Wen Hsiu Quan

I have finally finished the fourth book. :) From next year this blog shall have some of the content of these books every day. One thing I like and encourage in martial arts is that all of it can be tested and experienced. This also applies to the books on martial arts that I have read. In the time to come I will also not just invite you to try the things I show in the instructional posts, but encourage you to do so. I would also like to see and hear more from you men and women who also practice martial arts. Have a great week ahead! 

https://youtu.be/Ar1B1YLIJPg I love this song from the Crash Test Dummies. Some of you who don't know who they are are probably far too young to remember them. In their song "Here I Stand Before Me" the singer sings that his mind's eye is missing from his body. Well, I can probably say I am missing an entire network of chakra points and meridians! Fact is we have been taught that our bodies look like this inside... ... and it would most likely be what we find if we were to dissect our bodies. Studying martial arts the way some of us have, however, we know that- in the heat of battle- we don't experience our bodies like this. What good does it do us? Well... the way we think of our bodies actually play a large part in how they perform. A body-builder will probably tell you that thinking about the muscle you are working during your workout actually makes that muscle work harder. So doing the muscle actually develops f...

I have just turned a year older this weekend. All in all- this has been a great weekend. The Springboks have beaten Samoa last night and I had a great time celebrating with my family. Even had a friend over. As you probably know by now- almost every day in my life starts with training. Saturday's training tops it all. One of the reasons why I enjoy weekend training sessions is the longer time I have to meditate. I am actually busy writing about this in my book at the moment. This Saturday I realised how funny it is that I have learnt to keep my mind in line with breath counting, and how breath following was attempted soon thereafter. That was about 21 years ago. Now- being "advanced" enough to let go these training tools I was happy to just let go and sit.  Yeah right... Without any of these techniques to preoccupy me I do manage to have my mind open, but when it is open thoughts come to occupy it yet again. I caught myself daydreaming in lot...

Hi. I am so glad this week is over. I had a lot of stress to get rid of and a good training session is just the answer. You remember the rubber bands and weights I train with? Well- these rubber bands have a limited lifespan as I have learnt a while ago, before I learnt that cargo straps make a poor substitute. Now- I concentrate on training with the weighted vest. A couple of training sessions taught me that the way my body bends when I do a high roundhouse kick tends to loosen the velcro straps on this thing- so- much as I want to- I can't really train with it as I normally train when I practice fighting techniques. So- for a while these weights found their place among the dumbells and equipment I use every second day. That was until recently when I decided to do some katas wearing them on "fighting day". Karate's katas seem to be prefect for this type of gear. These katas are now part of my warm-up before I get serious.  If you have ...

I am sure lots of us are aware that an actual fight is far from what our katas feel like. Nevertheless- I still regard kata as an important part of martial arts in this day and age. One thing it gives us- is the chance to slow things down and allow us to perform each technique at its best. One of the main factors that make our techniques less than ideal in a real fight is time. I used to break my head about this a lot, but have come to the conclusion that it is not necessary to do so. The fact is- your opponent is not part of the program. He is not going to act according to any plan you have. In fact- any plan you may manage to devise would be based on how he (or she) acts. As far as training goes- I regard sparring as a test and not so much as an exercise. Each encounter does give you new data to work on, but these encounters do go a lot better when we are prepared. Now- in my preparation for this test I do not resort to the traditional forms we find in...

A while ago somebody told me that the five Heian/ Pinan katas of karate were one one kata. Since that time I have been practicing all five Heian katas as one. Now- you know that I like modifying the forms. Since my last post I have been trying to get Taijiquan movements to replace the karate techniques in all 5 katas. It was not easy. This video shows the rough draft that I have been working on. I think the final product will have that spinning blow from Heian Sandan left out... It does not feel very Tai Chi to me...

Hi, It has been raining all day, so I had to replace my usual Saturday morning workout with the weapons and coffee tins- -these- with a rather tame workout in the garage wearing a weighted vest, ankle weights and wrist weights.  Still- I was able to get a lot of typing done. I have written a book about Wenhsiuquan's pushing and pulling techniques (grappling) and its percussive techniques and also on defence. This one is about training.   It is about the exercises I do to augment my fighting techniques. The exercises I show in the photos are my choice in leg exercises.   Practicing kicks with ankle weights combat's a person's natural resistance to getting his/her feet off the ground. It also develops that stable one-legged stance that is essential not only for kicking, but for footwork in general. Well- I hope you all have a nice weekend and I also hope to take my weapons outside again very soon.