[BlackFighter06]

I used to study Northern Longfist Shaolin Kung Fu, and regretfully stopped after about 1 and a half to 2 years. School was the main reason, though looking back, I probably could have stuck with it.

Anyways, there's no point in feeling useless regret about the past. I've decided to start training again. I remember the technique behind punches and kicks, I mainly just need to regain flexibility and power.

What I don't remember much of is forms. I'm really pissed about that, as that would have been how I could remember moves over time. I had learned one form of which the name escapes me, and I also learned Tan Tui (springy legs). I looked around on the internet, perhaps for some ebook that would refresh my memory of the order of the moves, and found something even better. It's a DVD that goes through 2 or 3 of the basic Long fist forms, Tan Tui included. Here's an amazon link:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg...s=dvd&n=507846

Anyways, I want to use this DVD to help relearn Tantui and the other form that I forgot. Do you guys think I could have success in this? I'd probably need some tweaking from a live person, but I think the fact that I'm somewhat familiar with what I'm learning might help me correct myself.

[xcal]

Hi BF6,

I've been training for aobut the same period, almost 2 years, and speak for myself when I say that attending class is the only way to truly learn the art. I sometimes think that I have the move just right, when my sihengs show me the bad habits that I've formed. There is no way that I would have picked these up by myself.

aside from forms, what are you really training for? Sparring is one of the essentials for me. I cannot imagine how one can train sparring alone. I do find friends to fool around with, but without supervision it is just that: fooling around.

HOWEVER, not having a good school around is a different matter altogether. It prevented me from joining MA for manymany years. A bad karate experience as a kid possibly made me too cautious...but I'm VERY happy with my school now.

sorry, I cannot make any educated comment about the particular DVD you asked about, but still believe that the old kung-fu movies where a student learns the lost styles from a mouldy manual htat he found behind a cupoard is good entertainment, but not real.

regards
Xcal

[BlackFighter06]

Originally Posted by xcal

Hi BF6,

I've been training for aobut the same period, almost 2 years, and speak for myself when I say that attending class is the only way to truly learn the art. I sometimes think that I have the move just right, when my sihengs show me the bad habits that I've formed. There is no way that I would have picked these up by myself.

aside from forms, what are you really training for? Sparring is one of the essentials for me. I cannot imagine how one can train sparring alone. I do find friends to fool around with, but without supervision it is just that: fooling around.

HOWEVER, not having a good school around is a different matter altogether. It prevented me from joining MA for manymany years. A bad karate experience as a kid possibly made me too cautious...but I'm VERY happy with my school now.

sorry, I cannot make any educated comment about the particular DVD you asked about, but still believe that the old kung-fu movies where a student learns the lost styles from a mouldy manual htat he found behind a cupoard is good entertainment, but not real.

regards
Xcal

Yeah, the main issue for me is that there's no really convenient KF schools in the area. The good ones are about an hour or more away in either direction. There are karate schools, but I'm really not interested.

Anyways, yeah, sparring is something I can't recreate on my own, though I occasionally get to spar with some friends.

I'm really just hoping to use the videos to learn the forms again. It would give me something to train with on my own in my free time, aside from just exercising and shadowboxing. Sure, I'd need some tweaking, but I'd proabbly have a good foundation on it.

And something that's always been on my mind regarding 'perfect forms': Why do they need all the slight tweakings? I know that some are there so during training when you hold the stances that you'll really feel it, but if you think about it, during fighting you won't be able to get in a perfect stance, nor would it hold any real advantage. So, considering that...the whole learning from an old manual idea isn't that far out. Again, it wouldn't replace an actual teacher, but assuming you trained and sparred and figured out applications, then I see no problem.

Well, there's no point in just speculating. I bought the DVD...I'll report back.

[xcal]

hahaha,

yes, I know what you mean. I own a collection of tai-chi books which attempt to teach me the real deal

My question of the 'perfect' form is:
"How can we expect to perform properly in a stressfull fight situation if we cannot do the proper form in a relaxed environment?"

I would really like to know what you think of the DVD.

I can honestly say that I really enjoyed my tai-chi books(and still browse through them), but didn't learn anything usefull...except I recently recognised a few moves that I saw my Sifu do in a demonstration. The major benefit from the books(and kung-fu movies...good,bad and ugly) has been the boost to my morale when I miss class for a few weeks, then find it hard to get back....a marathon weekend of 'crouching tiger...', 'hero','kill bill 1/2','claws of steel',etc get me ready for class I can't wait for "unleashed" to hit the DVD shelves!

regards
xcal

[BlackFighter06]

Originally Posted by xcal

hahaha,

yes, I know what you mean. I own a collection of tai-chi books which attempt to teach me the real deal

My question of the 'perfect' form is:
"How can we expect to perform properly in a stressfull fight situation if we cannot do the proper form in a relaxed environment?"

I would really like to know what you think of the DVD.

