'Jeet Kun Do' u already do it.

[Chris]

everyone should check out some of bruce lee's work

nearly all of the advice he gives can be applied to anything its just logical common sense fighting advice half written for those who already are martial artisits (ie you)

and its not just hundreds of pages of info to forget but a book written as a fighters notes complete with those little mystical kung fu sayings u gotto work out urself (i love those)

basically it aint just another set of moves and tricks and flashy forms to learn but a complete set of tips to help you perfect whatever aspect of the arts you want (you already do wing chun your half way there, just need an open mind to complete the circle)

prevent your personal freedom and creativity getting stagnated

most importantly it definatly is not the manual to be bruce lee, it is the manual to be you.

(its not all that new age be who u wanna be crap BTW, its being who you are with what you got)

BUY A COPY of the tao of JKD, or post a question an il post some stuff from the book for you to interpret however u want.

The work is too valuable to be ignored. and too easily misinterpreted by those without an open mind regardless of their skill (the cup is filled and its contents frozen, difficult to thaw and return to the void)

[Chris]

no one apears to be interested in the work of the most influencial martial artist of the 20th century

(although in my eyes it would be fair to say Great grandmaster Yip Man was the most influencial seen as all Bruces inspiration came from him)

so i have decided to post stuff anyway.

[Chris]

on the sidestep or 45 step without purpose

"Remember, when an opponent rushes you, it is not so much the rush you sidestep as some particular Kick or blow he leads during the rush; indeed, if you step to the side of your opponent without catching sight of some blow to get outside of, you will be very liable to run into a hook or swing"

Extract from Tao of JKD by B. Lee

[Chris]

i think what he is saying here is that the 45 step is designed to evade a blow on the same side so when you step to your opponents side (were talking infighting not just mobility btw) you would be covering and evading a lead attack and then in this split second movement the oppenent would be struck on the closest open target at this moment of comitment.

whereas if you used this movement to an opponent who is advancing but not comiting themselves it will be very easy for them to change direction and counter, or even just counter if he is close enough.

it is very important to note there is no gain to come from striking a closed target, unless it provokes a counter which then can be exploited.

The laws of causality.

[yunalesca]

makes sense

[Chris]

my point Entirely

[suairyu]

I was taught by a school of Jeet Kune Do for two years. It being my first fighting art experience it gave me a great base from which I've approached other martial arts. The book, the Tao Of Jeet Kune Do, I refer to constantly. As Chris said, it doesn't teach you a set style, it teaches you how to develop your own through identifying what does and what doesn't work.

Very simplified example: Wing Chun punches are devastating, and as a close-quarters art there are few better, yet at long range the fighting style would most likely be best by other styles of fighting, and its base isn't fantastic for mobility. Through practise you adapt the Wing Chun punches to a different base and footwork style, while bringing in Western Boxing type punching and Thai Boxing style kicks for mid to long range, all the time keeping things as simple as possible.

Many are put off by the philosophically-heavy aspects, especially near the beginning of the book, but if you can drive through them you'll realise it creates a good mindset for approaching fights (such as the infamous "be water" fighting theory).

[superfoot]

How can one be taught Jeet Kun Do? My understanding was that JKD is an individual and personal thing, yet if you are being taught bruce's style of fighting; does that not miss the point entierly of jkd? Or am i misunderstanding how jkd schools work?

[suairyu]

No no, you are right that it is a difficult subject if you can be taught in JKD. However, Bruce Lee himself later named his schools "schools of JKD", and since his death some of his students carried on that tradition and the schools have spread across the world. Sometimes you do get those that claim to be teaching JKD yet still teach a set style, however I was lucky in that my school constantly was helping you develop your own style. Often if I was taught something I questioned the move in question, to which my teacher eagerly explained the theory behind a certain practise, in some cases even outright saying that if I felt it was not suitable for me I should develop a different approach.

I guess you're not taught JKD per se, then, but a school of JKD will help you develop you own personal and above all realistic fighting method.

[Tom]

I think any decent martial arts club should be willing to borrow bits and pieces from other styles if it will compliment your main style. Me and Phil had a lengthy discussion about this in the bar...

[superfoot]

Wing chun has a lot more to offer than just its punches at close ranges; for fighting further distances one needs to learn bridging techniques and how to seek the bridge. You can only really understand the vastness and completeness of a system when you have studied alot of it. I personally feel from my basic understanding of the system that it can deal with all the problems you forsee from your understanding of wing chun.
If you are concerned with what you believe to be frailties with the system at mid/long range, i suggest you ask sifu (Master Kwok) on his thoughts on it and see if he can put a good argument across. If other styles of thing suit you better personally then of course you should use them, i just hope you make sure you really look at what all the system has to offer, noone can conclude without putting the time and really seeing the big picture.
Ultiamtely though i take a jkd approach to my martial arts, absorbing whats useful, shedding whats not. Carry on questioning everything and seeing if an answer can be given, thats the only way to learn i guess.

[Tom]

superfoot said:

Wing chun has a lot more to offer than just its punches at close ranges; for fighting further distances one needs to learn bridging techniques and how to seek the bridge. You can only really understand the vastness and completeness of a system when you have studied alot of it. I personally feel from my basic understanding of the system that it can deal with all the problems you forsee from your understanding of wing chun.
If you are concerned with what you believe to be frailties with the system at mid/long range, i suggest you ask sifu (Master Kwok) on his thoughts on it and see if he can put a good argument across. If other styles of thing suit you better personally then of course you should use them, i just hope you make sure you really look at what all the system has to offer, noone can conclude without putting the time and really seeing the big picture.
Ultiamtely though i take a jkd approach to my martial arts, absorbing whats useful, shedding whats not. Carry on questioning everything and seeing if an answer can be given, thats the only way to learn i guess.

Yeah, just to add to that, if you want an example of Wing Chun working at range, just watch the video of Sifu dealing with Ad's kicks on the DVD. Although those are only examples against kicks, most of those techniques can be just as easily adapted to other types of attack.

[levi]

I'm not sure if anyone will agree with me on this one, but it's something i can't seem to shake. I would more than likely get a crack round the head from Si-Gung for even thinking this but i feel that due to every individuals differnce in shape and size, some techniques seem to work better than others. Therefore when applying wing chun, the practioner might opt for certain techniques that he or she may feel right in that particular instance or train to master those techniques first. If i was Shorter than average in height, then surely the lower centre of gravity against a taller opponent would promote a completely individual style of wing chun and vice versa. Which brings me to my point....when a sound and thorough wing chun knowledge is acheived is it to be adapted to suit you as an individual which is what i believe that Bruce Lee did. And would it be possible to be proficient in Jeet Kune do without the grounding that Wing chun provides.

[Tom]

The way you attack an opponent depends entire on the opponent. I don´t think any Wing Chun teacher would argue against that. Dave who we train with is 6´7, and a lot of the guys find it hard to chi sau with him because of his extended reach. But they change their approach to give themselves a better chance. We´ve been discussing this in some detail over the last week here in Majorca, and doing a lot of training to that effect.

[levi]

Majorca

Jammie Sod.....hows the weather.

You on holiday, travelling or living?