Of all my traditional training tools, I always end up practicing with the horse bench. My sifu would not let men touch another weapon until we could perform the form to his satisfaction. He always stressed its importance.
Arm/wrist strengthening -(i’m telling you…try swinging this thing around. or try sitting in a parallel horse stance and grab the bench by the bottom of two legs and hold it out in front of you arms parallel.)
coordination - used both as a long range weapon and short with kicks, dives, rolls and rolling the bench across your shoulders.
history - intro for young students into chinese tea ceremonies and ettiqute(sp?)
I just wanted to see if other KF people used the horse bench and wondered if it was such a large part of training.
I have trained using railroad ties. sitting in horse with one across your leags and one across your extended arms. And also using cinderblocks for various things. but never a horse bench. but it sounds interesting as well as tiring. Just when you thought you wee trining hard Check out his picture… below
I’m not the guy to ask that question to. I’m not sure if chi exists. If it does then I don’t think you can gain it. Its something you have at birth and could only learn to cultivate.
To me its strength training and stamina. Weights or dumbells would give you the same benefit but the bench is a nice tool and a heavy chair can work in its place.
I purchased “the Legend of the Drunken Master” this past weekend and saw a great scene with Jacki fighting off an entire horde of bad guys while swinging around a horse bench!
although it was coreographed fighting he still used many of the techniques that are in the form I learned.
-Using the legs in an uppercut fashion
-Swinging the bench above the head and at the ankle level to “sweep” the room.
-Trapping opponents arms with the legs of the bench
-Rolling the bench across the back of your shoulders to transfer the weapon to the other hand
I’ve always admired this unique yet plain “weapon” for its amazing versatility.
btw: Wasn’t there a recent article in Inside KF on this recently? (my apologies to Gene)
shaolin tiger 00, I was just floored by your comments
I’m not the guy to ask that question to. I’m not sure if chi exists. If it does then I don’t think you can gain it. Its something you have at birth and could only learn to cultivate.
To me its strength training and stamina.
were you being serious???
I believe the two finger handstand can be done. I’ve seen it done with two fingers using both hands. i’m not even going to get involved in the ‘chi existing’ thing.
The horse bench seems like a good thing to know for sure. It seems like it would be great for strength training as well. Are you pretty good at it? So there’s a form for the horse bench? Can you do it with speed and power?
Earth Dragon,
I’m just not sure. I’m certainly not rallying against it but I’m trying to keep my mind open and accepting to all.
By my own experience and training I have practiced the arts of cultivating these inborn properties. When I do wild goose qigong I “feel” my chi rise and settle. I can feel it fill my dantien and push to my extremeties. I become more intense and alive after these excercises. When I punch I can feel the root of my power come from the soels of my feet thru my trunk thru my knuckles. I feel all the things that I have been taught.
I just wonder, “What if this is in my head?”
qigong=hyperventilation and trance like psycho induced ? I don’t know the answer… somewhere in this lies a buddhist reality. (being very subjective) does it work for me because I believe?
I’m very skeptical of Eastern medicine (with the exception of accupuncture.)
wow were starting to get on 3 different topics (all cma related though):
bench,
does chi exist?
eastern medicine
In my opinion i think that this is really the true allure of kungfu. It is more of a lifestyle than just a form of combat. It is a philosophy, a history, several sciences (botany,internal medicine etc.), health and better living, character and showmanship (wushu, lion dancing, musical instruments) and yes.. fighting skill.
Qi dup,
am I good at it? yes sir. I “own” this form!
Ralek. san shou uses shuai chiao (chinese fast wrestling) for its takedowns and throws. Shuai chiao is the oldest form of combat in china (most civilizations had some form of wrestling) and is truly the foundation for any effective chinese fighting system. You can even see some shuai chiao in taichi. This is how san shou remains a chinese art not just kickboxing and wrestling.
Kickboxing. well I guess Westerners can take credit for the punching as it is stripped down of all the “phoenix eye/chain punching” etc. things and left simple effective techniques.
Ralek this is what I think about the difference between “traditional” kungfu vs. san shou (or muay thai)
in a manner almost mirroring jujitsu and judo. Kungfu ended after the Boxer Rebellion. with no warring and constant testing, it got Very stylized. too much excess began to enter the stytems and forms that were originallytaught as a visual history became an overfull encycopedia containing lots of “what if’s” and “magic strikes”
meanwhile the students do not spend enough time on the core and truly important things. and each generation was losing more and more validity. (too busy with unicorn stances..)
just like judo, san shou placed the uttmost importance of going live against another struggling opponent. where randori replaced kata fighting a resisting opponent is 100 times better than practicing a “deadly” technique.
Gloves and padding have allowed these practicioners to substain minimal injuries and continue to practice with safe techniques. -safe does not mean ineffective!!
sanshou like judo works because it is bare bone basic. it is direct and effective and still involves strategy and lots of skill to win.
to practice these basic principles and also include the reality of street fighting tactics eyes groin etc. and you get back to the truth of CMA.
So real kung fu doesn’t exsist anymore except in san shou. Then that would make real kung fu to be kickboxing and wrestling.
I don’t think its exclusive to san shou, but i think its very rare to find it in any traditional school.
I mean look at a kickboxing video. Then look at san shou. Exact same thing with wrestling takedowns.
I agree. simple effective techniques with gloves. san shou just has shuai chiao takedowns and powerful chinese kicks.
Now compare traditional kung fu and san hsou. No similarities at all.
well… i learned most of my kicking techniques from Shaolin (and you remember my kicks being pretty good;) )
the shuai chiao techniques can be found in taichi and bagua.
Most of the chinese systems have a core that is similar to sanshou. They just get to caught up in complex and unrealistic form crap. not to mention the lack of actual fighting to preserve this core.
Things change and san shou is showing the traditiaonal guys that they have had their head in a cloud for too long. Everything changes. jujitsu got stagnant and judo changed it. judo lost its street credability and bjj replaced it. over and over again.. all things change…