Martial Arts Discussion

Where would I be able to find training for these skills in Washington, D.C.?

Jeet Kune Do, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Tai Chi, and Dim Mak.

Einstein said:Where can I find training for these skills in Washington, D.C.?

Jeet Kune Do, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Tai Chi, and Dim Mak.

Whoop...🤣
You can find Jeet Kune Do and BJJ around town, maybe(?), but for Tai Chi Chuan, check out somewhere like:

As for Dim Mak—you usually just get that bundled in with an acupuncture or traditional Chinese medicine degree...🤣

If you're looking to be Superman, you might have better luck with yoga and target practice...

🤣

🤣 🤣 🤣

Einstein asks:
Where can I find training for these specific skills in Washington, D.C.?

Jeet Kune Do, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Tai Chi, and Dim Mak.

If you're looking to dive into Tai Chi Chuan, you should definitely check out the website www.uechi-ryu.com

a Tai Chi?

You can find BJJ all over NYC at various gyms. Down in Martinville, I know for a fact the instructor is a blue belt, but honestly, I don't have a clue about the rest of the spots.

wanderingridge said:There are several BJJ gyms in NYC. Over in Martinville, the instructor is a blue belt, but I don't know much else about the setup there.

Not everyone can just walk into the Martinville gym; from what I understand, you have to be a student at the universities they have contracts with.
Elijah (the coach) is top-tier.
$17Regarding training, the beginner group isn't treated as a separate entity—meaning if you already have some experience, you aren't sidelined. It’s good because there are plenty of solid guys to roll with, so you get high-quality training without feeling like you're wasting your time.
The downside: They don't do stand-up at all (at least for now), and the mats can get pretty crowded sometimes.

I think there's something over at the Military Academy too; Bo might be able to give you the details on that...

Einstein, where are you even pulling these combos from??! Dim Mak??? Give me a break...

Elijah... was he the guy who did aikido too?

Jamie Fowler2 said:Elijah... wait, is he that guy who used to train in Aikido?

Yeah, back in the day.😬

Tyler Edwards53 said:If you're looking to train Tai Chi Chuan, check out the website www.uechi-ryu.com

Did you mean www.uechi-ryu.com?

By the way, Tyler Edwards53, do you actually practice this? I noticed their logo is your avatar. How does it differ from other karate styles?

Peter Myers29 said:Are you talking about www.uechi-ryu.us?

By the way, Tyler Edwards53, do you actually train this? I noticed their logo is your avatar! How does it even differ from other karate styles?

My bad, I totally messed up that website link.

Anyway, I’ve been practicing this art for nearly three years now. Uechi-ryu actually traces its roots back to southern China, where it was originally known as Pangainoon Chuanfa—which basically means "half-hard, half-soft." The entire foundation rests on three specific katas, with Sanchin being the most fundamental of them all. In fact, Sanchin practically encapsulates the whole system, though you won't truly realize that until you've put in years of hard work! Training involves very specific warm-ups (Chi kung), performing katas, and specialized conditioning exercises designed to toughen up the striking and defensive surfaces of the body. We also do sparring, though in most cases, it's highly structured rather than free-form; there's very little "wild" sparring involved. Uechi-ryu is classified as an "internal" martial art because it places such a heavy emphasis on utilizing internal Chi energy during combat. Another fascinating aspect is the breathing technique. During a fight, you maintain a constant reservoir of air in your lower abdomen that you never fully release. You use short, sharp inhalations while exhaling in a way that compresses the abdomen, forcing excess air out with a distinct sound. You don't exhale when you strike. Through this practice, you achieve a true unity of mind, spirit, and body—which is exactly what the term "Sanchin" translates to: the triple conflict.

Tyler Edwards53 said:Uechi-ryu is classified as an "internal" martial art because its core focus is on utilizing internal Chi energy during combat. Another defining feature is the breathing technique. You expel excess air while making a very specific sound...

That sounds quite similar to Shin-shin toitsu aikido, given the heavy emphasis on Ki (chi) and those specialized breathing exercises—where you also release air with a distinct sound. Of course, the actual techniques themselves are entirely different. 🤔

🤔 Does anyone here train at the College of Kinesiology? I think I spotted some karate practitioners there on Fridays...

