bruised wrote:if we are talking distinctions of sparing in say... MMA vs internal martial arts, consider the following:
sparing is a tool to help practitioners
those in MMA practice how to fight, or how to master the rules of the game.
MMA practitioners practice to better fight and win the game
what does an internal martial artist practice for?
to understand internal energy
how does one spar for internal energy? .
practice to become very sensitive to your (opponent's) energy
this means exaggerating what you feel from your opponent (for the sake and practice of all parties involved).
IMO, the distinctions in MMA vs IMA above are overstated. The MMA "game" can be used to test your ability to handle incoming energy. If your skills are lacking, you may experience serious consequences (e.g., a broken nose, ribs, arm, knocked unconscious, etc.). MMA practice also includes being sensitive to and handling non-compliant incoming forces or "energy."
bruised wrote:i mention this to help explain why CMA sparring looks "FAKE" and why videos of masters teaching students looks so ridiculous. the person receives the blow and instead of blocking the energy, exaggerates it to help become familiar with a version of it within themselves.
"Practice to become very sensitive to your (opponent's) energy" does not require "exaggerating" reactions. You are describing demonstration videos under demonstration rules, not sparring. Do you know of any videos where either the master or any of his students within the lineage are sparring using these internal skills against a non-compliant opponent?
One reason to "practice" a "martial" art is to be able to defend against someone trying to harm you (e.g., punch you in the face). Either you can handle the incoming force (yield, adhere, follow, etc.) or you get punched in the face, whether that be in a MMA ring or outside and whether the fighter is "internal" or "external." As johnwang stated,
johnwang wrote:In sparring, there is no "internal" or external involve but "strategy."
Besides practicing internal body movement and energy, there is fighting strategy. Per Bruce Frantzis, Yang Lu Chan believed strategy is important. Excerpt from Tai Chi for Martial Arts, http://www.energyarts.com/blog/bruce-fr ... rtial-arts:
Bruce Frantzis wrote:Sparring has a hundred times more variables to be handled than Push Hands. Yang Lu Chuan is said to have spend six years learning only the fighting and sparring strategies of tai chi.