Well, while MAP admin's figure out how to fix this technical glitch, apparently one fix is to quote the post and it will show up. And seeing as hiding a clip from my school's Sifu Padilla seems like a shame to me, here it is. Edit- although it still seems to not be embedding.
Just thought I'd give an update on my progress with yee's Hung Ga! I've only been going 3 months and it has surpassed my expectations! For example - at first, I thought holding the horse stance (a proper, hung gar horse stand, NOT standing up) for a minute would be impossible, but now I can easily hold it for ten minutes! which is part of the first test! btw for the first jo gow test (black belt) it's 1 hour for the horse stance....and there are 4 jo gow tests..... the 1st half hour of each class is qi gong - which is so intense you have to try it to believe it! that's one of the reasons my legs and core are strong enough to hold a horse stance for ten minutes. btw horse stance is easy...it's the cat and dragon that kill you! And of course the golden turtles (which is quite torturous!) - I believe these have especially contributed to my powerful kicking (low kicks) and that's really surprising as I never thought I'd be an effective kicker at all and now I know one low kick to any part of somebody's leg will be enough to stop them in their tracks and think twice about continuing fighting me. The hypertrophy gained from this qi qong is very different (although I LOVE weight/strength training and you can do both with this school!) - it focuses more on explosive power than strength. So when striking, you attack and pull back with speed and power so they don't get a chance to grab your leg/arm or if you miss you tendons/ligaments are strong enough that you don't strain your joints. I'm quite happy already with where I've got to tbh within just 3 months. Martial techniques are easy to learn (you could easily do it with a partner from youtube videos) but weaponising the body is something else...without qi qong, forms are useless! with qi qong, even a simple set of form could be lethal. all in all, very impressive. two years would give me more than what I needed although I can't see myself stopping anyways. There are many who just go once per week now. one last thing, saw that video of one of the instructors from USA losing a fight and I can assure you that's not how the seniors at yee's spar...not sure what was happening in that video. even our angles are quite different. I don't know anything about the USA schools but in Scotland sparring is very different to what can be seen in that video.
@chadderz - yes, the Edinburgh branch but tbh the standards are high in all of Scotland's branches. Other thing I wana mention is that the stances really do help train the body at visceral level intrinsically. My mate just laughed and asked me if I was training the horse stance so I could ride a horse lol! Ignorant comment! I feel that when I strike or block, I connect to ground with my legs and push/sink with every strike block. The middle part of torso/core connects the legs to upper body and there's a wee twist. qi qong to train the upper body is a bit different e.g. tiger push ups (these are harder on the forearms and there are seniors who are doing these on the fists and finger tips...), one finger bridge hand and tiger claw training qi qong all develop the same sort of strength in the upper body - can really feel the speed and power in the arms.
@Chadderz thanks for the offer mate! might take it up. I also wana say that different martial arts work better in different situations, as they were created with different frames of mind and in different times in history. An art has to fit the mind, body and attitude of the practitioner for it to truly be effective! What works for you! I just happen to have found the right style/art that fits me like a glove... Yee's guys are known in USA for sharing and exchanging knowledge with practitioners from other styles which is great. in UK I sense there is some tension/rivalry between communities from different styles or it could just be me! Sifu Ben, if you're reading this, what's your opinion on this? thanks
I personally have never encountered or even heard of any tension / rivalry between Hung ga schools in the UK. On the wider subject of cross training my teacher actively encouraged me to go out and train in other arts. I do the same with my students.
Sifu Ben, what %Percentage of Kung Fu schools would you say teach the authentic arts? I've come to learn that the problems of "McDojos" are particularly bad in Kung Fu schools...not only that but many phonies claim to teach magical powers! I would say say it's so bad in the Kung fu world that less than 20% of schools still teach the authentic arts? Real Kung Fu training is not only tough physically but mentally as well....I've been doing this for 8 months now and feel like I haven't even started yet and yet I'm confident enough now to handle myself in the streets......
PS I've just finished Gung Ji Kuen (I pattern fist)! there's a lot of body training in that form and it shows!
I don't think McDojoism is a problem with UK Kung Fu schools at all really. McDojoism is a very specific situation where standards are lowered for financial reasons. I think there's a lot of places teaching dubious material, a lot of places with low standards because they don't know any better and a lot of places that cling to "traditional" training methods that are anything but and think that a fight is going to look like a Shaw Brothers movie, while at the same time either not sparring or sparring in a ridiculous fashion. However, there is also a lot of REALLY good Kung Fu in Britain. In terms of good schools in a small area we're probably up there with California. I could drive for 2 hours and pretty much do anything I want with good people. I think potential students are somewhat uneducated here. I was with a friend who has a school in Italy this week and he says enquirers have often got a lot of style specific questions about what they do, which never happens here. No-one has ever asked me if I know the snake form.
