Does "martial" relaxation training= Snake Oil? + Adrenal Training

[Christopher M]

I guess it depends what you mean by flinch.

It you mean becoming tense, tightening up your posture, withdrawing, and closing your eyes... then I don't want it. I'd love my would-be assailants to have it though.

[yenhoi]

Ive trained the flinch into: punch, tan sau, bong sau, and fook sau, etc, not in any order, except punch always comes first.

strike!

[Christopher M]

If you can do that then couldn't you make your "flinch" reflex to be dropping and opening your shoulder blades, suspending your head, hanging your elbows, opening your palms, relaxing your lower back, settling your knees, and otherwise adopting a functional "extended relaxation"?

[yenhoi]

If thats at me, then sure. I dont know what will really pop out of me, mine were just examples.

I still say there is no such thing as a soft style, just good mechanics and good principles, which are universal accross all continents, cultures, and so-called "arts."

Like the pagan MP says.

[Christopher M]

Directed at anyone who thinks "martial relaxtion training" is snake oil.

As for "soft style", I'm not sure where how you're choosing to categorize things. I know that there's certainly different training methods in the martial arts, and I know that you will get only what you train for. Dunno how that leaves our beleagured "soft styles." Depends on how you're choosing to look at things.

[Royal Dragon]

Soft styles generally deflect, Hard generally block force on force.

Tension is a state of mind. I like to use the Race car driver example as I have some experiance with high performance driving (Illegal street). A high performance driver is generally very calm, relaxed, and emotionally disconnected from the driving. His mind is alert, an focused on the feel of his car, and guiding it through the course. If he was tense, nervious or scared, it would interupt the "Flow" he needs to unanimously blend with his car, and he would not be capable of controlling it saftly at high speeds. Normal people cannot drive 150, or even close without feeling gripping waves of panic. They are way to tense to ever accomplish such a feat, they are not relaxed enough.

Fighting is just like this. If you can Achive the "Race Car Mind" as I like to call it, you will be calm and relaxed inside reguardless of the level of brutality and violence you are exibiting outside. The goal in fighting is not to train your reflexes to take advantage of the way you naturally react when you are being scared, startled or over whelmed, it's to develop the "race car mind" where going 150 through a winding course is no different to you than a normal person going 15 through the same course. Fighting for your life is no different to you than freindly sparring with your buddies in the park on a warm sunny August moring.

This is what is really meant by relaxation. It's not a state of near sleep, but an ultra alert yet calm state of mind, super awareness and wholeistic unison with your actions in an unemotionally attached manor just like a race car driver running his course.

[KC Elbows]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who watches boxing here. None of the winners look tense to me. I think you need to be able to have moments of sudden tension, but only moments: all the good fighters I've ever seen looked pretty relaxed playing with their opponents.

[Laughing Cow]

Actually, thanks to the WC Guys I found and article that fits this topic.

Article

BTW, there are times in Chen TJQ when we tense the body but it is very brief.

Cheers.

[old jong]

You beat me to it!...That article says a lot .

[Black Jack]

Have to disagree with you Royal and the Race Car Driving mindset. I understand where you are trying to go with it. I just believe it is not so cut and dry.

Fighting for your life is no different to you than freindly sparring with your buddies in the park on a warm sunny August moring.- Royal Dragon

That part of the statement alone is a large basis for disagreement. It is a massive difference no matter how many times a person has sparred or entered a MMA event. An perfect example would be Alex Gong.

[fa_jing]

I think you bring up a very good point, BlackJack. I think that you can train away this response to some degree for sport fighting, but for self-defense it is tough. Meditation will help but you still never know what your response is going to be. For those of use who have spent less than 30 years contemplating a naval orange, I advocate learning a simplified, external, bare-bones basic version of your fighting style that you can fall back on even if you tense up. I think this is very important.

[Royal Dragon]

I don't know, if I can't get into the "Race Car Mind" frame of mind, I really can't fight at all. But if I "Have it", I'm practically unstoppable.

I've actually had hurdles fight wise in the past that were not fixed by Kung Fu, but by getting out on the open road, and practicing my driving skills til I got my "connection" to my car back.

I have a VERY direct relationship between my driving abilites, and my fighitng abilites. If I can race, I can fight. If I can fight, I can race.