My Forms: GJFFK (Step 11)

11

Raise Hands, Double Cutting Palm

Prior to ending in the posture shown, inhale and raise the fists. Next as the hands are driven into the position, exhale while pushing the hand. This is not to be done in a powerful snapping motion, but slower and strongly.

The hands will end slightly outward from the body. The elbows are turned outward, and the palms are facing the floor. Also, the fingers will be pointed somewhat toward each other.

The stance remains unchanged and stable. 

I tend to think of this in several ways, but my favorite is in pressing down on a person attempting to drive in and tackle me. There are many other uses for this technique, but I like this application.

Random thoughts on the arts

In a comment on a previous article, someone mentioned that there is still the “art” in martial arts which must be considered. Not furthering on the comment, but rather using it as a point of departure…

 

This comment really made me start to think. One of the first things which popped into my mind is the old line that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”. Different people enjoy different types of dance, music, poetry, painting, etc. And so, there is a differing appeal to different people in the various offerings of the vast world of martial arts.

 

Since I assume that we are all, or mostly all adults here, I think that we can keep this conversation at a mature enough level to state openly that there is no superior martial art. Every martial art has its strengths and weaknesses. For me, Hung Gar works best for my body type and philosophical outlook. It’s fighting theories, strategies and techniques all work best for me

 

This is not to say that Aikido (or insert your chosen style into the sentence) sucks. I trained Aikido for a very short period of time in the mid 90’s and didn’t like it. But that only means it wasn’t right for me. As long as you enjoy the art you choose, that is all that matters.

 

That is enough about the “art” part. What about the “martial” part?

 

Well, then we start walking on rotten ice when we try to discuss that in a public forum. I will try to not name names of styles and instead just give, what I feel, are the requirements for an art to be classified as “martial”.

 

For a start, any art which wishes to be classified as a martial art should be something which is effectively usable by anyone regardless of gender, size or physical conditioning.

 

While there may be some who disagree with my very first point, I would like to insert a few notes. The word martial means war type. Invoking as it does the Roman God of War, Mars. Of course, war is definitely not for everyone, but there were times when the military had to take everyone in conscription. These people had to learn to fight and kill in a relatively short period of time. Most were not professional military; they were farmers, smiths and other tradesman. What they were taught had to be effective and easily learned.

 

When you try to evaluate any martial art, you need to ask a few questions.

 

• What specifically are you looking for? IN the world of martial arts, different people have different goals. Some people want to get in shape, while others are looking for a hobby. Some wish to compete, and others want to be able to defend their family.
• Is it safe to train in this system? Safety is a big concern to most of us. Especially when our martial art is a hobby, we do not want to use up all of our sick time recuperating from martial induced injuries.
• Is it effective? When you get down to the nuts and bolts of any martial art, if it is not an effective form of self defense, you will not train in it for long.

 

For any martial art to truly be a martial art, it must make use of the natural weapons of the body. It should minimize wasted effort and “fluff”. It should offer you a range of choices to fit the necessities of the situation (i.e. it wont kill the opponent accidentally). It need to train your body at a level of reflexive skill, as opposed to thought based self defense selection.

 

Any martial art “works”. This is a very general statement, but what I am getting at is that any training is better than no training at all. Training will develop confidence, outlook and skills in self defense – no matter the chosen style.

 

 

 

The 80/20 Rule

Vilfredo Pareto designed a mathematical formula to describe the grossly unequal distribution of wealth in his country. He discovered that 80% of the wealth was controlled by just 20% of the people. Later still, he observed that in his garden 20% of the peapods produced 80% of the peas.

After Pareto first made his observations and created this formula, others began to notice the same phenomena within their own fields of study. Dr. Joseph Juran, the creator of “Quality Management”, noted what he called the “vital few and the trivial many”. As a result of Juran’s writing, the observation that 20% of whatever is responsible for 80% of the results became known as “Pareto’s Principle”.

The 80/20 rule means that in anything you care to investigate, the few (20%) are vital, and the many (80%) are trivial. In Pareto’s original theory, 20% of the people owned 80% of the wealth. In Juran’s early work, he identified that 20% of the “defects” caused 80% of the problems. Any manager can tell you that 20% of whatever project you work on will consume 80% of the time spent on that project. It is possible to apply the 80/20 rule to almost anything.

Why should this matter to a martial arts instructor? Well, consider the following possibilities;

·        20% of your students will cause 80% of the problems

·        20% of your students will provide 80% of your successes

·        20% of your tournament competitors will bring home 80% of the trophies

·        80% of your instruction will be actualized by 20% of your students

There is more – 20% of what you work for in a day will bring you 80% of your results. The trick is to identify and focus on that 20%. When things start to feel like they are going out of control, remember this principle and focus on the important 20%!

References:

• Hartman, R. (2008). Taekwondo Tutor [Online]. Available: TKDTutor.com [2008].

My Forms: GJFFK (Step 10)

 

Opening to Horse Stance

The previous sections constitute the opening and Hei Gung (Qigong) section of the form.

There are three methods for opening into the horse stance. One is to take two circular steps (one with each foot), which will have the practitioner ending in the Horse. The other two are a measuring method involving a heels out/toes out, or vice versa. Some schools pull the heels first. Other schools move the toes out first. In my school, we go toes first. I have seen heated arguments about if the toes are supposed to go first or heels first. There is nothing to argue about. Simply perform the method you are taught!

Once you measure out your horse stance, sink into the stance. The Horse stance is something you should have trained since day one. Taught properly, you will not be struggling against gravity; your bones will lock into position, and there will be no struggle. This stance is believed to lower the energy (Qi), and from this lowered position, it is much easier to send it out to the arms (if you are esoterically inclined).

 

 

My Forms:GJFFK (Step 9)

9

Twist arm, return to original place

In this part of the form, the practitioner will collect and center his energy. From posture 8, close the open palm into a fist, bring the knuckles to the point where they are nearly touching and draw a circle with your fists. You will trace the bottom half of the circle first, and as the hands come toward your body and travel upward, inhale. After the hands reach the apex of the circle, you will exhale and sink your energy into the “Dan Tien”. At the end of this movement, your fists will be pulled into a chambered position at the sides.

On the martial side of things, if an attack were to be made against the practitioner during this moment, the fists would be rotating and falling in attack. One could easily change this from fists into palms, which opens up the applications from a strike into several Qin Na controlling techniques.