BODYBUILDING NUTRITION BASICS

One of the most shocking things in the martial arts is how instructors let themselves go. By this I mean, after they reach a certain point, they never get any more instruction for themselves. The idea here is that you know everything, and all you have to do now is polish it, perfect it, and time will be your teacher.

This concept, of course, is ridiculous. Yes, time will make a person better, but what will improve a person faster is getting more data. Imagine a computer which never inputs any further data and my case becomes obvious.

So you need more data if you are going to get better, and you need to make mental connections with other arts. For instance, if you’ve got a black belt in Karate, a course in Aikido is going to open your mind up. At the end of every karate technique, once you understand what Aikido really is, you can make additional techniques.

And, if you’ve got some good hard Kung Fu, the next step is exploring the internal schools of Kung fu. Aside from improving your understanding of the martial arts, you now have more to offer students and prospective students. This is going to result in better quality of instruction, and it’s going to be a lot of fun besides.

Now, let’s say you don’t have access to an aikido school, or a Wudan school, what do you do? Well, you read the magazines and the books, and this goes a long way. But the real key to improvement is in DVD courses.

You can pick up a course on an entire art, sometimes for as little as ten bucks a DVD, and you can lay on your couch and get up and practice to your hearts content. I used to buy so many arts at my supply store the owner gave me an automatic, good customer, ten per cent discount. And I would spend my late evenings and weekends analyzing and dissecting new arts until I had them totally cold.

When I walked into my kung fu school on a Monday morning, I always had a kettle full of great ideas. Students were always wondering how I cam up with so many great ideas, and they were always blown out by the twists and interpretations I could give the same old same old forms and techniques. I tell ya, when people were bowing to me, they were bowing to superior knowledge by disk, and that can happen to any instructor!

Now, when you pick out an instructional Martial Arts DVD, make sure it deals with an entire art, and not just an overview, an overview is nothing more than an advertisement, there is rarely any meat to this kind of DVD. And, make sure you pick up a new DVD every month, you need to make a project out of this, and not a whim. Martial Arts DVDs are one of the best ways to learn that I know of, I tell you, if you are an instructor, it is imperative that you keep improving yourself, and DVDs are the best and most fun way to do that.

Al Case has studied more than 21 Fighting Disciplines in depth. He has packaged these arts in intense DVD courses such as the Evolution of Art course and Butterfly Pa Kua Chang. Drop by Monster Martial Arts for a sample and a free ebook.

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The era of the extreme and real gung fu was about 1975 to 1985, give or take a few years. Of course, the time period could probably include the time period of 1985 to 1995, because that is when those movies hit the all night movie channels. And, of course, chop sockies forever, because we can now get them on the internet, though we should make sure it is a clean copy and that we have a good DVD player.

One could make argument that Bruce Lee provided the first kung fu flick, and they wouldn’t be wrong, for his movies started the flood of kung fu flicks in America. The first real chop sockie, however, would have to be Five Fingers of Death, with the amazing and inspiring Lo Lieh. Lo Lieh, who thrust his broken fingers into cauldrons of red hot rocks until he could have his revenge.

The main chop sockie movie maker, though there were hundreds, would be the Shaw Brothers. They churned out hundreds of the things, and they convinced the world that if you had an idea and dedicated yourself, you could learn gung fu. The main man of Shaw Brothers was a fellow name of Gordon Liu.

Gordon Liu knew real gung fu, and rumor has it he was adopted into a family of movie makers. One brother was the director of his magnificent masterworks, and the other brother was involved with stunt work. I think that was how it all worked out.

Among his masterpieces, and I will name three of them here, was The Master Killer, also known as Thirty Six Chambers of Death. Mr. Liu always played endearing fools, tilting at windmills, who, through Kung Fu, managed to win in the end. The Master Killer was his entry into the field, and it propelled him right to the top.

One of his gems was Return to the 36th Chamber, where he plays, surprise of surprises, an endearing fool. The plot is silly, the acting is farcical, but the idea that one can learn kung fu from the common tasks of life is incredible. And, when our bumbling fool returns to his village, entirely disillusioned, only to find out what those nefarious monks have done to him…well, the phrase ‘I Do Know Kung Fu’ becomes a clarion call and inspiration to all kung fu students everywhere.

