Below is a selection of articles written by Paul Chapman. Please note: No AI is used in either the writing of these articles or the images used.
- The Real Reason Why You Can’t Relax – The Tension Paradox
Why on earth is long lasting, genuine, deep relaxation so difficult to attain? The answer is the ‘tension paradox’ but before we look at what that is let’s take a quick look at your relaxation options. Here are some of… Read more: The Real Reason Why You Can’t Relax – The Tension Paradox - Smile your way to deep relaxation
There is a wonderfully powerful exercise that has been practiced in China for centuries. It’s based on your smile. Putting on a smile, even if you don’t feel like it, can make the whole world seem brighter. Smiling actually makes… Read more: Smile your way to deep relaxation - The basics of punching – how to punch with balanced power
Most combat sports and martial arts use punches but they don’t always fully understand how to get the best out of this useful weapon in their armoury. Read on to discover the biomechanics of the punch and find out how, with… Read more: The basics of punching – how to punch with balanced power - Developing the ‘Kung Fu Body’
There are many ways of training the body. Many ways to become ‘fit’ but what are you becoming fit for? A marathon runner, a weight-lifter and a gymnast are all fit but if they tried to swap disciplines they wouldn’t… Read more: Developing the ‘Kung Fu Body’ - The 3 Types of Martial Arts
There are hundreds of martial arts in the world and each of them uses specific tactics to cope with the rigours of combat. All martial arts focus on different things, no single martial style can hope to be able to deal with… Read more: The 3 Types of Martial Arts - Kung Fu Forms – The 7 things they should be teaching you (but often aren’t)
The loss of function in kung fu forms Forms training is a backbone of most traditional kung fu and tai chi schools but why is this so and what is actually being taught? This article puts forms under the microscope to… Read more: Kung Fu Forms – The 7 things they should be teaching you (but often aren’t) - Learn Kung Fu in less time with a MAP
Within the vast realm of kung fu there are thousands of skills to learn and perfect. So much so that it would be impossible to learn them all even if you had several lifetimes to try. The task of learning any… Read more: Learn Kung Fu in less time with a MAP - Hand Conditioning in the Martial Arts
Ever since we first learned to stand and walk on two legs humans have used their hands to reach out and connect with the world. Our hands are highly sensitive and very dexterous and it’s important that we look after… Read more: Hand Conditioning in the Martial Arts - Empty Your Mind The Easy Way – Guided Meditation
I think pretty much everybody is aware of the huge benefits of meditation. It can leave you feeling so calm, relaxed and focused and has been shown to be as effective as taking a nap but takes just a fraction… Read more: Empty Your Mind The Easy Way – Guided Meditation - The key to vibrant health – The Rising Sun
The Rising Sun is the first of the true breathing exercises I teach to students. It is the first and most important of the ancient ‘5 Breaths of Tao’ Qigong set. The Rising Sun exercise can be done in many… Read more: The key to vibrant health – The Rising Sun - Bagua 5 – Single Palm Change
The single palm change is the most famous movement in baguazhang. It is the signature move of the system. The way you do the single palm change defines you as a bagua stylist. Over time the way you do it… Read more: Bagua 5 – Single Palm Change - Bagua 4 – Gaining Power
Bagua is an internal martial art and a form of moving meditation. It teaches you how to generate and store power in your body and how to express it in different ways. This post and video teach you four new… Read more: Bagua 4 – Gaining Power - Anxiety Pathway
The Chinese have a very different approach to dealing with anxiety issues than we do in the West. Here the main approaches are through drugs or some form of psychotherapy. The Chinese work to change the ways you habitually react… Read more: Anxiety Pathway - The Leaping Tiger Kung Fu Form – Section 1
The ‘leaping tiger’ is the first form that students of yu lung chuan (Jade Dragon kung Fu) learn. The Jade Dragon School derives its name from the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain in South West China where its monastery was located.… Read more: The Leaping Tiger Kung Fu Form – Section 1 - Elbow Lock
Here are a few videos showing a class I ran several years ago on elbow locks. You can see some of the variations and how quickly and effectively you can take someone down when you get the technique right. The… Read more: Elbow Lock - Bagua 3 – Changing Direction
Although bagua is famous for its circle walking practices it is during the changes of direction that the magic really happens. There are many methods of changing direction. Each develops different skills. Some of them are very simple, others very… Read more: Bagua 3 – Changing Direction - Leaping Tiger Form – section 1 part 2
In kung fu every part of every movement should be powerful yet effortless. To do this we invoke all the principles of tai chi plus a few others. The two moves shown in this video look simple but to achieve… Read more: Leaping Tiger Form – section 1 part 2 - Reeling Silk
For thousands of years the Chinese have cultivated silk. Silk is a very delicate material to work with. To draw a silken thread out of a cocoon the action must be very smooth and even with no jerkiness or changes… Read more: Reeling Silk - Leaping Tiger Form – section 1 part 3
This section contains a powerful punch and kick combination that is trained on both sides. It improves your balance and connected power. Before you work on the video below make sure you know your dragon punch and your front kick.… Read more: Leaping Tiger Form – section 1 part 3 - Bagua 2 – Fan Chang
Fan Chang is an arm movement that takes power from a rotation of the legs and waist and projects it out through the palms. With practice you open up the energy channels and can feel a strong connection of energy… Read more: Bagua 2 – Fan Chang - Bagua 1 – Walking the Circle
Baguazhang (pronounced bag-wa-jang), or bagua (pakua) for short, is a fascinating practice of moving meditation and self development that became the most sought after martial art in China. This post, and the video at the end of it describes the… Read more: Bagua 1 – Walking the Circle - Pathway through the 37 posture Tai Chi form. Full videos included
This post takes you step-by-step through the form with links to all the movements. It also includes videos of the whole form. As always note that these videos don’t show you the way to do it – they show you… Read more: Pathway through the 37 posture Tai Chi form. Full videos included - Descending Single Whip to Bend the Bow, Shoot the Tiger
These are the as yet undescribed movements of the final section of the form. Some of the pics below also feature the great master Professor Cheng Man Ching who developed this form and is widely recognised as one of the… Read more: Descending Single Whip to Bend the Bow, Shoot the Tiger - Wave movements in Push
Learning to move in fluid wave-like patterns is good for your health, open your joints and allows power to flow through you in the most efficient way. The tai chi move ‘push’ is an ideal move to incorporate this wave… Read more: Wave movements in Push - Heaven Figure 8 stepping pattern
The heaven figure 8 stepping pattern is very useful for tai chi practitioners to learn and essential for students of Jade Dragon Kung Fu. It forms a part of many of our styles and movements. You will find it in… Read more: Heaven Figure 8 stepping pattern - Fair Lady Weaves at the Shuttle – 4 diagonals
This is the longest single movement in the tai chi form and takes up most of the fifth section. The practitioner steps out to all 4 diagonals, blocks up and pushes outwards then draws his energy back in. The arms… Read more: Fair Lady Weaves at the Shuttle – 4 diagonals - Wave-like arm movements video
In both tai chi and kung fu our aim is for power to flow through the body and out again. Energy usually travels in waves so by creating wave movements we can prevent ourselves tensing up and let the movement… Read more: Wave-like arm movements video - Earth Figure of 8
This is the second of the two figure of eight arm movements. In a previous post we covered the heaven figure 8 movement. This one goes the opposite way round. Both movements have the following benefits The earth figure of… Read more: Earth Figure of 8 - The Fourth Section video
The fourth section of the form is possibly the most physically demanding as part of it is done on one leg. The second half can be challenging regarding the footwork. Anyway, here is how it all fits together. Practice Practice… Read more: The Fourth Section video - Brush Knee Left and Right and Low Punch
We already looked at the brush knee in Module 4. In this section it comes up again but includes a step forward and doing it on the other side. It’s followed by a low punch and then we go straight… Read more: Brush Knee Left and Right and Low Punch - Heaven Figure 8 Arm Circle
There are two figure of eight arm movements – heaven and earth. They have many uses: Today we are going to learn the heaven figure of eight. We will do a large movement that basically describes an anticlockwise circle to… Read more: Heaven Figure 8 Arm Circle - The Invisible Stool
One of the main aims of tai chi and kung fu is for you to be able to hold and move your body in the most effortless and efficient way. This doesn’t come naturally as our habitual way of holding… Read more: The Invisible Stool - Extended Guard
Developing an effective guard is essential in any combat situation. I have lost counts of the number of fights I have seen – both in real life and on video where one protagonist has his hands down around his waist… Read more: Extended Guard - The Dragon Punch
The dragon punch is the most powerful punch that is taught in the Jade Dragon kung fu system. It is a powerful forward strike, generally aimed at the chest area and the non-striking arm moves out at the same time… Read more: The Dragon Punch - The Tiger Punch
The tiger punch is a powerful punch considering that most of your weight stays on your back leg. It is ideal for delivering a fast and powerful strike to the chest or abdomen area with a closed fist or striking… Read more: The Tiger Punch - The Back Kick
The back kick and the front kick are the 2 main kicks taught to new students in the Jade Dragon School. The back kick is an important one to learn and practice as it can protect you against attacks from… Read more: The Back Kick - The Front Kick
The martial arts are perhaps best known for the fancy high kicks that are so often seen in the films and in the ring. However, although these look great many of them are of limited use in real life. New… Read more: The Front Kick - Be On Your Legs – A guide to stance training
Please read this post. Because almost nothing else I can teach you (apart from good breathing) is more important. The strength of your legs directly relates to almost every element of your physical and mental health and wellbeing. Your legs… Read more: Be On Your Legs – A guide to stance training - The Scissor Stance
The scissor stance (also known as the crossover stance) is one of the most useful stances in kung fu. It is often not the fastest or strongest fighter that wins the day but the one with the best footwork. Good… Read more: The Scissor Stance - The Tiger Stance
The tiger stance is another great stance to develop leg strength. Most of the weight is on the back leg so it enables you to move forward with power. It is also great practice to move from a tiger stance… Read more: The Tiger Stance