Peter Myers29 said:Do you guys have training sessions over at the DIF? I think I spotted some martial artists hanging out there last Friday...

Tuesday from 7:30 PM to 9:00 PM
Friday from 8:00 PM to 10:00 PM

we’re training at the DIF (College of Kinesiology), plus

Wednesday from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM

we'll be at the Multicultural Society (Našice 1)

hm. i honestly thought internal skills were supposed to cut out the need for all those "specific sounds"... 😁

(mainly because if you're actually producing sound, you've gotta have tension somewhere in your body...)

Alright, you keyboard warriors—is nobody actually gonna step up and address my point? Honestly, I’m disappointed.

Soft skills?

Look, if SST Aikido and Uechi Ryu are actually "internal" styles, then one of these two guys better step up and answer me. Especially Peter Myers29, since he’s basically living on this forum anyway. 😁

Internal arts... yeah, right. More like chi-huggers, aiki fruit loops, and Tai Chi ballet dancers.

I’m certainly no expert... I just show up to train... 😁

Jamie Fowler2 said:... aiki fruit, ....

🙂

And wouldn't you say Xing Yi is an internal art as well? 🤔

If you don't know shit, why the hell are you even training?

The xing yia motto is Yi beng, kan xue—one strike, see the blood. Breathing stays natural, though we toss in some vocalizations during training sometimes. Mostly just yelling at your opponent like, "Goddammit, you got me bleeding again." No, seriously. Go ask Walterdimov 😁

Jamie Fowler2 said:Well, if SST Aikido and Uechi Ryu are truly considered internal arts, then one of those two guys should be able to give me an answer. Especially Peter Myers29, since he’s basically living on this forum! 😁

Internal arts... you know, the chi huggers, the aiki fruities, and the Tai Chi ballet dancers.

From what I understand, there are only three arts that are fully classified as internal: Tai Chi Chuan, Xing Yi, and Paqua. These other styles can really only be a hybrid of hard and soft (or external and internal). Just like I mentioned before, Uechi actually stems from a style called Pangainoon, which translates to "half-hard, half-soft." Generally speaking, what disrupts the flow of chi in the body are various blockages—whether they're conscious or just unconscious muscle contractions. In Uechi, contraction happens *after* the strike; during the actual impact, there shouldn't be any tension. Now, keep in mind, most of what I'm telling you is theoretical. You might feel chi while practicing Tai Chi or Reiki, but honestly? I haven't the slightest clue how to actually weaponize it during a punch or a block.
I hope that clears things up a bit!

So how do you actually feel your chi? Where does your focus go when you contract at the end of a strike? And why even bother contracting at the end? (trick question: is it yin or yang chi? 😁 )

When it comes to internal training, it’s all about releasing those internal blockages—the essence of xing yia (or Hsing I-, if we’re going by Wade Giles' transcription which he's still stubborn about)... but let's not talk about that stuff unless we want to look like weirdos or total jokes. At least not before we've bled our opponent out. After that, we can just brag "my chi is stronger than yours!" and pull a face like 😁

No martial art is purely internal—meaning there aren't any external, physical elements involved. What does "internal" even mean? That term was basically coined by the masters of those three styles (xing yi, ba gua, tai chi) because they noticed huge overlaps in how they trained. The fourth style considered "soft" is Liu He BA FA (Six Harmonies and Eight Steps, sometimes called water boxing). Yi quan (intent boxing) is a derivative of Xing Yi and could probably be classed as a pure internal art too, though most of the combat application is lost. BA Ji would likely fall into the internal category as well if some master had been at that legendary meeting where the term neijia (internal arts) was first dreamed up.

The only thing truly "internal" about those arts is that the real technique is hidden within the basic drills. A practitioner's strike in any of those systems is incredibly, incredibly hard.

As for why Aikibudo is called an internal art... honestly, no clue. O-sensei could have given us the answer, and it probably would've involved golden clouds and universal love. Unless you asked him back when it was still called Aikibudo, then he'd probably just show off a bit, throw you around, and give you a big grin.

Silat has similarities to ba gua, but nobody calls it an internal art because they're too busy being terrified of the knives those guys always carry.

Man, I went on a bit there.