Wing Chun 1-Inch and 3-Inch Punch Technique | Core JKD Wing Chun

This is a good video. He goes through the steps that lead to inch-power punching. This teacher is very detailed in his account - as in all his videos.

Along with the dummy, this move has to be the most iconic thing about this art / legacy of how people see Bruce Lee and his use of this move at demos.

6 Sounds of Qi Gong - my new addition

I bought Mantak Chia's book about 2 years ago and did not really get around to studying it. I threatened to for ages but put it off. The reason was, if you do this, you do it properly, sincerely and not flirt with this. I reached that point of acceptance 1 week ago.



I chose this as I knew the sounds were mentioned in Yang Jang Ming's work on the 8 pieces of brocade, and he uses the sounds but does not elaborate on them in the other materials I had. Also I have seen the sounds in use in other Qi Gong forms and when I read about I saw this looked 'do-able'.
I choose this book and I read a www page that had a useful table of different Qi Gong masters use of these sounds. I needed to know if they had consensus or not on the sounds. If they did then that means there is likely to be some 'truth' in this, as others agree, and I would not be wasting my time following just one person's interpretation of this alone. (There were some minor disagreements in what one or two of the sounds should be, but I went with Chia's work as he was reflected in consensus vs others and his book has a CD too, with the sounds in).

It seems the organs in the body can get over heated and this heat needs dissipation. The sounds act like a heat-sync to remove this excess heat when you breath out making the sound. Each organ: lungs, kidneys, liver, kidneys, spleen, (triple heater), have an associated sound that operates on a type of frequency for each.

Starting out : I needed to know the idea behind this, or else this makes the commitment to this weaker. I.e. know the theory underlying this. I may need to revise this 3 times to memorise all nuances. Next make sure to learn the sounds for each organ. Sounds silly, but some are so close you could confuse them. Expect to practice this, however, to chisel out skills doing this. This is like a health kata, so adopt the same mentality.

The use of colours associates with the organs too is reflected in this 6 sounds which is good. This gives me something extra over the 8 pieces of brocade, that I did not completely use.

The book shows a choice of doing the sounds sat down, or stood up - just like Dr. Yang Jing Ming's book. Also the goal seems to be to get the sounds down properly and then be able to make the sounds sub-vocally. (That has a benefit of public practice too, as no one knows what you are up to).

It is early days, so I cannot say if I have benefits yet.

Chi Kung / Qi Gong 4 years on

I am now into my 4th year of doing the 8 pieces of brocade.

Goodnews 1] I am still doing it. Why? I think it does have benefits. I do not feel cold the same way I used to. I can wake up easier with little sleep than before. Leg muscles have grown. (the reason why leg muscles have grown is that I sit deeper in the archer position for move [2]. I paid big attention to posture in that since January and that has had an effect. I can see why you have to wait for the benefits however, they do not come overnight. You grow like a tree, slowly.

Other things I do 'new' is to juggle the moves up every now and then. That can help concentration. I also and less concerned with a mechanical in and our breath to co-ordinate with moves. You do not have to do that anyway, so that is one thing less to force yourself to do. Sometimes it is co-ordinated, sometimes not.
I switch off my shoulder muscles more for the heaven / earth push hands. That move can make the shoulders tense if you do not pay attention. (Tense muscles means inhibited Qi flow).

I am more aware when I most likely to have a good session vs a session that is just exercise for exercise sake. If I wait until I am awake more / have eaten / have done some other physical activity then my mind is more quiet.

2] If you do forms / kata / jurus then doing Qi Gong should not be hard to keep up, really, as it is a health form. You need to watch your health and mind as it helps yourself and others too.

Visualization Training To Remove Fear | Core JKD Meditation Technique

This man has good ideas consistently. Here is one I have not seen before.

The Wing Chun Dummy - Why We Train It

This video shows someone stating that the dummy is best seen as a footwork tool to aid movement primarily. He says hand moves a secondary, I sense.

Analysis: Why Button Mashing Doesn't Work

Maybe some of this works in real life!

