2013年_少林學習心得_新竹道場_龍在天_Why Kung Fu

[michelle]

Why Kung Fu
Kung-Fu is not a martial art like most of the competition combat sports. It’s relying mostly on self-training of basic body conditioning (練功) and from learning different forms (練拳). This process is hard and exhausting, and real result will take time to show up. For example, somebody can learns boxing really fast. With a good trainer and training program, he could perform well in competition after 1 year. As for learning how to punch using your internal strength, this process can take a decade.

So, why choosing Kung-Fu？ Well the basic answer is usually after practicing a competition based martial art for 20 years it takes huge toll on the body. As for Kung-Fu or other traditional style, the process is reversed. After 20 years, your body will never be this strong and healthy.

I can’t denied that learning Kung-Fu is complex and takes time, it’s not only about memorizing the forms sequences and performing it correctly, but also about being able to makes each movement powerful using your core.

Let's say when giving a punch, you want your core to be also participating in the movement. The easiest way to describe it is to think about your gravity center. Around that point (somewhere in your belly), you can use it for projecting more forces thru the rest of your body. Some will go to the ground making your stance strong and make you able to use your legs and foot power. The rest will go up thru your back and connect with your shoulders. At the end, the arm extension is just a question of reach rather than power. It will only make a small difference compared to the power generated by the core.

But punch is only one movement, you also can apply this to grabbing the head, ear, hair, arm, finger, pushing back,down,up, side way or even on two direction simultaneously. The main point of all those movements is keep you free to use any option for any situation, so you don’t rely on your technique but simply on your core strength. That’s my humble perception of what’s Kung-Fu, and that’s why it is so hard to achieve a high level in this art. Like they say 加油！