newbie- the basics (beginning training concepts)

[arhat]

oooooooh....my rep took a HIT.

how will I sleep tonight.

[zachsan]

well a lot of martial arts also talk about "sinking" the dan tien or hara or what have you, which can loosely be translated as, "let it all hang out". intensive ab training, in asian martial arts, is generally absent, in favor of leg and arm conditioning and internal stuff.

halo 2 kicks my ass.

[shaolinstylee]

well a lot of martial arts also talk about "sinking" the dan tien or hara or what have you, which can loosely be translated as, "let it all hang out". intensive ab training, in asian martial arts, is generally absent, in favor of leg and arm conditioning and internal stuff.

halo 2 kicks my ass.

It depends on the school and the teacher... we do a lot of abs when we are doing conditioning, and even old school style (ok, maybe 10 yrs. old) I have a funny tape of a bunch of monks doing different forms and gungs and stuff...

One is where they hang upside down and transfer water from a one container to another... it is kind of funny, as I doubt they actually did this regularly, but it was interesting enough to put on the tape.

[arhat]

yeah I don't think it's accurate to say there is no stomach work in Shaolin...we just got this chair contraption that mimics the water container thing...now I have a weird ridge.

I think the chi belly thing is just an excuse for people who have slacked off.

[master splinter]

you want forearm strength? there is a little device called an eagle catcher bout 20 bucks at any martial arts supply. or you can take a rimmed jar, fill it with a little water for weight and hold it with your fingertips palm facing the ground, you get it? also runnuing sucks, i hate it with a passion. you can build endurance stamina and lung capacity by holding a horse stance while deep breathing, filling your lungs ALL THE WAY, and exhaling slowly like you are reeling silk. cuz basically when you run you get tired, and if you keep going when your tired you build stamina and breath but not that much leg strength, if you hold a horse stance it will tire you out the same way, causing you to breathe deeper building endurance and also strengthens your legs and whole body strength as well, it also builds your chi. If you dont know what a horse stance is just stand with legs little more than shoulder width apart then squat down but not all the way, only until you feel the muscles in your thighs(hamstrings are very important) activated. you probably wont be able to hold it for 45 sec. but DO NOT BE DISCOURAGED. just breathe VERY DEEP and try to relax your mind and body until you feel the burn subside, though the burning muscles will not completely dissappear, it will become easier to hold for longer periods of time. also do this at least twice a week and bust your ass. you WILL be obviously stronger. if you want more stances to do beside horse stance just holler.

[zachsan]

you need to do some kind of aerobic exercise if you're interested in actual health. running is an aerobic exercise, horse stance ain't.

[master splinter]

WHAT!

how is it not? your body is tired your body is tired why because lack of oxygen! an aerobic excercise is one that uses breathing hence *AERO* bics, life is aerobic, any excercise you do is aerobic. unles you hold your breath while you excercise.

[zachsan]

no. an aerobic exercise elevates your heart rate and holds it there for a while. that means jogging, jump rope, swimming, rowing, what have you. weight lifting and stance training are good for strength but don't raise your heart rate. they're called anaerobic exercises. look it up.

[master splinter]

no stomach work in shaolin huh? okay sure. thats bull, obviously you dont know shit about shaolin. and the fat monks. fat and muscle are two totally different things. these monks or ancients probably had so much training in thier youth that when they get old all they practice is their internal soft art which doesnt really burn calories but maintains strength, just because they are fat does not mean that they dont have powerful muscles underneath. just read up on some of the late ba gua masters.

[master splinter]

okay ill give you that whole heartrate thing. running raises your heart rate, makes you tired, but it doesnt teach you how to SLOW your heart rate so you wont get tired so easily. running has its advantages as a stamina and endurance workout. but i dont need it. i can go round after round as a judoka just by calming myself and breathing deeply, i can hang with the wrestlers who run 2 miles each day no sweat. just by breathing deeply and slowing my heartrate

[zachsan]

actually... that's exactly what aerobic exercise does for you. you raise your heart rate during exercise to make your heart and circulatory system stronger and more efficient. so, when you need to perform a prolonged physical activity, your heart doesn't need to beat as fast to achieve the same effect.

breathing deeply lets you take full advantage of the circulatory system you've already got. aerobic exercise is the only thing that will actually improve that system. so if you can already hang with wrestlers that run 2 miles a day, god bless genetics, then imagine what you can do if you do both.

[LeiYunFat]

Two miles? I think they do about 5 or 6. Wrestling workouts are insane.

[master splinter]

im a smoker.

[master splinter]

i agree aerobics improves you. i wrestled for one year. i was 160 then. the training was like if not worse than boot camp. im 140 now. and just recently i discovered what dedicated stance training can do. i feel twice as strong now and i do about 1/6 of the training that i used to. in my judo class i can throw a 300 pounder easy, any throw (with a little warmup) and im barely 5'6". most power starts in the feet and legs, then the torso, then the shoulders neck/head. i know you will correct me if im wrong.

[LeiYunFat]

Maybe I should wrestle to get me ready for the military, then, eh?