Tim,

Any thoughts on specific conditioning methods to improve fighting performance? Weights, running, cals, anything supplementary to improve your combat skills?

Thoughts?
When will the book be out on your conditioning exercises?

Macaco fino

If you want to fight for real, you have to do separate conditioning exercises. Forms or sparring alone are obviously very important, but they are not enough. I think any activities which improve either strength, flexibility, endurance, coordination or balance are valuable. Every martial art has its own set of supplementary training or conditioning exercises (popularly referred to as "Gong." "Gong" roughly translates to "an attribute or skill that is acquired over time with repetitive effort." For example, Qi Gong (Chi Kung) is the skill of breath control and power acquired over time spent training.
The types of conditioning activities and exercises one chooses should depend on the individual's goals. For example, training to stay in shape is far less time consuming and labor intense than training to fight. You might be very strong, but inflexible, so you would spend more time on stretching exercises and less on strength exercises and so on.
Thanks for bringing up my new book, it's the perfect opportunity for a shameless plug. I'm in the process (long process) of compiling an instructional work on the various power training ("gong") exercises used in the Internal martial arts. Some of them will be familiar to Internal arts practitioners, and I believe some (the more difficult and advanced ones) will be new to most. I've noticed that a great many of the Internal arts practitioners in the Stats learn some basic "warm ups" a form and maybe "pushing hands." Although these types of training are important, they are only half of the complete systems. Most people practice Internal martial arts for the "health benefits." Unfortunately, the great physical prowess of the old masters was due primarily to their power training activities, and not to forms practice.
I'm hoping people who want to improve their overall physicality, as well as practitioners of the Internal arts who are interested in using their arts for real self defense or fighting competition will find the training useful.

Tim:

I look forward to just about any book or video you put out, and conditioning/power training practices of the internal arts would be a much-needed addition to what's out there.

I noticed a "traditional" Shaolin training school profiled in the current issue of Black Belt magazine, where the master and students were all standing on their heads without apparent support from hands (I couldn't see if they were suspended by wire around their ankles). Personally, I prefer bridging exercises to build up my neck.

Seriously, though, will you be including conditioning exercises used by the grappling arts? Even though it's not grouped with the "traditional" Big 3 Chinese "internal" martial arts, I know that you regard (and I'd agree) Gracie-type jujitsu as showing internal principles.

Tim,

When you have time, would you mind listing a diet plan? Specific's would be very helpful (like what your typical breakfast consists of, lunch, dinner, etc.)

I'm a lazy goob when it comes to calculating out percentages (proteins, fat, carbs, etc) and find myself taking the easy road and filling up on junk 9 meals out of 10. Quasi-specific meal plans would help me greatly.

Thank you.

Wow, SG, and here I thought all you ever ate was shit.

Tom,
There will be a fair number of ground exercises in the conditioning book, most of them Chinese in origin, with a few from BJJ and other arts.

Some Guy,
Even though it would be un-American of me to discourage junk food, I'll give you an outline of my diet. As much as possible, I try to stick to a natural diet. I eat little or no grains (no breads, pasta, cereal..). I do eat some cheese but no other dairy products.
I try not to eat any sugar, or products containing them (which is fairly easy if you don't eat grains). I don't eat potatoes either. I eat vegetables, some fruit, a lot of nuts and meat (red meat, fish , fowl) is the main staple of my diet. I'm one of those who believe protein intake should be high (I try to get between 150 and 200 grams a day), especially if you are active. I eat quite a bit of fat, and the carbs I keep low. I cheat on occasion (on my "pizza for health" days). I also eat a lot of eggs (just like Rocky). When I'm in a hurry, I will also eat low carb, high protein bars. I don't drink alcohol.

Tim,
Thanks for the input.

Tom,
I refuse to have a battle of wits with an unarmed opponent.