My favorite of Gordon Liu’s movies is an obscure gem entitled Fists of the White Lotus. Our endearing fool is betrayed, practices his kung fu for ten years so he can have revenge, only to find out that the bad guy has also had ten years to practice his kung fu. This movie inspired Bak Mei of Kill Bill fame (played by Gordon Liu) and far outshadows such movies as Crouching Tiger and Kill Bill and that ilk.

The originals flicks, you see, provide innocence and inspiration that cannot be refuted. You want to learn the real stuff of real Shaolin gung fu? Go find these movies, watch them and be inspired, and live life the way real heroes live it.

Al Case has forty+ years martial arts experience. You can pick up a free ebook at Monster Martial Arts. Find out about http://www.monstermartialarts.com/Shaolin_Butterfly.html while you are there.

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The four main practices used to achieve enlightenment are the way of the fakir, the way of the monk, the way of the yogi, and the way of the martial artist. In this bit of scribbling we shall go over what is special about the way of the warrior. After all, enlightenment is probably a pretty nifty thing to reach, and it would be a good idea to speed up any individuals progress on the way to enlightenment.

It is said, of the four paths to enlightenment, that the way of the warrior is the fastest. This is an interesting look at things enlightenment, for one would think that a path dedicated to things war would be the slowest. After all, learning how to maim and kill would seem antithetical to pursuing enlightenment.

First, the warrior deals with the things of the world. He does not turn his attention inward to seek enlightenment, but does his seeking in a much more overt manner, seeking out conflict and learning to deal with it. This entails, ultimately, giving up the desire for conflict, none of the other disciplines seek out conflict in this manner.

Second, the warrior deals with the real world. We could argue about what is real, but in lieu of that mental exercise let’s just say that the universe is constructed of objects in motion. The warrior is the only traveler of the four that deals directly with a universe filled with objects in motion.

Third, the warrior is much more adamant in sticking to his discipline of choice. I say this because the discipline of studying the martial arts requires an active mindset. Simply, the warrior has something to do on his way to enlightenment, the other disciplines are more concerned with doing nothing.

Fourth, there is a built in guiding factor in the way of the martial artist. Simply, if a technique does not function, the result will be noted as a punch in the face. This ‘feedback’ device tends to make the artist more demanding in his seeking of perfection and enlightenment.

To conclude, let me say that every path has its strengths and weaknesses. Heck, you knew that. So the point of this article is not to speak ill of other disciplines, merely to point out how glorious the one you are immersed in is.

You are the one; you are the karateka and the shaolinist and the aikidoist and…the Tai Chi-ist. You follow a path, and you are in a hurry, no matter how slow you think you move, to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Godspeed.

Al Case has studied gung fu for 40 years. If you want to see How Far the Martial Arts Can Go, pick up a free book at Monster Martial Arts.

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There is one thing, and one thing only, that will always stop a martial artist from reaching the True Martial Art. That one thing is called simply…distraction. To the degree that one is not distracted, to that degree he will realize his goals, and to that degree he achieves the True Art.

When one learns the martial arts one learns these strange patterns called forms. On the surface, the form is nothing but an encyclopedia of technique, of having a curriculum which will teach him higher and higher ranges of art, and lead him to deeper and deeper depths. It is under the surface, however, through the refusal of distractions that one must seek the True Martial Art.

When one can refuse to have his attention wander in the middle of form one is cultivating his discipline. When one focuses only on the moves within the form, and does not allow himself to be sidetracked, then he is building concentration. The end result of these endeavors is to be able to keep awareness in the universe of the form, and not in the universe of trees and bushes and rocks and twigs and such.

The bits and pieces of the form, the technical applications, are the middle ground of refusing distraction. This area, applying technique to a willing opponent, bridges from perfect thought inherent in the form to the perfect idea even in the middle of chaos. When one holds to the physics of combat, holds to his mental concentration, holds to the truths he has learned about his fellow man even in combat, then one is approaching a distraction free existence.

It is in the fact of kumite, however, that one must determine his most adamant refusal of the distractions of the real universe. One must focus on the other fighter, refuse the intrusions of a random world, and build the truth of his own awareness. When one lives as if in a tunnel when fighting his opponent, and can hold to the construction of that tunnel no matter the occurrence, then one has found the True Martial Art.

These three arenas, forms, technique and freestyle, are the arena of the true art. To the extent that one refuses distraction, that one becomes pure and able to hold to concentration and awareness, to this extent one enters the True Martial Art. The real key, to all this, however, lies in the realization of one important factor.