Yeah, pretty much agree with the reply. Applications and sparring are as important as qi qong/lin gong! I remember my 1st sparring session lol Was completely left startled by end of it - didn't know what to do. I liked the rules too - we spar with thin grappling gloves and head-guards (mouth guards are optional). the only rules are 1.no strikes to groin. 2. no hard strikes to knees 3. no strikes to eyes/nose/mouth. Can strike the chin but only with opponent's permission. All on solid concrete floor! Advanced sparring class has different rules which I won't know until after 3 years of training! The other thing I liked was not every other student is a black belt (Jo Gow) - there were only 2 when I started and they weren't any dans either. usually takes a year on average to learn Gung Ji Kuen but since I practiced at home I was able to do it in 7 - 8 months - they don't hold you back if you're good at learning and they don't let you progress if you're not good enough yet to be shown the next move/technique.
anyone else still interested in this thread, below video is a spot on demonstration of REAL Kung FU! This guy knows Hung Gar as well as wing chun and choy li fut! His body connection and stances are perfect! Sifu Ben, there's also demo of a Choy Li Fut form at around 3:30. This is what Real Kung Fu looks like!!: [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nLBqmahkf0"]Spirit of Kung Fu Documentary Part 3 HD - Hung Gar (洪拳) By Leo Au Yeung - YouTube[/ame]
Also just managed to find a video of our Grandmaster Frank Yee performing the Iron Wire form (one of the most advanced in our system!): [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=afluYHqXxGc"]Tiet Sin Kuen by GM Frank Yee on Great Opening of YEE'S HUNG GA BRASIL - YouTube[/ame]
[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nLBqmahkf0"]Spirit of Kung Fu Documentary Part 3 HD - Hung Gar (洪拳) By Leo Au Yeung - YouTube[/ame] Its a demo so you would expect him to concentrate more on looking good than good technique and it shows a little in the stances. In the tiger and crane section when he uses crane stances the tends to loose connection with the techniques his body and arms are not working together. Don't get me wrong. He his clearly highly skilled, but he is not perfect in the video.
Are you able to confirm if this is really the yee version of the iron wire set? A comment on the you tube site identifies it as something else. It clearly has elements of iron wire in it but in places it looks very different from some of the other versions I have seen.
I wondered about this as well. This lineage doesn't do 5 animals 5 elements but the video has flavours of that so maybe it is their 5 animals form (Ng Ying Kuen?) but mis-labeled? Just a guess :' D LFD
I love these threads where I can actually answer a good question because I asked some other folks the question before I have asked other people about this one before! It's only parts of the Iron Wire. Which parts I can't say, but I guess they will be obvious to people who know more. Looking for Dinner you are very perceptive. That video starts with Iron Wire, then he does a part of a very short form called the "Tiger Claw Gung" (which I do know!) and finishes with a short bit from the Crane section of the Ng Ying Kuen. This video below is another one of him doing parts of the Ng Ying Kuen with a few slower Iron Wire pieces added in. From what I've been told, most of these demonstrations you won't see him performing just one set, he has a habit of improvising in the moment and switching between sets or just doing 'freestyle Hung ga' I guess is what you'd call it. I don't know either of these longer forms so I can't comment on much other than what these 2 videos actually show, but I got all of this information from actual Yee's students so take it as you will The "Tiger Claw Gung" is a really short, repeatable set of tiger claw exercises. I don't know if I've ever come across a video of that set, but it would be neat to. [ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqO9XisYf-s"]Frank Yee Hung Gar - YouTube[/ame]
Iron Fist, thanks for correcting me! I don't know about any of the advanced forms. Actually, I've just learned that you only start learning Iron Wire once you've finished the Yu Family Tiger Fork set i.e. after Jo Gow level (black belt)! Also, they are not allowed to show you the Iron Wire unless you've reached that level as risk of injury is very high?! I've only ever seen one advanced set being performed in front of junior students (Beef Bone Fan set) which I thought looked amazing! I've also seen how some of the seniors can swing the long pole and bend it in air (looked pretty impressive!) - pity they don't make youtube videos and upload them of their advanced stuff. BTW Iron Fist, I should have finished the Fook Fu Kuen set by end of this year (already passed my testing for Gung Ji Kuen)! all in just under 1 year - what do you think of my progress lol?!