Hi I’m looking to learn a martial art with my dad, we are going to take classes but I’m having trouble deciding which.
He has some back problems, so he wanted to do tai chi. I realize that every move you learn in tai chi has a fighting application, but do they teach you the fighting application eventually?
I want to do it for the fighting purposes, but I don’t want to push my dad.
Taekwondo seemed a little extreme from videos I watched on Youtube, does it start out slower?
Kung Fu seemed like a good choice. What do you guys suggest?
I meant teach the fighting application in a faster way, not the just the fluid slow movements.
And if it matters, I’m 16 (female) and he’s 42.
Jeet Kune Do
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I am older now and went to 9mm target practice.
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Tai chi sneaks up on you! If you repeat any movement until it becomes fluid and smooth it also has the ability to be delivered with great speed. Speed equals power, and when it is smooth and fluid, it is also accurate (very important). On the other hand TKD or karate may help your father’s back, as it did mine. By being strong and supple, it supports my damaged lumbar, so he may want to observe some of those classes as well, and by all means talk to all the instructors. Good luck to you both.
J
40+ yrs training; Instructor: Shotokan, The-Balance-Ryu Karate-Do
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Kung Fu.
There will most likely be some Tai Chi techniques included in the lessons, will help him with his back, etc.
There are students approaching black belt rank in my class that are over 70, (our master is almost 60), one of which is a 60 year old woman who had hip replacement, a 26 year old autistic man (blue belt) and a retired cop.
Red Belt: kung fu
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First of all i think kung fu was harder than tae kwon doe but if you want i challenge i recommend judo
Red Belt: kung fu
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Whether or not application would be taught completely depends on the school. A good school will as they’re teaching for martial arts and not for a health benefit. Any school who won’t teach application is questionably a fake Taichiquan school.
Taijiquan is the mostly deadliest martial art, bar none. If there is a real qualified instructor in your area, I would definitely recommend taking it. In application and in practice, It is the best style you could ever learn.
Taekwondo is no where near as flashy as Youtube videos appear. What you’re looking at is demonstrations are fan-boy videos where people are specifically trying to show off rather than test the fruits of their training. For reasons I don’t care to get into (but I know someone else will) I wouldn’t recommend Taekwondo, especially due to your dad.
There’s hundred of different Kung Fu styles and you run just as big of a risk at not finding a real school to learn. There are school devoted to real Kung Fu, but there are a lot of flashy school more worried about performances, demonstrations and competitions than actual application.
I would recommend researching what Kung Fu styles there are around you’re area and learn the specific styles they teach. Then research the styles individually.
Many Kung Fu styles will be more extreme than you may think. Your dad might not like it. Kung Fu requires a good deal of flexibility and leg strength. It might not be his cup of tea and could get discouraging.
My suggestion would be taking Taijiquan. It’s most applicable as well as beneficial to health. There’s five mains styles of Taijiquan: Chen, Yang, Wu, Sun, and Hao. Make sure the place specifically advertises as an “X style Tai Chi” and not simply advertised “Tai Chi”. That should be a red flag.
Application is taught at fast speed in real life situations. Practicing Tai Chi is like playing a musical instrument: if you can’t do it slow you can’t do it fast and the slower you can perform it the faster you employ it. (imagine a complicated run up the piano keys or a monster lick on the guitar)
Here’s for a good grasp of application:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gnwC_IDlzyg&p=98E0C881C4641B82&playnext=1&index=59
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3y8tLH0M_M&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIc5NIfrnJs&feature=related
15+ years Goju Ryu, Taekwondo, Hapkido, Tai Chi, and Hung Gar practitioner
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I would strongly recommend Tai chi the thing about this is you can push your self while he can take it easy. It will most likely help his back. I would also say to make sure you do Chi gong as well because once you start learning how to shoot chi out, you will want to “replenish” it.
I would also say no to TKD because it is very hard on the hips and knees.
we have a 60 year old guy in my ninjutsu dojo and he’s loving it. If you think you can handle that then I would say go for it. by the way the grand master is like 78
15+ years Goju Ryu, Taekwondo, Hapkido, Tai Chi, and Hung Gar practitioner
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karate no kung fu or taekwando bs
15+ years Goju Ryu, Taekwondo, Hapkido, Tai Chi, and Hung Gar practitioner
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take up wing chun then, its for male/female
15+ years Goju Ryu, Taekwondo, Hapkido, Tai Chi, and Hung Gar practitioner
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If you have a Cuong Nhu dojo where you live I would recomend that. It is combined from 7 other styles including Tai Chi and Taekwondo, so it’s got something for everyone. You don’t have to be incredibly physically fit when you start out. People of all age do it. However, it’s not very widely known. http://www.cuongnhu.com/RegionDetail.aspx?RID=1 to find if there’s a dojo near you.
15+ years Goju Ryu, Taekwondo, Hapkido, Tai Chi, and Hung Gar practitioner
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there are very few people in this world I am intimidated by or just simply would not mess with.. a true Tai Chi Master is one of them. It takes a couple decades or more, but Tai Chi is extremely effective for self defense.
As far as for you AND your dad, my only advice is to avoid disciplines like Judo or hapkido where it involves twisting your back for throws.. yes you are using the opponents weight against them, but for every action there is a reaction and that weight shift goes into your back, even when done properly. he would not want to twist his back with the added weight of another human added. I don’t know what I would specifically suggest for you both, probably a striking art, that way he isn’t messing with extra weight on his back while grappling.