The universe goes backward. It is not the debris of the universe that offer distraction, it is the knowledge that one must not go towards a distraction free existence with effort, but, rather, but relax so that no distractions can find purchase in the soul. It is the emptiness of the universe, perceived by the individual free of internal strife, that makes up the Path of the True Art.

Al Case has more than 4O+ years training in the martial arts. you can pick up a good and free ebook on how to become distraction free at his site, Monster Martial Arts.

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The martial arts have long been held up as a way to enlightenment. Indeed, this is the goal at the end of the road of The True Martial Art. This article is about why this is so, and to enable the reader to walk to the end of that road all the sooner.

Enlightenment is when light shines forth from the individual. With that light the enlightened being views the world differently. His perceptions are heightened, and he has a superior viewpoint.

If enlightenment happened because of motion, then the fact of motion would result in enlightenment. Gymnastics, ballet, football, all would result in an enlightened individual, but they don’t, so one must ask oneself, what is it about the Martial Arts that they result in enlightenment?

What is different is that there is fighting, and when one understands what fighting truly is, one becomes enlightened. What is the essence of this thing called fighting? One could sum up the subject by saying that when one finally understands that when he is fighting he is only fighting himself, he becomes enlightened, and a study of the martial arts does result in this realization.

The universe, you see, is a playing field rich with moving objects. Every object in the universe has a direction to its mass. It is only in the martial arts that one actually engages in the study of the trajectory of flying objects as the one who creates the direction of those flying objects.

A fist flies through space at you, and you go through a range of emotions. Eventually, you give up emotions so that you can better analyze the flight of the fist. Thus, you rise above base reaction and become cause over the motion of the universe.

A person threatens you, he holds a knife and approaches you, and you must divine the direction before it manifests. You must look at the world the way it exists, and not through some fantasy, and thus you look at the world you created. Thus, you rise above being the flotsam and jetsam of a universe awash with random motion, and thus you take control of the motions of the universe.

There is no motion in this universe, you see, that you have not created. That star shines for you, because of you, if it wasn’t for you, there would be no purpose for that star to shine. And through the tempering of form, the steeling of will, the martial artist engages in combat, to give up combat and become what he truly is, an enlightened being free to enjoy the universe.

Al Case has practiced martial arts for 4O++ years. A writer for the magazines, he had his own column in Inside Karate. He is the originator of the church of the martial arts, and you can find out about the path to enlightenment by ordering his free ebook at Monster Martial Arts.

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Taido was the brainchild of Seiken Shukumine. He started this Japanese martial art form in 1965. The meaning of Taido karate is “way of the body, and it is based on an older Okinawan fighting method known as Te. This was not the only time that Shukumine had developed a unique martial arts style. When he was only 25, he created a new kind of karate that was known as Gensei-Ryu.

Karate and other martial arts had been popular in the West for a number of years. In those years, prior to Taido, most practice was very basic and the common techniques for this “empty handed” style of fighting remained essentially unchanged. yet, peoples perception of martial arts was going through a transition and Shukumine was a student of philosophy and noticed what needed to be altered as far as how old-style karate styles of training were concerned.

Shukumine thought that there were some issues with karate that limited the way it could be applied and learned. There wasnt enough creativity and independence and the repetitions of the essential punches and kicks would quickly cease to challenge most trainees.

Older martial arts techniques involved set and uninspired movements. Karate didn’t change over the years with new methods and instructions that were given to the students.

Shukumine saw that a martial art would be accepted as a defensive art form if he could conceive a way to include more adaptable movements and innovations. He wanted to provide students the chance to become inspired by their training and this required that the work and instructor had to inspire them. These thoughts became the driving force that would lead him to create Taido karate. Before he founded Taido, Seiken Shukumine developed a martial arts form that is still practiced today called Genseiryu. This was universal in its appeal, but still he knew that he could do more.

He felt that he would have to update traditional karate movements and training methods, and finally in 1965 his new Taido karate form opened. Taido was a modern, unique form of martial arts that includes many aerial moves. It requires a student to make use of twists, spins, speed and changing angles of the body. Shukumine’s hope was to use Taido karate to promote the study and training of karate and other martial arts.

The purpose of Taido is to improve the awareness of the students who practice this martial arts form. Shukumine had one ultimate goal as far as the study of Taido karate was concerned. He wanted to be able to help all Taido practitioners reach their highest potential in all aspects of their lives.

Taido Principles

Taido practitioners must make sure that their mind is calm and relaxed. The mind needs to be as reflective as a polished mirror. Then they can understand the very heart of any situation. If the mind is kept calm and clear it will keep a student from being confused.

