polariswushu.net Blog

Medicine Balls drills and punching

Here are some beginner level drills:

twist,
over head,
cross,
jab,
throw and squat,
push pass,
punching.

Novamma- collection of clips

fighting dictated by Universal principles

thought is was cool how my instructor Jeff was teaching Muay thai and boxing and without knowing was teaching some of the Tai chi classics:

Had a good sparring class last night where the instructor said- “Fighting is dictated by universal principles”…we went over two principles that scream 2 taijiquan classic principles.

the first was based on the taiji classic “if my opponet attacks, I arrive before he does” or Taiji classic: It is said if the opponent does not move, then I do not move.
At the opponent’s slightest move, I move first.”
in this demonstration the instructor had a guy throw a strike or kick and he return what he termed a ‘reaction strike’ in which he hit the guy before the guy hit him using a short punch or kick.

The second was called ‘set point’. Set point in fighting is attacking before a guy is able to set in (or root) where he has a powerful strike based on connecting to the ground. for instance if a guy is throwing a punch he has to step and root to have the link from “foot, leg, hip/waist/spine- arm” so hitting or pushing the guy before he makes his set point is the drill.

This is a favorite with one of my sensing/push hands instructors when keeping a guy off balanced or away from a ‘set point’ so that he can not have an effective push or strike.

Taiji Classic:

The chin [intrinsic strength] should be
rooted in the feet,
generated from the legs,
controlled by the waist, and
manifested through the fingers.
If correct timing and position are not achieved,
the body will become disordered
and will not move as an integrated whole;