Internal Exercise,Calisthenics And Weight Training

[Yin Chuan]

Ive often wondered about the parallel relationship between internal or soft exercise and external or hard exercise.Do the two paths ever cross?Ive trained in judo now for a little while and my coach is 73 years old .He is a very young 73 in that he is very healthy,strong and a vigorous individual.He often gives me advise on exercise and nutrition and when he talks I listen.Not long ago he demonstrated an ability to distend or make large his stomach(similar to a chi gong demonstration that I had seen in photos)although his aplication was to use this ability on the mat(as a way to torture his opponents).Now judo is considered a hard or external martial art by many and the exercises that my coach recommends are weight training or calisthenic type exercises but many of his abilities I think fall into a class of internal where looks on the outside (he is a smaller man)can be very decieving.Now since the jing or life force is contained in the blood and through its circulation(the blood)this life force is moved throughout the body can certain calisthenic exercises of which many internal exercises seem to be derivatives of(or visa versa) as well as weight training exercises(in higher rep ranges)enhance this "flow"of chi or jing.Power lifting would be considered an external exercise because of low rep ranges and also of the youth needed to participate at the higher levels of the sport whereas bodybuilding(done naturally)seems to live on as well as get better with time.Running would be an internal exercise because of the circulation of the blood and oxygen as well as your ability to participate for a lifetime(Ive had many older folks pass me like I was standing still).What do you think?Just food for thought. :cool:

[Wongsifu]

yin chuan you are totally right the only difference about practise is the intent you have , for example if you run till y0ou get tired and die then its not really internal but if you run whilst controlling your breath properly then it becomes internal. Similarly if you look at karate their sanchin kata looks very external because of the tension but infact it is internal because of the intent on how to flow the energy and the muscular tension is used to jam th eenergy in the muscle.

The main difference between internal and exxternal is that you use intent to move in internal you use strength to move external.

what do bin laden and general custer have in common????
They're both wondering where the fu(k all of those tomahawks are coming from. - donated by mojo

[Yin Chuan]

Wongsifu,but dont you need the mind first to will the body to do as you wish.Example would be if I were to lift a weight off the floor,there would have to be an intent on my part to lift the weight.Mind wills the body which in turn stimulates the spirit or chi.Some of the best moments thought wise that Ive had have been when Ive been running when Im at a good pace and the breath and stride are all interconnected thoughts just seem to flow like out of a *****et.I couldnt tell you how many times Ive said to myself "just lay off today" but have WILLED myself to go ahead and train anyway.Wouldnt this be an intent on my part?Would it fit the idea of an internal exercise?

[Repulsive Monkey]

Weight lifting DOES NOT improve internal cultivation nor necessarily does running neither. If both of these activities are done with muscular tension (or any other exercise for that matter) then they will most probably impede and decrease internal cultivation and thats the bottom line. Jamming Qi into muscles is not internal cultivation as far as the three main internal martial arts are concerned. This sounds more like Hard Qigong derivatives and probably then not very internal at all. Internal cultivation needs relaxation and that means NO muscular tension, becasue then one runs the risk of causing Qi stagnation in the channels, and general muscle problems.

[Yin Chuan]

I agree the more relaxed I am (which is very hard for me)the more efficiently I seem to do things such as run,work out,practice martial arts,etc.This is something that every one of my instructors has stressed before anything.RELAXATION OF MOVEMENT.Without it anyone's movements tend to be jerky or forced.Over and over again Ive heard this stressed in every martial art Ive done RELAX!Notice that all great athletes when they perform seem to perform effortlessly.Their chi or ki or life force just seems to flow from them.There are no kinks in their hoses to disrupt this flow.Thats why I beleive flexibility was always a big part of the martial arts.It is a direct translation of just how relaxed you are or how you'll perform! :cool: