Why do you practice Martial Arts?

[Tydive]

Not why you started to study MA's, but why you continue to do so after you have reached an advanced level of skill.

A couple decades ago my answer was simple. I was working in LA as a bouncer and needed all the edge I could get. Prior to that I was fighting on the street. But for the past 15 years I have not been in a physical confrontation where any party was "serious" or angry. So for me the answer is because I have always done it... and I enjoy the training process. Even though I don't like to hurt people or to be hurt.

So, what keeps you going?

[SAAMAG]

That's about the same for me. I've always done it since I was child. Then again I'm the cliche asian guy who knows "karate". It's almost expected, don't know who made up that rule...

Anyway, I enjoy doing it, but I go through phases in my training, sometimes I go hard core fighting like I did with my thai training, sometimes it's balanced where I do a bit of both, sometimes it's more technique orientated...depends on what I'm learning and focusing on. Overall, I can't go long without staying involved in it. I've taken breaks before, the longest one just recently after I broke my wrist back in 2002!!! Two surgeries later and it's still "healing". Getting back into the grove slowly with that hand, as it's still not 100% yet.

Can't imagine my life not doing it really....

[old jong]

I realise now that it was solely based on some diffuse inferiority complex and fear of the unknown!...Now that I know that ,I should maybe revise my martial arts implication.I don't need these things anymore!....



















;) :D :p

[PaulH]

The deeper you go into the MA training, the more you know about yourself, others, and what life is all about! =)

[anerlich]

A combination of sadism, masochism and obsessive/compulsive disorder, plus a snide, argumentative and confrontational personality which obviates a regular and frequent requirement for self-defense. :D

After a while training just turns into a lifestyle.

[Vajramusti]

Dont know why. Dont spend much time on such introspection.

Because it's there like Hillary/Tensing's Everest.?

Its better than hitting a silly ball down/up a fairway and riding ina golf cart,

Its better than drafts or checkers'

Its better than a basketball pick up game with 5 wheezing fellas
who are failed NBA wannabes.

Its better than watching an Arizona Cardinal's football game.

Its a complete change of pace from what I did for a living and over-associating with folks impressed with themselves..

Like Anerlich- follow an obsessive compulsive trajectory.

Better than rushing into the stands at a basketball game or hitting someone witha hockey stick or sitting ina tree through rain waiting to do a distasteful military asignment.

Its better than paying bills or taxes.

Its better than watching the Oreilly factor or listening to ignorant overpaid commentators on the news or Dennis Miller on football or most other things or Howard Cossell wannabes on boxing.

Its a non family thing for a change.

Its fun- other than that I dont know why..(like Norah Jones' song)

[t_niehoff]

For fun.

[Zhuge Liang]

Originally posted by t_niehoff
For fun.

*double take* Wha? Not for fighting? You mean to tell me you do martial arts for something as subjective as "fun"? Something whose definition will differ from person to person? Well imagine that...

:)

Just playin'

Regards,
Alan

[sihing]

Yes, but you forgot that Terence's idea of fun is fighting. I guess he gets his kicks out of either taking a beating or dishing one out.

For me, in the beginning it was just a cool thing to do. I entered the kwoon and felt a very good vibe/energy from the people there and Sifu himself, and I knew this was a good place to be. Also after I learned about the history of WC and Bruce Lee's association with it and with GM Cheung, I felt part of something of signifigance and history. I've never considered myself a "Fighter", but trained hard to improve my skill and be able to learn more about the art I love. Later, once I was asked to start teaching WC to others I found another aspect of it that gave me great pleasure. There's nothing like teaching something that means allot to yourself and that has great value to those that need it and are looking to improve themselves through the study of Wing Chun. Its amazing to see a student progress through the system from day one and little ability to do anything right to someone that possesses a great skill, and to know that you had something to do with that transformation, not to mention how all that training has changed the individual in such a postive manner by gaining confidence in themselves, and their abilities.

Today, I've decided to make a living teaching Wing Chun to whom ever decides to learn it. To earn a living doing something you love is not a dishonor to the art but a great way to live your life through it by sharing something that was passed down through the generations. I see more and more as time goes by how Wing Chun has helped me become the person I am today.

James

[Bob8]

Yup for fun :-)

Sihing wrote: "Also after I learned about the history of WC and Bruce Lee's association with it and with GM Cheung, I felt part of something of signifigance and history."

??? Are you serious?