Ip Man Wing chun Wooden Dummy Form - Section 4 with Application

I do not have a video of anyone teaching the dummy in a 1-1 class. I have seen it being lectured to a group but here the teacher picks up on learner;s mistakes and these are corrected.

Seem like good instruction. Nuances noted e.g. taget elbow not the lower forearm or upper arm.

Jun Fan / Jeet Kune Do Trapping Skills (In Japenese)

This teacher is not afraid to hit is training partner.

Wing Chun Chi Sao Stick Energy Training—Core JKD Wing Chun Technique

Wing Xuan Dao Koan. Form with Wooden Dummy. (VietNam wing chun)

This is very rare. I like the way she weaves her arms and uses her elbows and unfolds theses.

What Kind of Karate is in Cobra Kai? | ART OF ONE DOJO

When Wing Chun Meets Aikido by Leo Au Yeung and Samuel Biggs

A bit of inter-disciplinary sharing.

Wooden Dummy Demonstration ... on a very 'large' oversize dummy

This is a very large dummy indeed. (Did that even need saying). I like the way he throws this around. He is ballistic like Michael Wong. The way the dummy has 2 sided arms and he spins it is good. This must be a bit of a workout.

Expert in a year ?

I have read Sam Priestley and Ben Larcombe's book 'Expert in a Year: The Ultimate Table Tennis Challenge', (2015).

The idea here was to give Sam quality coaching in a year and see if he can penetrate the 250th ranking in the UK with his expertise.

He cannot. But the process did lift him into a quality adult player but the level of 250th ranked player is very high, indeed and the pair recognise this.

At the end of the book the process of growth is the success. It shows how repetition and practice feed into success - realistic success that can be mimicked. At the end of the book he has about 25 core findings. His 22nd point is 'Practice, Learn, Reflect, Repeat'.

The reflection idea is for us to be our own coach.

Another comment he makes is 25 Don't compare yourself to others, as that sets you up for unrealistic benchmarks and a feeling of inadequacy.

1 Turn it into a thing.

This means make the activity a part of your life pattern. It is like a new arm, no a collectable toy.
He said if he was not part of the challenge - which had set the goal of being an expert in a year then this would not have progressed at all.

The pair had posted youtube videos which can be looked back upon to show growth.

A by-product of the challenge was it inspired others to progress too and mimic this idea. Sam has gone onto accept other challenges - such as be a Brazilian expert in a year. Be aware however, Sam has time and money to travel off to training camps for coaching and competitions, too, which we wont all have but if you take point 25, above, that is not an issue really, it just shows he is doing what he can to achieve his goals within his means.

Qi Gong 3 years on

I have been doing qi gong - chi kung - for 3 years now.

This is my yearly update.
The
I cannot say I have made any improvements in this year. I have struggled to get my mind into neutral too many times this year, which is why. I have had to come back later in the day and repeat the session to get the effects of the moves.
Something I did learn however, if I do the yoga moves, salute to the sun, first, then that tiers out my body, which helps calm the mind for the qi gong session. This is a good find.
I bought a yoga mat that folds up and is quite thick off, of ebay for £17. I can use it outside if I put some cardboard down too.

To make an advance in qi gong, I think I need a teacher. I know there is one near by, and I ought to go. The group situation is meant to be conducive to producing chi and will help for focus, I bet.
Having said that I have not gone backwards, I think in qi gong. I have been maintaining my efforts and any skills in here but I cannot expect advances. I do not do the fire/water moves any more as they are demanding on the knees I think.

I do have some things 'to do': investigate the  dragon and tiger qi gong books I bought by Bruce Frantizis. This looks doable. I want the videos too. (Need the exchange rate to be better).
Then I want to go thought the qi gong sounds cd I have. That would be of value.

I have put these new areas off, for a bit, as it has to be done properly or not at all, I think. I do not want to learn new moves without properly knowing why I am doing the moves and what is needed. (Youtube vids on qi gong are plentiful but they do not stress often what internally the focus is / what type of breathing or thinking should be going on. (This is why I like Dr Yang Jing Ming's work for example - very theoretical).

Bruce Frantzis does however do this. 

I taught my sister the 8 moves of brocade recently. Or rather I showed her the moves and we did it together a few times. The wu chi position seemed to make an impact. This was good, as I had to relearn the ideas behind the moves properly, so you know what organs are benefiting for instance. I showed my nephew the moves too but he did not keep these up. Pity. They are the 8 'treasures' after all.

What Makes A Good Instructor?—Core JKD Students Speak

Focus Mitts How We Hold Them—Core JKD

barack obama does wing chun.

Another Plastic Wooden Dummy

 Bought this off ebay,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MAhdnCN68Ms

I had seen this on Blitz's web page a few years ago. It cost about £200 then and I wondered about this for months. I thought mmm ... that is cheap but what is it like?

Then on ebay I saw it and bid for it not expecting to win it. I knew it costs £300+ these days and I got a very good price for it. (In fact the seller said people contacted him after the bid, offering him more money that me! Pah - I thought martial artists had honour and ethics ..... The seller definitely had ethics and honour and I picked it up from his house).

When I first touched the dummy, at first my heart sank. I half hoped the body was solid, even though I could see that the base was water filled. Nope. It felt like a water-butt you get in the garden. It is hollow. Next I was thinking can this thing take hits ? I drove home and then next day assembled it.

I played with it 'empty' and had a reflection on it and how it differs from my Immortal Dummy. Mmm. This is this. It is different. I could tell it can be used differently as you can walk all around it easily, and it has the very novel 2 sided porcupine arms, which give it extra options.
One move I did was to spin the arm, as if clearing it to my hip. This allowed me to spin the whole dummy, which was interesting. You could not do that on the Immortal Dummy really, as that is 85 KG net (13 stone) . This is like 2 stone net. I added some water to the base and tried it ... then added some more. It now weighs about 6 stone. This trades off weight to give some stability and mobility. If I wanted it to be maximum weight it would be around 72 KG or 12 stone. I wont do that, as I want a different feel from the other dummy.

These pictures show you some set up and use options:

You can plug the body of the dummy in two ways. That gives you options when you step next to the dummy which I like. On the Immortal Dummy you cannot step flush to the base easily which means there is a gap between your body and the dummies body, (unless you angle it but that is a bit specialised that possible angle).

The third picture shows how the leg can stabilise the dummy if pushed a certain way, which is good. That means you can do some moves along that angle without fear of it falling once it topples.

The dummy is hollow and sounds like a plastic drum when you hit it on the body. I do not see you getting recoil issues into your wrist however. The Immortal Dummy is solid and you know about it if you elbow that. Here if you elbow this dummy with long sleeves on you can take it, and with the weighting I have the dummy will accommodate the force. Good - as I gave it a lateral kick on the leg and that was quite hard, and the dummy moved. (Phew - I was not thinking. If that had a full water base then a lateral kick would not be a good idea, possibly, but I think it would 'fold' a bit vs a direct crack. It could crack if you continually kicked that leg as hard as you can for ages and the plastic aged).

Conclusion after a few weeks use.
Yes I am glad I got this. The more I use it I can see its possibilities. The 2 sided idea is good, and gives you options that other dummies won't. I would not pay £300 for this. Maybe £200 I would pay. If you have paid £300+ for this, then providing you use it continually for 6 years, say two times a week for about 6 years then you will get your money back. (That is how I priced out the cost of my Immortal Dummy and I have got value out of it).
I managed to email the Taiwanese manufacturer and ask them if the plastic has been treated for Ultra Violet light and they said yes, it will withstand 5+ years outdoors. (This uses HDPE plastic - google it). I still put a cover on it - a long garden / rubble sack but I may not bother. I have this at the back of the garden. I could hang washing on it even!
The arms screw in. They are not really designed to be pulled to give that 'clack' sound. Same with the arms sat in the dummy. There is no 'gap' there so when you give it some fa ging energy you wont get that clack, if you want that sound. You maybe able to unscrew the arms a bit to get a gap but I think eventually the caps will fly off if not secured. You could try adding in your own arms but that would be involved as the gap is narrow for the arms like a broom-handle pole.