Taido teaches students that the mind and body must be harmoniously composed. They must work together as a single entity. When a person acts in the right manner, any type of threats will not worry him.

Taido students are taught to learn to call upon the inner spirit that is at the core of their being. Once a Taido karate practitioner has achieved this level, they will cease to experience any anxiety of confrontation or battle.

If a Taido student follows these actions, they will always manage to act in an honorable and right manner.

Taido teaches creativity, adaptability and flexibility in both movements and ideas. When a person has the correct moves, their opponents cannot best them.

Basic Techniques of Taido

Sen- Taido movements that involve vertical spinning. Un - movements making use of wave like motion that ascends and descends. Hen - kicks that involve a toppling motion resulting in changes to the axis of the body. Nen - movements with horizontal spinning. Ten - tumbling or flipping motions.

Besides the punches and kicks, there are two different ways to execute the strikes. Unsoku - fast and strategic footwork for controlling space and angle to the opponent. Unshin - propulsion movements that are acrobatic in nature and dont involve actual stepping on the floor.

Taido Tournaments

There are some unique types of Taido Karate competitions that students can participate in. Jissen is the act of sparring, Taido style. Taido forms are called Hokei - closely related to kata in Karate. Tenkai- these are routines that are enacted by teams of Taido members in which the central hero must stand against five of his “opponents” and show challenging or new techniques.

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As the awareness about the benefits of taking Karate lessons is increasing, more and more people are turning towards learning Karate. Karate lessons can have life changing effect on practitioners. There are several advantages of practicing Karate as a discipline, some of them are: The stances and moves in Karate increase hand eye coordination and body reflexes. This is helpful in improving the driving skills of the adults and agility in kids. Karate lessons increase the ability to focus and concentrate in children and adults alike. If you are looking for an exercise that help you reduce weight and maintain a lean muscular structure, then Karate is an ideal art form to learn. Karate lessons give you an invaluable self defense weapon that is there with you all the time. Besides increasing power and strength, karate lessons induce tremendous positive energy in you and increase your overall physical and mental well being. Karate lessons provide an outlet to the stress and tension that builds up in the routine of the daily life. Karate is an excellent form of exercise which can not only help to reduce and maintain a healthy weight but also increase bodily flexibility.

For those of you who are serious about taking up Karate lessons and are resident of briery Hill, there are several clubs offering professional and hobby Karate lessons at Briery hill.

Whether you are interested in taking Karate lessons yourself or want your kid to take one, there is one just right for your at Briery Hill. The main features of Karate lessons at Briery Hill are:

You or your kid can take Karate lessons at Briery hills that just suit your interest. There are hobby karate lessons and professional Karate lessons at Briery hills that you or your kid can enroll for. For competitive Karate enthusiasts there are Kata (patterns and form of moves) and Kumite lessons (kicking and punching technique) lessons.

Most of the instructors delivering the Karate lessons are cleared by CRB (Criminal record board) to work with children. Some Karate clubs imparting the Karate lessons at Briery hill also provide full insurance to the students to safeguard their interest in any event of mishap.

Some Karate clubs imparting the Karate lessons at Briery hill also have Physical trainers on board who guide the students about healthy diet and weight management practices to help them enhance their performance.

No age is underage and no age too old to start taking up the Karate lessons at Briery Hill. From four year olds to adults of any age can start taking up the Karate lessons at Briery hill. Children with special needs such as those having problems in learning, hyperactivity and attention deficit hyper activity disorder (ADHD) are even clinically advised to take Karate lesson because of the structured nature of the training techniques.

Karate as a discipline is a holistic approach towards overall personality development. It not only teaches a combat style but also a way to live. If you have been thinking about taking karate lessons for long, this is the right time to get into the action.

If you are interested in karate classes briery hill or karate lessons briery hill then you may want to consider PCkarate

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For a punch to be effective there are several necessary items. There must be sufficientfocus to a precise spot in space. It must be void of energy.

You heard me right, a punch must be empty. Most people know that the word Karate means ‘Empty Hands.’ Most people have assumed, from this, that you won’t be using weapons, but they are wrong. What the phrase really means is that the hand has no mass, that it is actually empty in a physics sense.

It is an interesting sensation to strike with no mass. Taken to its highest and purest altitude, it means that you do not feel the strike, and this is possible. This would mean that you are not really inside the body, and you are throwing the body like a big freakin’ ghost would throw a chair.

