World Of Swords

Karate chop him, screamed the girl, and I had to chuckle. This was a flick where neither the actor, the writer, the director knew the martial arts. See, people used to think that a karate chop to the neck would kill people in their tracks.

When I first began studying Chinese Kenpo Karate I was told that a spear hand to the solar plexus or the neck was the deadliest martial arts attack on earth. Just stick those stiff fingers in the soft areas and watch 'em die. This was better than a karate chop, but only by a little.

Then I heard about the Dim Muk, or what is commonly called The Death Touch. You touch a person on a special spot somewhere on their body and they drop dead. Of course, it would take twenty years to master the Chi Power, learn all the pressure points and times they were vulnerable, and by that time I'd be ancient and too slow to do such a thing.

One evening a student was walking past my Karate instructor holding a square of thin particle board. He suddenly grinned and held the board up to my instructor. Break this, he put forth in a mocking challenge.

My instructor's name was Bob Babich, and he was a short, thin fellow. Given the target, he dropped his weight, twisted his hips, and snapped a single finger out. A single finger, and when he withdrew it, there was a nice, neat, little hole in the particle board.

Many people think I am telling tales when I repeat this story, but the fact is that the single finger trick could be done by no less than fifty people on the Island of Taiwan back in the fifties. Many of the kung Fu masters from across China had gone to that little country to escape communism, and they were able to do things. Unfortunately, there were not enough students, the gene pool was not as large as China, after all, and the single finger trick has pretty well disappeared.

Interestingly, one of the fellows who nibbled at the single finger trick was Bruce Lee. He could stick a finger in a soda (beer) can and leave a hole, and this was back in the day when cans were made of real metal and not this cheap aluminum stuff. This was good, and one wonders whether he would have mastered the single finger trick if he had lived longer.

At any rate, when students ask me what the deadliest karate trick is I tell them about the single finger. It is not a story, it is the result of real and dedicated training in the martial arts, and that includes karate, kung fu, or any other legitimate martial art that has stood the test of time. And, as for the karate chop, that is a good karate technique, but it is only the first step.

Before you learn the one finger trick you have to learn The Secrets of The Punch. Mouse to Monster Martial Arts for that.

As believed, Tai Chi can increase the flow of energy thus increasing the strength and promoting the serenity and harmony in every system of the body. It's the meditative and calming aspect of Tai Chi that makes the movements useful in every aspect that can reduce or otherwise eliminate anxiety and stress forming inside the body. It was confirmed by those who underwent sessions of Tai Chi that it really works for personal well-being.

As an exercise, Tai Chi can increase the strength of muscles and enhance the flexibility and balance of a person. Those who practice Tai Chi is exploiting the powers of yin and yang therefore the exercise are designed to especially express the forces in a harmonious and balanced form.

Moreover, Tai Chi does not only bring calmness and serenity to the mind and the spirit as it also serves as an aid from certain illnesses. However, Tai Chi should not be confused as a cure for certain illnesses but it can be complemented as a form of therapy with the following benefits:

Maintain coordination and balance

One of the major causes of disability and death among the elderly is loss of coordination which results to accidents like falling. By practicing Tai Chi, balance and coordination are areas of concentration especially for elderly students of this art. If this is successfully achieved, it will spare them from falling or worst death.

Lessens Pain

Tai Chi can be used to increase the range of motion without even causing a twinge of pain to the arthritic joint plus improving the flexibility of the bones and strengthening the surrounding muscles. It is not to be addressed that Tai Chi can cure the disease itself but it only lessens its severity and the contributing pain by working on those joints as early as possible.

Improves Circulation

Problems regarding the circulatory system can be addressed by Tai Chi. By practicing Tai Chi, it will enable your heart to pump enough blood all throughout your body and stabilizing your blood circulation.

Prevents Multiple Sclerosis

Further studies about Tai Chi have known its great potential in enhancing both the mental and physical well-being of a person. Mental diseases like multiple sclerosis can be prevented by incorporating the practice of Tai Chi in ones daily life.

Banish Stress

Studies show that stress is one of the major causes of numerous diseases and disorders that is why there have been ways used to lessen a person's stress. One of which is engaging in Tai Chi. As a meditation function, Tai Chi can reduce the production of toxins and hormones that contributes to stress reflected into the organs in the body.

Now, for your Tai Chi experience to become more reproductive and effective, choose a practitioner that is a master of the art of Tai Chi - one that certainly knows its different aspects and knows what is best for your current health condition.

There are no age limits when it comes to practicing Tai Chi. Everyone is welcome to join. Although, if you are really old and can no longer take such vigorous activities, better consult your physician on what is best before engaging in Tai Chi.

Lastly, always remember to inform your instructor of any pre-existing health problems that you have so that he or she can make certain adjustments and measures to provide you with the ability to do such movements. Practicing Tai Chi must not make you feel any pain. If you feel any pain, however, directly tell your instructor.

You'll never have to worry about arthritis again! Tai Chi Society has exercise suitable for individuals with arthritis giving them the benefit of improved muscle strength, flexibility, focus and more. Visit us on the web at Tai Chi in Santa Monica.

Tai Chi is a practice that is derived from the concept of Yin and Yang. Over the years, it continues to uphold and managed to sustain the amenable and dynamic principles of learning way back in the olden times.

As a practice, Tai Chi's core training features 2 forms: first, the solo form, which stresses slow sequence of movements while keeping the spine straight and firm, maintaining the range of motion and constant breathing. The Push Hands being the second core of Tai Chi training involves training of the principles of movement in a manner that is more practical and convenient.

As the word implies, the solo form of Tai Chi, requires only the one person to conquer the movements. It would take the students through a natural and complete range of motion over gravity's center. If repeated accurately, the practice of the solo form can retain posture, maintain honest flexibility going through the joints and muscles, encourage proper circulation from any point of the student's body, and let students be more familiarized with some of the important martial art application sequences that are usually implied by the different forms.

Major styles of traditional Tai Chi have forms that somewhat differ from the others in its presentation. Some differ in the wave of the hands, in the position of the legs, the reaction of the body and the pace of the movement. But these things don't matter at all because what is important to Tai Chi practice is that it benefits not just your body but your mind as well. And besides, there are still many similarities coming from the point of their common origin that are obvious enough to recognize, anyway.

Solo forms, weapons and empty-hands are the basics in learning just about any form of martial arts application. This is in preparation for students for their self-defense training.

The philosophy goes: if one becomes stiff and equally uses hardness in attending to violence, otherwise resisting it, then it is expected that both sides can be injured at a certain degree. An injury like that is a Tai Chi theory that coincides with the consequence of fighting brute with brute, which, in Tai Chi is far beyond the right attitude and style.

Unlike in other martial arts where force is encourage to be applied to some extent, in Tai Chi, students are taught to face battle with delicate movements and gentleness, following every attacking motion and in the end, tiring their opponent. This is even done while remaining at a close contact. This is the principle wherein the yin and yang is applied - the main goal of training Tai Chi.

Aside from that, Tai Chi schools also focus their attention on how the energy of a striking person affects his opponent. For example, the palm can strike physically looking the same and performing the same but has a different and dramatic effect on the target.

A palm can strike and push the person either forward or backward. It is done in such a way that the opponents are lifted vertically from the ground thus breaking and deforming their center of gravity.

Then, you can finish your opponent with a final blow bringing traumatic internal damage.

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