[Waxwood rod]

Why practice MA? just another venue to pick up chicks. if things arn't looking so good at one school I'll check out another after some research into who will be teaching the hot babes. been having a good time studying these arts.

[t_niehoff]

sihing wrote:

Yes, but you forgot that Terence's idea of fun is fighting. I guess he gets his kicks out of either taking a beating or dishing one out.

**Why do boxers box or wrestlers grapple? For fun. Fighting, regardless of the method, is the ultimate in competitive activities. And people have been fighting for fun since time immemorial. It has nothing to do with "taking a beating or dishing one out"; it's like mountain climbing, an intense physical and mental challenge but where you have an adaptive opponent rather than a static one (a mountain).

[brody]

Great question.

As a child, I needed to learn MA to defend myself from my cusins who all took MA and used me as their practice dummy.

In High School, I had Asain Short mans syndrome.

In College, I had Asain Short mans syndrome.

As an adult, I have Asain Short mans syndrome, a Family to protect, and its just a way of life...

Seriously... now I just want to help preserve our Art.

[Tydive]

Funny that our reasons for doing this are pretty much the same that somebody would have for playing any sport.

[MRH]

The reason I do it ?
I train so that if I have to fight its there. I don't train for fun or tournaments ( although I do have fun when I train ) . I train because I know if I've got to the point where I have to fight then there's no other option.

This happens to me so rarely that I suppose the other reasons are more a part of it in my adult life...

Keeps me fit, keeps me looking good and feeling healthy. I don't like to come home from work and sit on the sofa and stagnate.
I don't get bored exercising if its Wing Chun. I also like to think looking at the likes of Yip Chun and Yip man that I can carry on doing it for the rest of my life.

[Ultimatewingchun]

Why do you practice martial arts?

"A combination of sadism, masochism and obsessive/compulsive disorder, plus a snide, argumentative and confrontational personality which obviates a regular and frequent requirement for self-defense.

After a while training just turns into a lifestyle." (Anerlich)



Okay, Andrew....you just won the award for...BEST QUOTE...(see the Best of 2004 thread).

[YongChun]

After a certain age, at least for me its:

1. a habit
2. a hobby
3. some exercise
4. a social activity
5. something for my brain
6. a waste to throw it all away
7. some pleasure from helping other people learn something

I could care less about: competition, who can beat up who, which lineage is the best, who has the most realistic training method, what is the most effective killing technique, who has the best Tan sau angle.

Mainly it's a bit of exercise and a mental break from reality. Other things in life are more important.

Ray

[Ultimatewingchun]

Oh yeah...I also want to report that James Roller (sihing) just won the FUNNIEST POST of the year 2004 award with this one - in response to: Why do you practice martial arts?...

"Also after I learned about the history of WC and Bruce Lee's association with it and with GM Cheung, I felt part of something of significance and history."

(James...whatever it is you've begun drinking for the holidays - I want some!).

[Ultimatewingchun]

Okay...now me.

I continue practicing martial arts because...I'M ADDICTED!

It's become a drug for me.

It started because my father terrorized me a few times - even though he was truly a wonderful man who I shall love and miss forever.

Added to the fact that I was skinny kid with a big ego growing up in Brooklyn - and I was born with six fingers on my right hand...the extra one being removed when I was five years old...which was the reason for my first streetfight...was wearing a cast (had 200 stitches in my hand)...another little 5 year old from down the block - on his way to becoming a maniac (he died of a heroin overdose around the age of 19)...decided to punch the cast...blood started to appear...I ran in the house crying to my father..who promptly told me to go back outside and fight him with the other hand...which I did.

But now....after all these years...I'm addicted to the FUN of it...like Terence.

[sihing]

Originally posted by Ultimatewingchun
Oh yeah...I also want to report that James Roller (sihing) just won the FUNNIEST POST of the year 2004 award with this one - in response to: Why do you practice martial arts?...

"Also after I learned about the history of WC and Bruce Lee's association with it and with GM Cheung, I felt part of something of significance and history."

(James...whatever it is you've begun drinking for the holidays - I want some!).

Just wrote down my first new year's resolution..Spend less time on KFO forum due to immature comments like the one above....

Grow up Victor! And you call yourself a Martial Artist?

James

[Ultimatewingchun]

"Grow up Victor! And you call yourself a Martial Artist?"



Come on, James...You can't take any ribbing?