I can honestly say that I really enjoyed my tai-chi books(and still browse through them), but didn't learn anything usefull...except I recently recognised a few moves that I saw my Sifu do in a demonstration. The major benefit from the books(and kung-fu movies...good,bad and ugly) has been the boost to my morale when I miss class for a few weeks, then find it hard to get back....a marathon weekend of 'crouching tiger...', 'hero','kill bill 1/2','claws of steel',etc get me ready for class I can't wait for "unleashed" to hit the DVD shelves!

regards
xcal

Just got the DVD today

It's really good, and has quite a bit of material. It goes through the basic Shaolin stances (horse, bow, golden rooster, tame the tiger, etc. etc.), has history, and 3 sequences: Gong Fu Quan, Lian Bu Quan, and Tan Tui. I bought the DVD for Tan Tui, but I really like the other 2 forms, so I'm going to learn those too.

For each form, it goes through them twice in slow execution, and once at regular speed. It also tells you some key things to remember when doing the form, and the best part is it has an extensive section following each form that tells you techniques and application. I believe there are about 70 techniques per form. Some of the moves are really cool. There's the standard block and strike type stuff, but there are also some nice locks and throws and takedowns. I've actually seen some of those techniques in my Kali/Jujitsu training, so it makes me wonder whether the sifu in the DVD is familiar with those arts and incorporated them, or if Kung Fu originally had such techniques. I don't really care..they still are badass techniques.

My only complaint thus far is that it doesn't really break down the actual movements of the form. It breaks down the stances, but it's not always clear how you're body should be positioned at various parts in the forms. I'm familiar with the parts of the forms, so I can improvise, but I would imagine that a pure beginner would have more problems.

Well, I recommend it. Good luck.

[Dirty_Irishman]

Originally Posted by xcal

but still believe that the old kung-fu movies where a student learns the lost styles from a mouldy manual htat he found behind a cupoard is good entertainment, but not real.

Actually if you've seen Fighter in the Wind, which is a slightly exaggerated biography on Mas Oyawa(?) the founder of Kyokushin Karate. He went into the mountains for 18 months and trained what he knew and studied a variety of texts, mainly the Book of Five Rings. When he came out of the mountains he won Japan's first national martial arts contest (though in the movie he just goes from school to school kicking the crap out of all the masters and shutting down their schools).

But learning how to fight from a DVD probably isn't a good idea. What I have been thinking about though is getting the DVDs on styles I don't have access too or that I wouldn't spend a lot of money studying and seeing if they don't have a few techniques I can borrow. Like Krav Maga which would compliment my Silat, or Sambo to help my grappling. Maybe even the learn at home Ninjitsu for grins and giggles.

[xcal]

Hi BF6,

I'm glad that you're enjoying it GREAT STUFF.

D_I
I trained kyokushinkai for over a year as a kid(cried in almost every lesson...more tears in the gym and less blood in the fight) so have some interest in Mass Oyama...altough by no means an expert on him. I know that he was a fully recognised master at a young age and think that his self-journey into the mountains was after he was really good at karate. I WILL hunt for this movie

BTW, the book of 5 rings has more of a philosophical nature, than technique application.

regards
Xcal

[Dirty_Irishman]

The bio I read on him said that at age 12 he left Korea and moved to Japan where he was taken in by a Japanese family and that's why he changed his name to Mas Oyama. It said that a servant or gardener or some other worker for his family in Korea taught him some Goju Ryu until he left. Then in Japan he studied Judo, one or two more forms of Karate, and picked up Goju Ryu again. Then he went to the Army, Japan lost the war of course, he felt so ashamed for the loss that he didn't know what to do with himself. That's when he started training more heavily. They said he was only like 20 something when he went into the mountains. Then after 18 months he beat the crap out of everyone, decided he wasn't done training and that there was no competition anyway, so he went back into the mountains for another 18 months. When he came back is when he started fighting bulls. He killed 3 with his bare hands, after deciding killing them was too easy he started just knife handing their horns off. A total of 50+ bulls, before he stopped. Like I said though the movie is highly fictionalized to make him look more like a super hero, of course it was made by Koreans so they're going to hype him up the same way we do with our heroes (and villians) in America.

And while the Book of 5 Rings is more about the philosophy of fighting I've found that after reading it my fighting imporved greatly, and even more so after the second reading. There's alot in there that you find is a reference to the training you're doing. You may not catch it the first read, but you should actually read it regularly. You'll find there's always something that applies to you if you look at it right.

And Blockbuster carries Fighter in the Wind in the forgein film section here, so I would imagine that pretty much any Blockbuster would have it in a larger city.

[nbotary]

BF06 - where are you located? Bloodybirds and I study Longfist with Sifu Jeff Bolt here in Houston.

[BlackFighter06]

Originally Posted by nbotary

BF06 - where are you located? Bloodybirds and I study Longfist with Sifu Jeff Bolt here in Houston.

I'm in Chicago. There are schools here, but they're all on the other side of the city .

And fyi to the poster who said this, I'm not learning to 'fight' from the tapes, but rather refreshing my memory, and looking at techniques. I understand the mechanics of a punch, a kick, a block, etc. from my previous training, and the various sweeping and locking techniques that I didn't learn previously, I can learn and practice now. I mean, if you're practicing with a person who's attacking you realistically, and you're doing the move correctly, you can't really go wrong.