My Training Schedule This Week

[Bao]

As you wanted questions and discuss ....

Sanshou Xitong - A group of 12 techniques done standing in Zhanzhuang, 16 repetitions of each

What kind of techniques?

How long do you stand in zhanzhuang?

I've already explained these a year ago.. When training with and without weights about forty minutes or so.

So after all you don't want to answer questions when you get them? ....

Do you have a link to the post about one year ago?

What kind of techniques? Solo or partner?

[windwalker]

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

good stuff maartenSF

living the dream, your training looks good, fun, interesting.

ropes 01:00

[vadaga]

Do you climb the rope as well? Helps a lot with the pulling power, and the general beastliness.

I generally do a rope climb during my bouldering gym workouts... feels good when you one can keep core control and do the negative phase properly

[MaartenSFS]

Thanks Windwalker. In some respects I am living the dream. In others, Hell. Especially in the winter with no heating and driving my motorbike (because that's all I can afford) out into near-freezing (sometimes freezing) fog before seven in the morning... Or in the summer when I sweat so much in the humidity that I create rivers and lakes at the training area and shoot jets of it in random directions when I Fajin and scare the populace..

And that's not to mention the deteriorating environment these years or the constant struggle to survive and extend my visa, a nasty divorce etc...

[Bao]

Nope, searched here and Googled. Would be interesting to hear more details on the practice.

And that's not to mention the deteriorating environment these years or the constant struggle to survive and extend my visa, a nasty divorce etc...

Tough...

[northern_mantis]

Really enjoyed the documentary, thank you. But what happens when those guys put on the gloves at 4.12!!!

Looks like you have really eaten bitter, hopefully you will reap the rewards and enjoy the relative luxury when you return. Good inspiration for my training albeit I'm not really interested in fighting any more. Good stuff. Out of interest how old are you? It's quite hard to tell.

[northern_mantis]

Sorry, could have just looked at your profile for your age. Doh!

[Bao]

No, Maarten don't want to discuss or explain anything. I suppose he only answer to people who kiss his ass...



(I know this whole post is a waste of time. Either he won't read it or the words are just going right out through the ear)

I didn't comment the schedule... But.... Sparring a lot is great, and learning Go from a nice teacher is fun. But IMHO, it seems very scattered, unfocused and seems to completely lack foundation practice. 3x3 minutes tai chi? What's the point? How could that be of any martial value? For a change: Practice Santishi at least 3x20 minutes everyday, or do one single punch 1000 times a day on a bag. Or why not start doing JWs tree hanging? Why don't you combine sparring with building some Gongfu? Seems like you are just fooling around and wasting a whole lot of time.

But the youtube vids is a good idea. But a good idea is to put in a good amount of time building some genuine gongfu first.

[johnwang]

put in a good amount of time building some genuine gongfu first.

MaartenSFS, as Bao has pointed out. What's your "看家本领 - door guarding (bread and butter)" skills that you have developed so far? I have asked the same question to many of my friends. Most people could not answer my simple question like this. IMO, if through our entire life that we can't develop some skills that we can use to guide our life, our MA training can be a big failure.

[chenyaolong]

put in a good amount of time building some genuine gongfu first.

MaartenSFS, as Bao has pointed out. What's your "看家本领 - door guarding (bread and butter)" skills that you have developed so far? I have asked the same question to many of my friends. Most people could not answer my simple question like this. IMO, if through our entire life that we can't develop some skills that we can use to guide our life, our MA training can be a big failure.

I really like this quote John....really good point.

However, my current view, and I know most of you will disagree, is that now I have around 3 more years living in China, I want to learn as much as I can. When I leave I will have plenty of material to work on myself, and to teach. The things I decide I like, I will practice as my bread and butter, and the things I feel are unnecessary, well other people may want them and can practice them as their bread and butter.

Looking back at many wasted opportunities in my life, now I feel it is better to have something I don't need and can throw away, than to later regret not having it at all.

[dspyrido]

put in a good amount of time building some genuine gongfu first.

MaartenSFS, as Bao has pointed out. What's your "看家本领 - door guarding (bread and butter)" skills that you have developed so far? I have asked the same question to many of my friends. Most people could not answer my simple question like this. IMO, if through our entire life that we can't develop some skills that we can use to guide our life, our MA training can be a big failure.

What is meant by the statement "door gaurding" skills? What are your's jw?

As for genuine gongfu skills - I know a fair number of guys who can fight well and have no concept of "gongfu". I think gongfu should only be obsessed over after a good grounding in sparring is understood. Not the other way around. Then the gongfu is developed based on knowing what is the preferred method.

[Bao]

As for genuine gongfu skills - I know a fair number of guys who can fight well and have no concept of "gongfu". I think gongfu should only be obsessed over after a good grounding in sparring is understood. Not the other way around. Then the gongfu is developed based on knowing what is the preferred method.

The main point is about how you want to spend your time and what goals you have.

If you have a whole lot of time to spend, how would you spend it?
Would you try to learn one or two skills or practice 100 things at once?

If music were your interest and you had 6-8 hours a day to practice, would you choose one or two instruments or would you try to practice as many instruments as possible? I know that great musicians are mostly known for playing one sort of instrument. Never heard of great orchestra players who changed instruments between them.

