One of the most common and debilitating places to hold onto pain and tension is in the neck and shoulders. Shoulder pain and tension is often associated with responsibility – literally carrying the world on your shoulders. It is so common that I can state with confidence that you too are carrying your shoulders too high. It is as if we need to suspend our arms from our shoulders instead […]
Train hard, breathe easy I teach several kung fu classes per week. At the beginning of each is a warm-up and series of conditioning exercises which I lead. The students then follow me and listen to my instructions. Therefore it’s essential that I am not only able to perform these exercises – which can be hard and fast – but that I also have enough breath left over to be […]
Everybody carries far too much tension around with them. This tension drains them ofenergy, pulls their body apart and resists every move they make. We are so often told to relax but not many people realise that relaxation is a skill that needs to be learned. To find out why read my book “Stress Proof Your Body”. The first and most important principle in everything I teach is ‘Relax Down’. […]
Virtually all negative emotions are based on fear. Fear is our most primal emotion and one that a great many people feel, to a greater or lesser extent, every single day. We have around 30 names for different types of fear, and many more slang words: anxiety, dread, panic, alarm, terror, dismay and so on. Two types of fear However, there really are only two types of fear you need […]
In kung fu and tai chi, we always aim to make our movements balanced, efficient and powerful. A balanced movement is one where the forces involved are balanced throughout the body. At no point is the individual out of balance and vulnerable to counter-attacks. An efficient movement is one which uses only the necessary muscles and doesn’t hold onto unneeded tension anywhere in the body. We all know what a […]
In the Jade Dragon tradition we separate yin training and yang training. Yin training teaches you to develop power inside the body through stillness or very slow movements combined with a focused mind and breath. Yang training teaches you to express that power in the most efficient way. Wave power is one of the most important methods of yang training. Wave training is all about learning how to move in […]
As anyone who comes to my classes will know I talk a lot about leg strength. Basically, without strong legs you have no real support so your upper body will be full of tension to keep your weight off your weak legs. Strengthen your legs and your upper body can then relax down onto them and you will maintain great mobility and power well into your old age. I cannot […]
The effectiveness of pressure points in the martial arts is a hotly contested topic. Many books and films show very unrealistic scenarios where the master touches a few points on his opponent who is then paralysed or dies soon thereafter. At the other end of the scale are the martial arts who say this is pure bunkum and that pressure points don’t work at all. As is usually the case […]
Visit almost any park in China at dawn and you will find people doing a variety of traditional exercises. These exercises will look nothing like Western exercise. Some of them will be moving in the intricate patterns of tai chi. Others will be standing completely still yet utterly relaxed in a variety of postures. Stranger still some of them will be walking round and round in a circle then doing […]
The Chinese have been developing their martial arts skills for at least two thousand years. There is a huge variety of different styles and systems. Some estimate there to be at least a thousand distinct styles that have been developed over the centuries. In the West we lump them all together under the name kung fu. Some of the most famous kung fu styles have been based on the movements […]
Your posture is all about the way you hold and move your body. A good posture makes you feel alive, nimble, full of energy and puts minimal strain on your body. A poor posture makes you feel sluggish, drained and puts excess stress on various key joints and other systems. It also plays havoc with your mental health. Your posture plays a huge role in your physical and mental health. […]