I performed a search and got a lot of hits on Iron Palm. Most of these threads where in the internal MA section though, and didn’t really go over the basics. I have read a bit on Iron Palm training, basically, I’ll outline what I have read and what I think and hopefully those of more experience can add or correct me.
What I have read is that Iron Palm training is recommended to pretty much anyone in training above the age of about 10 years old. It is designed to turn your hands into weapons, ie. stronger, more solid hands which are more damaging. You start out with a beginner bag containing beans, until they are crushed powder (3-6 months), then move on to an intermediate bag. Then obviously to an advanced bag and after a couple years of training every day, you only need to train a couple times a week to maintain your hand strength.
I also read that after each session you rub your hands for about 5 minutes using a mixture of dit dot jow which reduces bruising and helps tighten the skin.
The training itself is done from horse, and left and right bow stance, change stances as needed. The strikes are: palm strike, then backhand strike, followed by a chop or knife hand, then a tiger claw (some kind of claw, may have misread). The strikes are performed in that order for about 5-10 minutes the first little while then you keep going until you can continue for approximately 45 minutes to an hour and switch bags once the beans are dust.
It is discussed as an external and internal form of training. The article didn’t say that only advanced students should train in iron palm, so I wonder if you can train almost exclusively external or what. If any of you could correct where I’m mistaken or add some info that would be great. Thanks.