martialartsresearcher Posted January 15, 2004 Author Posted January 15, 2004 to tell the truth... i think one should learn from both school and book. see ya.
Drunken Monkey Posted January 16, 2004 Posted January 16, 2004 all very valid points. like i say, i am not anti-book. you could be right. maybe i just haven't seen a book good enough. but then, doesn't that actually mean that considering the quality of books available, it is not good to put too must trust in their teaching ability? i think one little problem with the debate as we are having it, is that we are all looking at the question from the perspective of people who have spent real time practicing martial arts. jerry has said that he has learnt to fence from a book, with a partner but i would say that he was able to do so only because he already has a practical base in martial arts (if not because of then it must have at least aided the process). as i have said before. i am only really against the people who would copy the moves from a book and then claim to be advanced students. too often i have some guy say those words that make me cringe... 'i saw this in a book' and then was forced to witness the poorest execution of technique. what saddens me is when they go on to decide that the art from which the move was taken is deemed useless because of the guy's poor understanding/execution. post count is directly related to how much free time you have, not how intelligent you are."When you have to kill a man it costs nothing to be polite."
Treebranch Posted January 16, 2004 Posted January 16, 2004 The more accessible information the better. Yes? "It is easier to find men who will volunteer to die, than to find those who are willing to endure pain with patience.""Lock em out or Knock em out"
tofu Posted January 16, 2004 Posted January 16, 2004 Has anyone here come across any good MA books then? I've read some books, but they tend to be on the not so useful side.
delta1 Posted January 16, 2004 Posted January 16, 2004 Has anyone here come across any good MA books then? I've read some books, but they tend to be on the not so useful side. What styles or subjects are you interested in? Ed Parkers Infinite Isights serries (5 vols.) is good. They are out of print, but you can find them used. Dr. Yang, Jwing Ming has several good books out on Chinese martial arts. Some people don't like him, but I get a lot of good info out of his books. Very well written. Go to any large bookstore and browse, I'm sure you will find something interesting that you can use. Freedom isn't free!
italian_guy Posted January 19, 2004 Posted January 19, 2004 I think you cannot learn a MA by reading and practicing what is written in a book. You need a teacher to see if the movements you do are done correctly and you need classmates to practice your skill. However good books and tapes can be used while you practice: 1) to learn new combos 2) to have additional training advices 3) to have cultural (both historical and phylosophical) insides 4) to have a comparison with other MAs. Nothing substitutes class training!
Red J Posted January 19, 2004 Posted January 19, 2004 Books and tapes are good supplements to your training. I think that they are more valuable to an experienced person than to a newbie trying to learn. For example, I picked up Yang's book on Chin Na. Since I have an understanding in the principles and I practice them regularly, I was able to pick up some of the variations of techniques that I already know. I also "found" a few moves that I had "lost" (if only in my mind!). I look at it as a resource not the "end all", as that would require studying under the author/instructor to truly have a multi-sensory experience that I believe is necessary for significant martial arts growth. I had to lose my mind to come to my senses.
Drunken Monkey Posted January 19, 2004 Posted January 19, 2004 like i say i'm not anti-book. just not too keen on the way some people are when it comes to martial arts and books... tofu what do you mean not too useful? post count is directly related to how much free time you have, not how intelligent you are."When you have to kill a man it costs nothing to be polite."
delta1 Posted January 20, 2004 Posted January 20, 2004 Left work early today and am missing class tonight. Feelin' too poorly to really get a good workout. So, you'll never guess what I'm usin' to review some applications and clean up my technique a little... Don't do away with them, just use them correctly. Freedom isn't free!
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