| The greatest martial arts legends lived | | | | have a collection of their videos and there |
| before video existed--masters who allegedly | | | | is a near total lack of actual instruction on |
| could knock down opponents with their chi or, | | | | them. Not all great masters are great |
| with a flick of a finger, could knock a large | | | | teachers. My best teachers have been |
| opponent twenty feet. | | | | Americans--students of these masters--who |
| | | | questioned beneath the surface and explained, |
| One legend tells of a young student who | | | | in plain English, the meaning of the |
| wanted to learn a form (also called "kata") | | | | movements. |
| from a master. According to the legend, the | | | | |
| master performed the sequence of movements | | | | Body mechanics must be taught clearly for a |
| one time, turned to the student and said, "I | | | | student to learn properly, and most masters |
| will be back in one year. At that time, you | | | | show the mechanics on video without teaching |
| should have mastered this form!" | | | | the details. And that's the problem. |
| | | | |
| One year later, the master returned and the | | | | An effective martial arts video requires a |
| student had, in fact, mastered the movements. | | | | teacher who knows how to teach through video |
| And he didn't even have a DVD player! | | | | -- with specific visual detail. Most masters |
| | | | only do repeated movements at different |
| In the 35 years that I've studied and taught | | | | angles with very little instruction on body |
| martial arts, I've never seen anyone--even | | | | mechanics. Without proper body mechanics, you |
| visual learners--memorize more than a couple | | | | can't do the internal arts properly. Some of |
| of movements of a form by watching it one | | | | the best videos I've seen have been by |
| time. In 1978, however, when I bought my | | | | martial artists who were not considered |
| first VCR, it opened up a new world of | | | | masters, but they were great teachers and |
| martial arts training for visual learners | | | | knew how to use video. |
| like me. | | | | |
| | | | If you try to learn martial arts on video, |
| Wouldn't it be amazing to see videos of some | | | | find a way to get feedback on your techniques |
| of the great, legendary martial arts masters. | | | | and movements from a qualified teacher. We |
| Imagine if you could watch the creator of Tai | | | | all believe we look like a great master when |
| Chi, Chen Wangting, perform his movements | | | | we perform, but the reality is usually |
| hundreds of years ago in the Chen Village. | | | | different from the self-image in our heads. |
| Legendary Hsing-I master Sun Lu Tang, the | | | | |
| creator of Sun Tai Chi, lived until the 1930s | | | | Use a camcorder to record your movements and |
| but sadly, not long enough for camcorders and | | | | then compare them to the video you're |
| VCRs to be invented. | | | | studying. Be brutally honest with yourself. |
| | | | Get a friend to look at both videos and tell |
| Since the early 1980s, martial artists around | | | | you where you're making a mistake. Is your |
| the world have been recording themselves on | | | | body really doing what the instructor is |
| video. The rise of the VCR and DVD gave us | | | | doing? |
| the chance to stop a master in his tracks or | | | | |
| slo-mo the movements like never before. | | | | Some of my students who live in other parts |
| | | | of the world put private videos on YouTube |
| I study and teach the three internal arts of | | | | for me to watch and critique. Sometimes I |
| China: Tai chi, Hsing-I Chuan, and | | | | make video replies to show them the mistakes |
| Baguazhang. The body mechanics for these arts | | | | they're making. |
| are incredibly complicated. It takes years of | | | | |
| study to do them correctly. | | | | Nothing can replace face-to-face teaching, |
| | | | but if you live in a town without people who |
| I've studied in person with some of the best | | | | teach the arts you want, the development of |
| tai chi masters -- Grandmaster Chen Xiaowang | | | | video and the Internet has given anyone a |
| and his brother, Grandmaster Chen Xiaoxing, | | | | chance to do training like no other time in |
| their students Master Ren Guangyi and Chen | | | | history. |
| Bing, and American students and disciples. I | | | | |