On lesser levels it means that you don’t experience the sensation of weight. Why can a child bend his legs and run under a table with no effort, when if you bent your legs and did the same thing it would take tremendous effort? Because the child hasn’t absorbed the concept of weight, yet.

So how do you learn the concept of having no weight? You do it by training yourself mentally. You train the mind to have the body follow directions, and this is done easily through the simple fact of forms.

People who don’t think much of of forms haven’t done them sufficient to see what happens at the end. You become lightly removed from your body when you master a form, and you experience different perceptions when it comes to motion. It is very interesting feel the whistling sensation of being an object thrown through space when you do a form.

The good news is that this is a pleasant sensation, and yet, when done in a strike, it results in the most unimaginable damage to an opponent you…never imagined. Simply, he doesn’t have a defense for something that is apart from the body, and the body of the universe, and seems to slip between time and perception. This, incidentally, is the feeling of Mushin no shin, mind of no mind.

When you practice doing your art with no weight, your body is still going to weigh the same, and then some, when impacted upon an opponent. Taking your mind away from considering weight doesn’t mean that the weight isn’t there. Actually, it is even more there, because when you think weightless, and move weightless, you move faster, and he will anticipate accordingly.

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In the martial arts, the deadliest tool I know is also the one least used. The actual and effective use of space is what I am talking about here. If properly understood and utilized, space can win any fight.

Space is the absence of objects, is emptiness, is nothing. You will find, if you just ask any light beam, that space is the greatest conductor of visual perception. A very zen thing, space is not understood by most martial artists.

Space is the distance between you and your opponent. If you can control the space between you and your opponent, you can control the fight. This is the first strategy in any fight.

Space is the perception of your body. This is important if you realize that by relaxing you can perceive more, and thereby create more space. If you can create more space in this manner, you can create more potential for motion.

Space is utilized when hitting in a negative fashion. Simply, by taking energy out of your strike, and throwing the mass of the body, unaffected by energy and emotion (emotion contains, and can stop, a high degree of energy) you can strike ten times harder. Simply, consider your body an object and throw it at your opponent, and let it strike.

The space of the last paragraph is the space created by not having consideration for your opponent. I used to call this The Dead Strike. Not because it caused death, but because there was no consideration for life when I threw the object and mass of my body at somebody.

The space of your thoughts is the most important space. Concentrate your efforts not on moving by muscle, but on moving by thought, because thoughts don’t occupy space. You will be able to move far faster than you ever thought possible if you can reduce muscular effort and move by thought.

The real final frontier is thought. Thought is the source of all motion. Create space, relax, and have thought, and you will have the Ultimate Secret of the True Martial Arts.

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One of my favorite books is Zen and the Art of Archery, by Eugene Herrigel. In this book, Mr, Herrigel goes to Japan in search of zen enlightenment. He is guided into the practice of archery in this seeking.

The reason he is guided into archery is because, according to the people who teach zen, zen is too difficult for a westerner. Not being of the Japanese culture, it would be to difficult for him to understand the concepts. Through the practice of archery, however, he might be able to make some headway with zen concepts.

Mr. Herrigel practices archery diligently. He stands with a tall bow, calms himself, and experiences nothing but frustration. Heck, he can’t even hit the target, let alone find his own soul.

The sensei, understanding his frustration, takes pity, and invites him over to his house for some personal instruction. The teacher is a font of wisdom and zen, but Mr. Herrigel, is still ensconced in his frustration. The sensei, realizing drastic measures are called for, takes Mr. Herrigel out to his personal archery range.

They stand on a range that is about a hundred feet, and the teacher instructs Mr. Herrigel to light a candle between the firing line and the target. The candle lit, Mr. Herrigel is instructed to turn off the lights. In the deep darkness, with only a single candle glowing fifty feet away, the teacher fires an arrow and puts out the candle.

Mr. Herrigel, standing in darkness, is astonished. Never has he seen such a magnificent display of archery, to put out a candle at fifty feet! Good Lord!

The teacher merely says to turn on the lights, and then has Mr. Herrigel retrieve his arrow. Mr. Herrigel runs down to the end of the range to look for the arrow. He finds it…in the center of the target.

To put out a candle and hit a target, using only the light of the candle. To master a martial art and plumb the depths of soul. To find the brilliance of yourself on a darkened night, this is zen, and this is what is at the heart of the Martial Arts.

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