Flow and Kuen

Been away and busy, sorry for the neglect.

Just a thought - I like to think of Kuen practice (or kata, form, etc) as 'ritualized combat' - sort of an 'in the perfect world' situation.

Then there are drills, exercises to bring the Kuen to life - add some resistance, timing, etc. to the practices.

TFT style practicing also brings this 'flow', this 'life', to the Kuen.

Together with bag work, conditioning, and even, yes, sparring, it starts to develop the martial artist to handle real world situations. I don't feel you can do any of these practices in isolation. There is a time and place for partner work, and a time and place for solo work.

Any comments?

Another great article from Mercop

Thoughts on pressure points and joint locks for SD

http://mail.myptsmail.com/mercop/blog/?p=434

I totally agree - use the locks to break things or to hold for a strike - or to affect a "barter" position, to paraphrase Mr. Keating.

India and Martial Arts

Not a long treatise on the origin of martial arts and the connections to Buddhism, etc. Just a couple of photos of a statue in Chennai (formerly known as Madras).

Great ideas

Here is a great view of self-defense - from a conceptual standpoint. Consider the use of deception and operational security to your advantage, also.

Survival Tactics in Nature
http://mail.myptsmail.com/mercop/blog/?p=422

Boxer rebellion era weapons, anyone?

I received an email from my Yau Kung Mun Sifu, asking if I knew anyone interested in purchasing weapons from the Boxer Rebellion time frame.
Anyone out there interested in hearing/learning more? I'll update as more information comes in.

TASER Issues

Just posted this on my other blog - www.yachtsecurity.blogspot.com. Relevant here also.
This from the Taser Blog - http://blog.taser.com/2009/08/the-taser-worked/.

The Taser is not a magic weapon. Use it as intended - to temporarily incapacitate an attacker. Then use other means to control the situation (further strikes, better cover position for firearms usage, etc.) or to move to another location (get off the X).

If interested, visit http://www.pamcompersonalsecurity.com/ and buy one (or more).

Mobility

Mobility - not referring to footwork or stances today.

Mobility is the ability of the body to move through ranges of motion. Easiest way to visualize this is to think of moving the joints of the body in circles - understanding physiology limitations of some joints (they just aren't made to move that way). this also includes loosening the spine (my tight back limits my bridging abilities - working on this).

I have a tight upper body, which limits mobility, and inhibits 'jing' to some degree. Better relaxation and range of motion helps to unlock the bodies abilities.

My YKM Brother Christer demonstrated some exercises - a martial application to what I have been looking at for health. Very cool stuff.

Thanks to all who read the blog, comments/input are welcome.