the practicality of practicing impractical moves...

[TenTigers]

not sure what you mean by impractical. Sure, there are certain techniques, due to their simplicity and directness, may be deemed more high percentage than others, but I never saw any reason to have an impractical technique passed down to the next generation.
Granted, there are some techniques that definitely take more time and practice to develop, and of course the argument is that that time could be better spent on simpler techniques.
So..quit Kung-Fu and take up boxing and be done with it.

[uki]

So..quit Kung-Fu and take up boxing and be done with it.

so your advice is what you do not follow yourself??

[TenTigers]

so your advice is what you do not follow yourself??

Like I said, that's the argument. I didn't say I subscribe to that view.
I don't agree that there are impractical moves in my Gung-Fu.
If you think your time would be better spent only practicing what you feel are the more practical techniques, then fine. Whatever floats yer boat.
Personally at my age, I probably won't be getting into schoolyard fights or bar brawls, and I doubt I'll be getting into the cage anytime soon.
I am pretty confident of my self-defense skills, and I practice to improve, refine and develop my technique and skill, and as a vehicle for personal development.

[YouKnowWho]

The 1st time that I used TKD "hook kick" (I don't believe it exists in TCMA) to kick on my opponent's head, I was quite surprised myself. I didn't even believe that was possible. Even today, I still train hook kick daily. Anything that you

- can make it work in combat is good technique.
- can't make it work in combat is bad technique (at least you are not good enough to make it works).

[SPJ]

comments on the underlying principles of training impractical movements... i believe that one has an edge if no one takes you seriously - the ultimate surprise of any attack... tiger styles are reknown for their tenacious ability to strike from any and all positions... feigning and providing openings is a customary trait of styles such as mantis, crane, monkey, lost track, drunken, and eagle, no?? where and how does one draw absolute conclusions on assumed situations and pre-conceptional martial art ideologies?? in my martial arts journey, i began to understand that one must be able to adapt to any given situation regardless of structure, posture, and circumstance...

every thing will work only under certain predetermined factors or conditions.

right timing, right position and right structure of power and balance.

if one factor is missing, the whole thing will not work.

that is the limit of things.

so the lessons become, if we may still make something work under less stringent conditions or fewer predetermined factors.

---

My point is that we need full understanding of how your moves would and would not work.

then we may learn how to make it work under less favorable conditions.

[YouKnowWho]

every thing will work only under certain predetermined factors or conditions.

When a move doesn't work, we should always look at ourselves, do we use the right move at the right moment? In Chinese wrestling, you have to learn at least 2 different kind of moves. Those move that work when your oppponent tries to straight his leg (raise), and those moves that work when your opponent tries to bend his legs (drop).