Conclusion II All Dummies are expensive. They become value for money if you use them. This one is worth having but has unique properties due to its hollow design. You could put pads on this and punch it very hard I think. You could have gloves on and give reasonably weighted strikes to the body. The arms will take hits and the legs seem to allow a sliding-off feeling to dissipate forces.

Conclusion III: if you want to learn forms on this, then it needs to be made as stable as possible. That means full water in the base. If that still is not good enough then put sand in rather that has more density. Or put sandbags on top of the base.
When the dummy moves however, I like the idea of chasing it, so this is not an issue for me.

Qi Gong 2 years on

Yay, I have been doing Qi Gong 2 years now.

I have kept up the 8 pieces of brocade and it is very rare to skip a whole day of that. I even do it twice a day sometimes. (I do that if I have flagging energy later in the day, or the first session was not that good - maybe I had not calmed my head enough perhaps but still carried on).

Benefits still to be had are warm hands. Circulation has got better. My room was 14.9 o C the other day and I was not really feeling discomfort. I have had migraines before when it has got to 15 o C and used to turn on heating when it was getting to 17 o C. < So good circulation is a plus then. My Sister had visited from overseas and she had twisted her ankle. I out my hands on her ankle and she noticed that the hands were warm. Good :> I cannot claim I healed her, however. I think ibuprofen helped her swelled ankle, rather.


I also picked up a new routine from a DVD by Michael Cohen. I got this DVD as it was cheap but had good reviews. Amazon.com in fact had so many good reviews I wanted to see what it was like. At first I was a bit skeptical as I am used to working with books where the theory is explained and then I seek out a DVD / video to watch the moves to complement the text. Here I gave it a good go.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gong-Fire-Water-Matthew-Cohen/dp/B000TGL9XC/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1513212556&sr=8-9&keywords=cohen+qigong

This video was interesting has he had 2 workouts. One fire and the other water. They last about 40 mins each so I could not do both. I chose 'water' as I wanted calm rather. I stuck with this and my legs got better at doing his shapes. This tired me but was helping me sleep. I started to recognise the moves in books I saw and this gave me more confidence in the routines. For instance Bruce Franzis's Tiger and Dragon book has moves that looked similar, so I knew these moves must be good; and possibly see where Cohen would have got his insights from. (Cohen's moves seem eclectic from various Qi Gong styles).

Cohen has shapes in his DVD that are like some of the poses from standing like a tree, which I had started out with. I used these and my knees did not hurt. Good. I do not really stand for long time as a tree however but to see some of the poses being re-used is reassuring. Overall my wu chi stance has got better. I know when I am in a good stance and it is having some calming effect on me, I really want to be able to say I can feel the qi moving about but do not want to be deluded. I can feel a fizzing in the hands sometimes when a session is 'good'. (Good means calm head and good breathing, no racing thoughts. NO rushed moves. Rushed moves is like a rushed dinner). I do get a feeling in the dan tien area and when I project the qi or think about moving it to my feet I can get a slight sinking feeling like I am going down a hill fast.

Even if this is just improved circulation and breathing that enough is good for well being effects, I feel. The stances have other benefits that can assist martial art balance.

I bought more books. I got one on the Qi Gong sounds and it came with a CD too. That is for the future. I need to do that properly or not at all. Same with Dragon and Tiger Qi Gong. That book looked very well written with good diagrams. I want the videos too that go with that. Again that needs research and full dedication to do and I have 2 things on the go already, so wont rush in a third routine.

I may take a jpeg of my books so far.

This is a good thing to get into. I should have done this earlier as health and mind are important. The control over your body is always good to get into and even minimal movements are hard to master with breathing and correct intent in the head too. [In fact I now see why in the Standing like a tree book the author  (see post Nov 2015) leaves it a year before you start imagining too, to accompany the moves. Doing all 3 things at once is not easy at all. The cow gazes back at moon with breathing and thought force is the hardest of all the moves I found and always have to concentrate extra hard for that one). Using colours to think and visualise with too adds variety. Green for the liver and dark blue for the kidneys for instance adds something to the thought patterns in the moves. (Each organ has its own colour).

If anyone reads my posts I would always welcome comments.