15+ years Goju Ryu, Taekwondo, Hapkido, Tai Chi, and Hung Gar practitioner
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Your Dad is a lucky guy to have you for a daughter.
Tai-Chi-Chuan if taught by a legitimate and knowledgeable teacher would be a good choice considering his back problem, but it also depends on what kind of problem he is having. Plus, not all Tai-Chi schools teach the martial or combat aspect of the art. Many teach and train only for health benefits, so you need to beware of this.
I would not recommend TKD because kicking can aggravating back problems. Kungfu is a possible choice, but again it depends on your Dad’s disability. If you are lucky enough, you might find an instructor who is able to “adjust” the methods for your Dad and also for you. This kind of training requires someone who is not only knowledgeable about the martial art, but also experienced in teaching which are two different things.
Although not common, it is not unheard of for a school to teach both Tai-Chi and Kungfu. This maybe a good for your situation — you take kungfu, your Dad take Tai-Chi. Some master’s of Tai-Chi are also certified acupuncturist and are knowledgeable about rehabilitation of various injuries, so you want to keep an eye for such a person.
Look for someone around your Dad’s age or older. Look for a class that is relatively small — large classes means less individual attention and increases the chance of injury. Observe a class or two and see how many if any older or long time students are there — talk to them and ask them what they think. If you are lucky, you might run into someone who have studied more than one martial art and can give you a good perspective.
15+ years Goju Ryu, Taekwondo, Hapkido, Tai Chi, and Hung Gar practitioner
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MMA is the big thing these days thanks to the UFC. Most people just want to beat someone up and be seen doing it. REAL martial arts are for self defense only. I train in traditional Songshan Shaolin Gongfu (Kung Fu) However, it is a rarity, and clouded by modern Wushu. There are a few options here in ths US. But Shi De Yang in China is by FAR the best option to learn REAL martial arts.
Shi De Yang’s school in China.
http://shideyang.com/ – learn more about him here.
here’s his actual school
http://www.shaolindeyang.com/about.asp?d…
some Shaolin videos, some of Shi De Yang, other from his school, and some of my favorites, to inspire you.
Shaolin Documentary done by national geographic. anything you want to know about it, is in these videos. here’s part 1, you’ll find the other parts right next to it on youtube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FbkVJEVtx…
documentary done by discovery channel. 2 americans go on a fight quest to shaolin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lygKOJhNK…
they teach you drunken fist as well.. by far the coolest form in martial arts. (no you don’t drink before you do it, it’s meant to confuse your opponent.) and yes, those sticks are real, and solid, and they don’t even feel it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFnHRs308…
here’s some old school videos showing Shi De Yang and his fellow students. this is shaolin back in the day. yes, Jet li, the movie star is in some of these videos, part 2 and 3 i think. he’s young, but you can tell it’s him.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThpQLx-pS…
another video of shi de yang, you can see how he runs his school, also what a peaceful person he is. this man is deadly with kung fu skills, and the nicest person you’ll ever meet, he is also very smart, he’s an intellectual scholar, who knows a TON about philosophy, and a master in every form of Shaolin Kung Fu.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnIyCa_YX…
The empty mind.. short clip on shaolin
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Llqup1Uir…
anything else man just search shaolin kung fu, gongfu, qigong, shaolin chan city, anything in youtube, there’s tons of videos.
like i said before, i’ve done TONS of research, and there are hundreds of fakes and frauds out there, and only a handful of real ones. so here’s the deal.
Shi De Yang in China. By far the best option
Le Fujun in St. Louis Missouri. Trained by Shi De Yang
Shi Yan Ming in NYC, very expensive, but legit.
(he trains the wu tang clan, wesley snipes, and tons of other celebs, he’s so popular in new york city, he’s real, but he’s so expensive.) cool video to check him out if you want though.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaQ2QITnK…
here’s RZA from wu tang, with Shi Yan Ming
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PtRoenZw4…
Shi Xing Mi in Italy, also trained by Shi De Yang.
(he is walter in the documentary i sent you first, thats his chinese name, walter is his english name)
Shi Yan Lei in England. also expensive, only shaolin monk in London, very popular. similar situation to Shi Yan Ming in NYC.
Shi De Ru in Louisiana. Also trained by Shi De Yang.
Shi De Cheng in China. Grew up with Shi De Yang, very good, but not as good as Shi De Yang.
so, just about everyone who’s real, and a master.. is trained by shi de yang. so you can either go to them for weekly classes here in the US.. or you can go LIVE and train and be apart of the LIFESTYLE in China. It’s up to you. there’s a small few here in the US.. you’ll have to pay to live in your own apartment, work a job, and have a life outside of kung fu. Or, you can devote yourself to it, and make it your LIFE, in China at Shi De Yang’s school. Anything else you come across on the internet is fake, and a fraud, so stay away.
I currently train with Le Fujun in St. Louis and will be making annual trips to Dengfeng in the Henan Province of China (where the Shaolin temple is located) to train at Shi De Yang’s school. He is by far the best option.
I wish you great success! Don’t be fooled by tough guys in Jiu Jitsu or Muay Thai. Shaolin teaches Sanda kickboxing, which is Muay Thai’s older brother. ANY martial art you see in the world today, comes from Shaolin. It is the original, it is effective, and it is very spiritual. The best martial art in the world today. Don’t let these UFC wannabe’s drag you down with them, pick a REAL martial art. Shaolin Gongfu! All the best! Amituofo!
15+ years Goju Ryu, Taekwondo, Hapkido, Tai Chi, and Hung Gar practitioner
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