39
votes
Accepted
Are there any effective Kung Fu fighters in MMA?
Kung-Fu fighters pop up from time to time in MMA style fights. Early on in the UFC, there were a small number of kung-fu fighters. But by the end of its first year, you didn't see any. Why?
Well ...
- 17.4k
28
votes
Is it possible to learn Martial Arts (Kung Fu in my case) effectively without sparring?
Can anyone learn martial arts techniques without sparring?
Sure! I mean, you can learn that they exist.
Can you learn how to effectively apply martial arts techniques without sparring?
Oh, no. ...
- 21.2k
27
votes
Accepted
Is it possible to learn Martial Arts (Kung Fu in my case) effectively without sparring?
Your question isn't what you are really asking. Your question is "Can I learn Kung Fu without sparring", and that answer is yes. Sparring is not 100% necessary to learn any art. You can learn all the ...
- 4,549
21
votes
Accepted
Could a non-Buddhist person become a monk/master at Shao-lin temple?
Short answer: Yes, they teach foreigners. No, it wouldn't be possible for an outsider to become a monk there. You can, however become a disciple under a monk. And you can become a sifu of your own ...
- 17.4k
20
votes
Are there any effective Kung Fu fighters in MMA?
KUNG FU, MMA, and UFC
Roy Nelson, a top tier UFC fighter, commented on his kung fu background:
The Lohan school of Shaolin, I actually got started in my Sifu’s garage. I think I was 15 1/2, 16. Kung-...
- 201
17
votes
Solo martial art learning
It will be pretty difficult to do Judo alone. You can practice kung fu or any other martial art with forms (pre-arranged patterns) by yourself though. If you don't already know the martial art, ...
- 4,081
15
votes
Is Kung fu useful for self defense?
Stances
Like squats or push-ups, stance training is often not directly about fighting, but in acquiring strength, flexibility, and coordination.
Acrobatics
Modern wushu is closer to gymnastics, a ...
- 13.7k
14
votes
Training martial arts in china
I have not been impressed with the stories I hear from people who have gone to these Asian martial arts retreats. These camps seem like a way to separate Westerners from their money while providing a ...
- 21.2k
14
votes
Are there any effective Kung Fu fighters in MMA?
Sanshou (similar to sanda) is a major competitive outlet for kung fu styles, allowing kicks, punches, kick catches, and throws. Several fighters with sanshou experience have fought in the UFC, most ...
- 21.2k
14
votes
Which will be the best style for kung fu for self defense for a weak person?
Protecting yourself from bullying has more to do about confidence than about martial arts. Learning martial arts will raise your confidence, but coming across as unsure and uncertain, even if you're a ...
- 796
14
votes
Is Kung fu useful for self defense?
I don't think it's possible to give an answer to such a broad question, other than to say something along the lines of
It can be, to the extent that...
It trains on realistic, damage-inflicting ...
- 1,322
13
votes
Training martial arts in china
Yes, I've been to China to train at the Shaolin temple at Songshan mountain in Dengfeng, Henan, China.
I did this only for a couple of weeks, mostly just for fun. My wife (then girlfriend) was ...
- 17.4k
13
votes
Accepted
To what extent does height give an advantage in any type of fight?
Height gives a considerable advantage to striking martial arts. The first and most obvious advantage is that height means you can reach out further than your opponent, meaning you can hit him before ...
- 4,158
13
votes
Which will be the best style for kung fu for self defense for a weak person?
Source: Black Belt in Ju Jitsu
First, I completely agree that learning to fight won't fix your problem; it'll probably just get you into trouble. However, learning a martial art is a great way to ...
- 229
11
votes
Accepted
How do you call a practitioner of Tai Chi Chuan (or Kung Fu in general)?
It depends on context, skill and time spent training.
If they just start training they're a student 学生(xué'shēng), when they become an official disciple they'll be called 徒弟(tú'dì).
Then when they ...
- 226
10
votes
Is it possible to learn Martial Arts (Kung Fu in my case) effectively without sparring?
I had a Trig professor in college who asked us on day one, "What do math and sex have in common?" The answer was, "You cannot learn them through reading about them in books, and you cannot learn them ...
- 261
9
votes
Training martial arts in china
I know one person who went to train in bagua and tai chi. He went to a relatively small training camp, got some good basic skills.
But. That was 6 months of his life spent doing nothing but martial ...
- 8,553
9
votes
Is it possible to learn Martial Arts (Kung Fu in my case) effectively without sparring?
It is the same as asking if you can learn a language without having conversations with real people. In a sense, yes, you can learn to read and write that language from books and instruction. But you'...
- 821
9
votes
Accepted
Training two martial arts at the same time, on the same days of the week?
Well the short answer is: Why not try it for a month and see whether or not it's something you're capable of doing? Because you won't know until you try.
One of the main concerns of practicing more ...
- 17.4k
9
votes
Accepted
Does Kung-Fu come from Kalaripayattu?
NO, or at least not until about 900 years after both Buddhabhadra and Bodhidharma died.
In Meir Shahar's The Shaolin Monastery: History, Religion, and the Chinese Martial Arts, there is a whole ...
- 6,237
8
votes
Solo martial art learning
Your option to learn new things is pretty limited.
Forms have some, limited value
Since you've mentioned kung fu as one of the directions you might go, there's plenty of video online of various ...
- 8,553
8
votes
What is the most effective method for the roundhouse kick?
What is the most effective method for the roundhouse kick?
You've got a one-adjective criteria there, and a vague one: effective.
Overall effectiveness might reasonably be defined as what helps you ...
- 4,210
8
votes
Accepted
How do Boxers and other Martial Arts practitioners deal with pain?
There are all kinds of places on the body where fighters can get hit (the nose, the jaw, the solar plexus, the thigh, the liver, the kidneys, etc.), and each one of those triggers not just pain but ...
- 17.4k
8
votes
Translators at the Shaolin Temple
When I went to train at Shaolin temple (Songshan mountain), I was with a group of English speakers. Our monk grew up in the temple and had moved to the U.S. to teach there, so he understood English. ...
- 17.4k
8
votes
How does one "become like water"?
Bruce Lee's training partner, Dan Inosanto, gives some insight in an interview for the book The Masters Speak in regards to forms (emphasis mine):
Q: What do you think about forms?
A: I have ...
- 242
7
votes
could someone name some weird looking martial arts
There are no such things as "street fighting" martial arts. Each martial art has its own story for how it came to exist and how it has evolved over the years.
Wing Chun kung-fu, for example, is often ...
- 17.4k
7
votes
Accepted
To retract or not to retract when doing kicks?
Disclaimer: I've spent too much time over thinking the differences between Japanese and Chinese martial arts
To quote Bruce Lee's opinion on the styles, getting hit by a Karate punch is like getting ...
- 348
7
votes
Accepted
What to do with a grabbed leg?
Catching a kick is a common technique in Muay Thai and a major part of san da/san shou (Chinese kickboxing).
In Muay Thai, I've seen lots of kicking out or sweeping the other leg. This clip teaches ...
- 21.2k
7
votes
Accepted
How to condition the head/skull in order to break bricks with it?
I just want to point out that a lot of martial arts demonstrations like these are actually illusions. Bricks used for breaking are often chemically treated and baked longer to become more brittle. ...
- 17.4k
7
votes
Accepted
What is the purpose of slow movements in poomsae / kata / taolu for?
The answer to this question entirely depends on the form and the history behind it.
Most forms have changed in small and often big ways since they were first created. Sometimes movements are repeated ...
- 17.4k
Only top scored, non community-wiki answers of a minimum length are eligible