Seattle Wushu Center

Great weather for an "everyday clothing" self defense class! Everyone is learning what they can do, and finding what they have to modify with the clothing, shoes and accessories they have on a daily basis.

Now enrolling for Summer!

There will be those that say that traditional forms (kata, taolu, etc etc) have to no purpose other than dancing and unrealistic application.

Well, its useless for those that don't bother to break down and analyze the forms.

And, i'm aware that there's going to those with a "perfect" comeback to that.

Most knowledgeable martial artists (in traditional arts) know that the kata done in its traditional sense, obviously looks like it won't work in the street. And they also know that nobody in modern times will attack them in the exact ways necessary to fit the Kata. Plus they know other tricks such as "A step (i.e. step, or foot placement, or trapping someone's foot, etc) is a kick or knee strike, a kick is a step or knee, and a knee is a step or a kick." They explore the body mechanics that a form movement teaches, etc.

That being said, I'm guessing that any knowledgeable martial artist that cross trains in both a traditional and modern fighting art, can choreograph a traditional looking kata from a Judo throw or a standup strike to takedown, boxing or Muay Thai combination or a standup JuJitsu technique.

Just like seeing the tip of the iceberg, Kata is merely just what someone sees in the obvious sense....but it goes beyond the outward movement into a much larger mass.....it teaches practitioners how to analyze and breakdown the movements (Bunkai....i.e. "disassembly" or "analysis"). And people would be surprised that the actual application looks a little 'different" from the kata itself. A good practitioner sees what hip moves in a transition and where it moves. They see the importance of the the transitions between the moves, not just the ending move, plus much more!

However, the important thing is to apply to realistic progressive resistance....pressure test it! If it works for some attacks and not on others, note that and keep analyzing.

Please add your own additions to the "unseen" part of the iceberg.

"Upper & lower body in unity".....many may understand it consciously, however it takes years of training for the body to understand it.

Arms are bridges; they don’t generate power.

One of the easiest ways to tell if someone is practising the forms properly is to look at how the arms are integrated with the body when they generate power. Time and time again, I see practitioners, sometimes supposed masters as well, striking with the arms isolated from the body instead of generating power with the entire being. Your arms are the conduits to deliver power, not the generators.

There are three main ways of integrating power into your strikes:

1. The Drive: for example, in Boxing, power is driven from the feet, directed by the waist, and delivered through the fists. This is extremely effective and easy to see. This is why so many people limit themselves to the Boxing engine even when their arts require different engines at times (such as Wing Chun, Tai Chi, and Xingyi).

2. The Ballistic: arts such as Systema utilise this method extremely effectively. This is done by consolidating the forearm, wrist, and fist and “swinging” them into action. Have a look at how the battering ram is used, and you can see how the tool doesn’t generate power but the people swinging it do.

3. The Invisible: a hidden way to generate explosive power is done through the structural elasticity of the body. There are many ways; for example, one of my favourite ways is to draw power into the Dantian, direct it into the Mingmen, then spiral the power down into the heels and up into the eyes of the fists. Unfortunately, because this is hidden, while it is highly effective and instantaneous, it is rarely taught. If you try to copy the movements without knowing the internal pathways, you will never generate enough power to disrupt your opponent.

All these different engines are equally valid, but you must choose the correct engine according to the situation.

BTW, when you do the Jian, make sure you know how these engines are integrated into the movements. Please don’t just swing the Jian around like a stick.