supposing that you were able to seize the initiative and act first rather than counterattack your aggressor. However, the SCARS system has proven less effective than other systems and civilians can train in SCARS now. Wing Chun blocking and parrying differs from karate blocking and parrying in that the Wing Chun stylist will probably attack with the second hand while the first hand is preforming a defense. Wing Chun is noted for its simultaneous blocking and striking and both arms are fighting in that art at the same time than in any other. Certain krate styles incorporate two hand movements, but these examples are often in the form of double attacks. In Wing Chun, the block or parry performed with one hand is almost always supplemented by an attack from the other hand. This gives Wing Chun a unique advantage, as an attacker is usually at his least defensive position as he is executing his attack. Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do (Bruce Lee's Jeet Kune Do) evolved out of Bruce Lee's fundamental training in Wing Chun combined with his lifetime search into effective methods of other martial art styles. JKD prefers to intercept attacks with a counterattack of one's own. Bruce Lee adopted this idea from Western Fencing, where the most powerful attack is called a Stop-hit, in which you stop continuous motion to invite an attack and then dodge the other man's sword before attacking with a thrust. European Boxing primarily dodges attacks. There are blocks in boxing, such as covering the face with one or both hands, and blocks that hit out in a circular parry against the attacker's wrist or boxing glove. In my research, dodging is more effective as a defense than blocking alone and the best defense utilizes both with an emphasis on dodging. Consistent practice with dodging and blocking is the key to building a good defense. Chuck Norris used to train in attacking drills that had the defender preform a realistic block to an actual attack, and his Tang Soo Do instructor emphasized such drills to 80% of the total training time. If you are in a dojo that emphasizes actual dodging and blocking practice less than fifty percent of the time, then you are practicing attacking without developing the defensive skills. By practicing a good dodge or block to a real attack, you practice a real attack at the same time the other person practices a realistic defense. I agree with most of what your saying but dont limit it to wing chun. Our style of kung fu has the same principles, as does most of other chinese arts. We always deflect while the other hand is striking which then leads to more.... Thats the whole point of circular/linear movements.

Realwingchun a lot of people don't understand us because the only kung fu they know is what they see on videos and tv. There is so much in our style that i can't ever master it all. However, there are some styles that can be mastered in 10-15 years.

Our system of kung fu was taught to warriors not just monks. It is a more combat oriented style of kung fu (a lot of the stances are shorter)... a hybrid. But yeah you learn the 5 animals then your next form is tong long (mantis...southern), then you start going back to the 5 animals but is a lot more involved with the animal such as white crane... etc etc. I know later you learn a lot more monkey and start adding stuff like bear.

Whilst its quiet common to use your muscles through a full range of motion, its rare to perform a technique has practiced traditionally through its full range of motion. The only thing that seems to be used is the last few moments of the movement. So why not train in that part and reduce the movements you do for no reason and help prevent bad habits from forming? Look at how boxers are taught to punch, the basic punch is no different from how its used in the ring, they dont start with the hand at the hip to learn to use certain muscles, the start with the hand where it starts for real and do that each time to get better at the actual movement, not a non used variation of it. When I took isshinryu karate I always wondered why we had to set there and drill the same punch 50,000 times and always putting our hands on our belt. To me it just doesn't make sense. Its ok to pracitce a punch over and over but at least make it be the way you would actually punch in a real life situation.

I am not a fan of the linked weapons. Because, when you hit something with them there is a split second when you are not in control of the weapon. And a lot of bad things can happen when your not in control for instance it hitting you in the head or wrist etc etc.

Cross, I see what your saying. Thats why in our style its all about footwork. We also parry/deflect instead of blocking. Also if we miss the deflection we are out of the way of the punch anyways. We also use our footwork to get into a position to control the opponents next move. Our philosophy is if they make the first move on their own we control every move after that. For instance, If they throw a right punch and we deflect it and move to our left, we then jam the arm in, then a strike to the ribs/face whatever. The only thing they have left is left hook, or a spinning back fist, which we are prepared to take care of. You can only deflect or block so many punches you are going to get hit eventually. Thats why 99% of the time we are going to deflect the punch, empty (strike the opponent to take his mind off of whats coming next), then go to arm bar/break or a throw or a wrist lock etc etc. If you just stand toe to toe and try to deflect or block then punch or kick then its anybodies ball game. But if I learn to control what my opponents moves are then I am in control. Also most of drilling we start from earth stance. Which is just you standing their with your arms by your side. Now if i know the fight is coming I will get into a fighting stance of some sort which will never be a deep stance but usually is cat stance or a 45 stance.

I have heard a lot of talk about when you are surprised your motor skills go... Well why the heck do you train martial arts if you can't use it? The other day I was in Wal-mart parking lot and a friend of mine ran up to grab/scare me, before i knew it i had him in a wrist lock with his arm behind his back, and had his head pulled back with his hair. If you fully train your art it becomes second nature, thats the whole point. If you have to think about it, then its useless. If a lot of you feel that you cant use your skills in a fight, i would certainly be looking for a different school/style. Everything we do, we will drill full speed and not pull punches. If you miss the deflection you will get hit in the face, and higher ranks you don't know what moves are coming at you. So you better be ready for a kick or a punch or you might be curled up on the floor. If you don't train this way then your wasting your time. I think a lot of schools mess up when they do point sparring especially at white belt level. All it teaches them to do is back fists, roundhouse kicks, front kicks, and not to even do the properly. Thats what most tourni fighting is. And for mma most of the complex things we learn you cant do. Also another note about joint locks/throws. If you know what your doing its very effective. We are taught to parry/empty(strike)/then joint lock or throw. If you go straight for a joint lock then no it prob won't work. But if you know when to use it, its awesome.

Yes, I agree with PS1. I would go to the instructor and tell him what you just told us. That you feel the instructors are not really doing a good job and you would like to train more with him....

Yeah our modern arnis stuff can transfer to a lot of weapons. You can use swords, axes, and I am sure kamas would work. But I think I prefer a rattan stick, it is super fast, decent reach, and if you get good its the most practical weapon that you can find. Unless your in house or somthing. But you can almost always find a stick.

The form is called tong long, but it is southern mantis. Sorry, I didn't set up the sentence structure correct . I knew tong long meant mantis.