Roll with the punches...or throw some back!

[mortal]

My first fight.

When I was 6 this 9 year old kid was teasing me. So I ran inside like a big crybaby and got my Grandfather(a very tough guy). I thought he would beat him up for me, or something. Anyway he brings me out to the kid. He looks at the kid and says"you want to fight my grandson?" the kid said "yes". Then my grandfather pushed me towards him. The kid punched me in the face. My adrenaline started pumping and I closed my eyes and started swinging. I swang until I was exhausted. When I opened my eyes the kid was back on his heels crying with a bloody nose. I was in shock.
A very valuable lesson learned.

Just thought I would share that with all of you.

[YongChun]

Along James line, my martial arts inspirations when growing up (not kidding) were:

Tarzan - comics and films - before grade 1
Roy Rodgers - starting grade 1 and 2
Gene Autrey
Wild Bill Hickock
Paladin
The lone ranger
Superman - all his comics - grade 5,6,7
Sir Lancelot - grade 7
Ivanhoe - grade 7
Mr. Moto - he flipped some guy across the room
Sparticus
Geronimo
King Richard
Roman Warfare
Greek Warfare
Wrestlers
The Rifleman
John Wayne
Bonanza
Ben Hur
Star Treck
Lost in Space
Hercules
Ben Wieder
Incredible Hulk
Spiderman
Judo
Boxers
Ali, Fraser, Foreman, Liston, Joe Lewis, Tyson
Bat Masterson
Clint Eastwood
The Aikido founder - bought his book
Masutatsu Oyama
Bruce Lee - Green Hornet and later his green book
Chinese Kung Fu movies - five fingers of death, Dragon Inn


That got me started in:
Wrestling - middle school
A dab of Judo
Weight lifting
a few years of Karate - in the 60's
a few years of Hung style - early 70's
Alexander Fusheng movies
a few years of Tai Chi - mid 70's
Robert Smith's book
Raymond Chung
William C.C. Chen - inspiration
some years of Wing Chun - 1976 on
Bruce Lee's book
Leung Ting's magazine articles
Patrick Chow - 1976
Dr. Khoe - early 80's
Wang Kiu - early 80's
Wong Shun Leung
Roland Wong - Jiu Wan
Mark Lee - Jiu Wan
Johnnie Yu - Moy Yat
Tsui Shan Ting
Eddie Chong
Kenneth Chung - early 90's
Emin Boztepe - early 90's
Videos of everyone else
a few years of Escrima
Remy Presas
Bobby Taboada
Dom Lopez
videos of everyone else
a bit of Knife fighting training
Jame Keating
more Wing Chun
A bit of Tai Chi for fun
A dab of Thai Boxing
Korean teacher
A dab of Silat
Herman Siwanda

Now: thinking do I really want to keep doing this? Answer: if I didn't, then I probably wouldn't bother exercising so might as well keep going.

[sihing]

Originally posted by Ultimatewingchun
"Grow up Victor! And you call yourself a Martial Artist?"



Come on, James...You can't take any ribbing?

Roll with the punches...or throw some back!

Victor,

You still haven't learned the essence of Martial Arts training. After the first few years of any type of serious training in the MA one should learn respect for themselves and for the power they possess. Then even later they learn that MA is not about fighting but about suppression of ego, and that the true lessons to be learned are about one's self and learning to love one's self for who and what they are, not how well one can defend a mount from a BJJ fighter.. For those that stay on this level they are just scratching the surface and are missing out on much more than meets the eye. Anybody that puts time into anything of value will come out with more value than just what that endeavor is worth alone. People might think the best bodybuilders are just muscle bound dummies but when you look at it they are sculptors of the most treasured piece of art in existence, the human body, and to continually show the persistence and dedication to sculpt and build the body on a daily bases teaches them lessons more valuable than how to lift a weight and flex a muscle. They learn the values of commitment, perseverance, determination, and hard work, following a dream and sticking with it no matter what. They also learn the science of the body and how it works and reacts to different stimuli and what makes the body tick, physiology (yeah I know most of them use steriods, but steriods alone don't make you Mr Olympia, the work still has to be done). Much more than meets the eye, and the same applies to the Martial Artist, we just use a different vehicle to get there, added with some more spiritual growth because the art of fighting another human being and learning how to kill them is a primitive instinct with in all of us and mastery of that requires more responsibility from us as individuals, when this happens a person should grow spiritually.