Hey Tim,
A thought just occurred to me: specific Xing-Yi forms are of benefit to specific body parts (health-wise, so I'm told); can/have the specific, most healthful/helpful parts of these forms been isolated as qi gong?
I ask because I don't desire to learn every form (a personal preference), but I'm interested in exercises that may help heal or circumvent my injuries/disabilities. For instance, can a small part of the Bear Form help my neck?

A NOTE TO OTHER READERS: some of Tim's power exercises may seem so easy that you may want to start off with beau-coup repetitions, but I just recently re-learned a lesson that I thought was already learned well enough. I did too much too soon & have been in some considerable discomfort (er, PAIN!) for several days now -- and this screws up my training. Note also that I may have been performing the exercises incorrectly to boot! There's a fine line between proper & improper in some (if not many) of these exercises that Tim shows us. I should have heeded Tim's advice (paraphrased): It's better to do ten repetitions properly than one hundred repetitions improperly. Amen ["amen" = truth/true word(s)]!
I hope I've learned my lesson this time. {:o)

Mike,
The Qi Gong exercises patterned after the Five Elements and related exercises (like the 16 Xing Yi Nei Gong Exercises)are probably the best bet for all around health building.

Hi Tim,

While everyone is at it, will you be putting any more detailed info on the spear training and (sort of) see in you're neigong book? I've had very good success with the pichuan, and bengchuan methods, but the others elude me.

Thanks,

Vince Brown

Vince,
There will be some training with apparatus in the Power Training book, but not the Xing Yi spear exercises per se. There will be quite a lot of exercises with a shorter staff though.

Tim...

Not to steal fire from your upcoming "gong" book, but would you consider putting video clips of two or three of the most important exercises, in your opinion, on your site? Thanks....

I'll put some exercises on the next time we add clips.

hhhhmmm...I think I already have some footage of exercises. I'll go look and put it up by this week.

How about the Ji Ben Shou Fa?
Buddy

There won't be Ji Ben Shou Fa or any other martial arts technical training in the book. The book is about power training only. The Virtual Academy is not meant to be instructional, only demonstrative. For practices like Ji Ben Shou Fa, the student needs detailed instruction.

Tim,
What do you think of doing non-weight oriented exercise to develop strength (eg. squats, pushups, situps, pullups, etc...)? Will it effect my ability to do IMA internally? The reason that I ask is that IMA is preformed relaxed, and doing these muscle strengthening exercises tense people up, which will effect the ability to flow properly and making the art practiced external.
I don't know much about these things, that is why I ask.
Thanks.

Hi George,
I think doing body weight resistance exercises are not only beneficial, they are vital if you want to develop the real power necesssary to use the IMA. I've written about this at length elsewhere on this board, but let me sum it up briefly.

What is the difference between lifting a weight or swinging a double sized Ba Gua Zhang broadsword? If it is counterproductive to practice pull ups because they "tense up" your arms, shouldn't we stop holding static postures or practicing forms any lower than bolt upright because they tense up our legs? See my point?

Personally, I don't lift weights, but I see nothing inherently wrong with the practice (or the practice of higher intensity body weight exercises) if they are done correctly. Is it not possible to lift weights or do push ups with "Internal" principles? I think the relevant point is not so much what you are doing, but how you are doing it. Perhaps if we used our intent to control our movement, we could even relax and do pull ups.

Big Balled Betty has another tip for you bunch of women. You want to increase your wind - Run.

Listen, not only will lifting and doing cals get you in the sack with some hotties, but you'll actually be able to get more umpa lumpa into your candy ass strikes. Hey, you might even look good in your f*&^*& speedos...

You wanna fight, get into shape. You wanna feel your chi - go eat donuts. Internal Martial Arts are martial arts. You fight with them. If you want someone to rub your 5th charkra, go take up yoga you noodle. Or, go see a hooker.

"Remember, there's only one Betty, Big Balled Betty"

Thanks alot for the information you gave me. I never realized that Tim. And Big Balled Betty, you make some sense too.