Mr M seems to have a lot of sparring experience. In your world, how much experience do you need before learning foundation or finishing skills? IMHO, being an ok fighter it doesn't mean that you have excellent finishing skills. And IMO, practicing finishing skills goes hand in hand with sparring.

[johnwang]

What is meant by the statement "door guarding" skills? What are your's jw?

As for genuine gongfu skills - I know a fair number of guys who can fight well and have no concept of "gongfu". I think gongfu should only be obsessed over after a good grounding in sparring is understood. Not the other way around. Then the gongfu is developed based on knowing what is the preferred method.

The "door guarding" skills are the skill that you can use it to "finish" a fight. I have told all my students that if they have learned

- head lock,
- single leg, and
- hay-maker,

from me, they can leave and find themselves another teacher. IMO, the fighting strategy will depend on the "door guarding" skills? For example, in order to take my opponent down with "head lock", I have worked on

- octopus strategy,
- rhino guard strategy,
- double spears strategy, and
- zombie arms strategy.

My purpose is to move my arms to be inside of my opponent's arms when he attacks me or when I attack him. As long as I can use my "head lock" to bend my opponent's spine side way, I can take him down. So for the rest of my life. I just want to concentrate on the stuff that I want to work on and ignore the rest. Since "Fajin - power generation" is not important for both "head lock" and "single leg", I will not spend too much time in it. I may still train tornado kick, jumping kick,... just for "health".

I have also trained 16 different ways to get "single leg" and 8 different ways to "finish". I had used it to take down 7 guys in a role in one Chicago SC tournament. Since it was my 1st bread and butter move that I have developed, I also want to maintain it through my old age.

The last one is the "hay-maker". I have used it to knock down many opponent in challenge fights before. It's the only move from my striking art that I want to maintain.

The main point is about how you want to spend your time and what goals you have.

I still remember that my teacher forced me to use "single leg" only for 6 months. In that 6 months, I was not allowed to do anything else but to use "single leg" on the mat against different opponents over and over. After that 6 months, I started to learn how to use single leg to set up:

- downward pulling,
- inner hook,
- twist spring,
- ...

I know a SC guy in Taiwan who had spent 2 years in "hip throw" and nothing else. Later on he won Taiwan national SC tournament.

IMO, if you want to train as a "fighter", to master few moves is the only way. From the striker point of view, if you can use your 45 degree downward hay-maker to knock down most of your opponent, that will be your "door guarding" move too. Your opponent punches at your face, you use a 45 degree downward hay-maker that deflect his head punch, hit on the side (or back) of his head, and knock him down. That will be nice.

[yeniseri]

put in a good amount of time building some genuine gongfu first.

MaartenSFS, as Bao has pointed out. What's your "看家本领 - door guarding (bread and butter)" skills that you have developed so far? I have asked the same question to many of my friends. Most people could not answer my simple question like this. IMO, if through our entire life that we can't develop some skills that we can use to guide our life, our MA training can be a big failure.

What is meant by the statement "door gaurding" skills? What are your's jw?

As for genuine gongfu skills - I know a fair number of guys who can fight well and have no concept of "gongfu". I think gongfu should only be obsessed over after a good grounding in sparring is understood. Not the other way around. Then the gongfu is developed based on knowing what is the preferred method.

Since we are on a CMA forum of some kind, it is understood that many people have no concept of gongfu but excel at it. I noticed that the zhanzaquan! clip had people trying to emulate boxing but they were definitely lagging in basic conditioning.
Door guarding is basically an individual's reportoire on handling his adversary e.g. if someone attacks my face, do I try to block, evade, kick, spin then block, protect head to box ears. etc It isn't specal but if you have no strategy then the door is wide open

[dspyrido]

As for genuine gongfu skills - I know a fair number of guys who can fight well and have no concept of "gongfu". I think gongfu should only be obsessed over after a good grounding in sparring is understood. Not the other way around. Then the gongfu is developed based on knowing what is the preferred method.

The main point is about how you want to spend your time and what goals you have.

If you have a whole lot of time to spend, how would you spend it?
Would you try to learn one or two skills or practice 100 things at once?

If music were your interest and you had 6-8 hours a day to practice, would you choose one or two instruments or would you try to practice as many instruments as possible? I know that great musicians are mostly known for playing one sort of instrument. Never heard of great orchestra players who changed instruments between them.

Mr M seems to have a lot of sparring experience. In your world, how much experience do you need before learning foundation or finishing skills? IMHO, being an ok fighter it doesn't mean that you have excellent finishing skills. And IMO, practicing finishing skills goes hand in hand with sparring.

In cma I've seen people who can:
- take on a low horse stance for a good duration and can deploy nice kicks and fail to apply them
- can implement their forms and have body methods that look good and dont know distancing
- can stick and flow and yet cant seem to do anything when grabbed and lifted
A basic grasp of combat skills should take a few years to know how to strike and grapple. After that the specialisation can come based on the personal preference of "instrument". Some love to grapple others to strike but failing to get one side without awareness of the other is going to be exposing. Pursuing a body method early on without an awareness on combat applicability is also futile. It's like having a great engine and missing the rest of the car.