When I entered the kwoon back in T Bay in 1988, I had no real previous MA training but there was energy in the room and of course a special energy associated with Sifu himself. It felt like a real "Shaolin Temple" from what I had seen from old Shaw brothers movies on Saturday Nights. But when I read about the history of the art, and what it is was created for I realized I had come across something very special. Sifu at that time was only 1 of 25 people in the whole world certified to teach it and he was then and still is one of the most highly skilled MA in the world today, which to me means a person that not only teaches it and performs it well but lives it in his daily life, as Sifu does, so when one meets a true Master of the MA they feel it, and some chose to be a part of it, while some are scared for some reason and chose not to continue, for reasons I do not understand. It was the best decision I ever made, to join the school and train in the Art of Wing Chun.

James

[YongChun]

Originally posted by sihing
When I entered the kwoon back in T Bay in 1988, I had no real previous MA training but there was energy in the room and of course a special energy associated with Sifu himself. It felt like a real "Shaolin Temple" from what I had seen from old Shaw brothers movies on Saturday Nights. But when I read about the history of the art, and what it is was created for I realized I had come across something very special. Sifu at that time was only 1 of 25 people in the whole world certified to teach it and he was then and still is one of the most highly skilled MA in the world today,
James

I think in 1988 there were already thousands of certified Wing Chun teachers since the Leung Ting Empire had 1,000,000 reported students by then not counting the lineages of Yip Man's other students. Everyone after two years or so with Yip Man probably felt certified to teach it.

How can we judge who are the most highly skilled MA in the world? I think every martial arts student feels that about their teacher. With millions of martial artists around it's difficult to say which are skilled or not skilled.

With every martial art I studied the teachers were very skilled and that includes Karate, Tai Chi, Wing Chun (various lineages) and Escrima.

But measureable skill against opponent's of known strength is difficult to quantify.

Which is not to dispute what you say in any way.

Ray

[sihing]

Originally posted by YongChun
I think in 1988 there were already thousands of certified Wing Chun teachers since the Leung Ting Empire had 1,000,000 reported students by then not counting the lineages of Yip Man's other students. Everyone after two years or so with Yip Man probably felt certified to teach it.

How can we judge who are the most highly skilled MA in the world? I think every martial arts student feels that about their teacher. With millions of martial artists around it's difficult to say which are skilled or not skilled.

With every martial art I studied the teachers were very skilled and that includes Karate, Tai Chi, Wing Chun (various lineages) and Escrima.

But measureable skill against opponent's of known strength is difficult to quantify.

Which is not to dispute what you say in any way.

Ray

The one of 25 in the world reference was in the William Cheung organization, at that time 86'-87', Sifu was one of 25 Sifu level instructors, and also became a memeber of the TWC family (2 seperate certificates, one for Sifu level and one for entering the TWC family) and was given a chinese name by GM Cheung. That # has more than tripled by now with some leaving the organization since then including my Sifu.

As for the words, "One of the most highly skilled" it is just words I use to describe my Sifu, just as some on here use to describe others they respect. If I had kept my head in the closet and didn't look at any other MA or Martial Artist then that statement would have zero credibility, but I have looked at others and what they do, and still believe in the words I wrote in that post. There are plenty of very skilled Martial Artists in this world, all from a variety of Martial Arts, and that is good for all of us, as the quality is still high, and in some arts still progressing to higher quality levels.

James

[YongChun]

OK just picking on words.

Ray

[captain]

what a truly great world we all live in when australians and lawyers can feel free an open enough to post on a martial arts website forum without fear of ridicule or censure!

Russ.

[Ali Hamad Rahim]

I have 7 brothers and all of them are over 6ft3in in height and no less then 230lbs, four of them have been in the U.S.M.C. for over14 year now and love too fight. By me being the second youngest I had too keep up with my brothers, who use too kick my but at will, that’s all over now, they can’t keep up with wing chun in combat, well with me anyway, but I will always love them forever.

Ali Hamad Rahim.

detroitwingchun.com (http://detroitwingchun.com)

[Mr Punch]

LOL at Anerlich's post.

I started cos of Ueshiba Morihei's aikibudo philosophy and that reason only... then I must admit a large amount of Anerlich's reasons and a few of Yongchun's took over.

Now, for fun, and to beat sports fighters. So far the second one hasn't worked so well, cos my art is too lethal for the ring! :D:p :rolleyes: