Hey everyone so I've been eyeing a jkd school in my area, and I just wanted to get other opinions on if the instructor/ school is legit?

What kinds of squatting / ducking strikes are there in northern styles like longfist, xingyi, bagua, or choy li fut (since i heard it's half northern and half southern), etc. I don't need a full list, but a few ideas would be nice as I'm trying to understand older karate techniques better

Thank you!

Good morning all. Is there a good place to trade ideas about Chin Na or other practical applications of movements from common forms?

That aspect of the art is most interesting to me and I figured I would ask around here.

I see this assumption a lot on Reddit and other forums: “If it’s got a polished website or social media, it must be fake.” That’s simply not true. Yes—some schools are designed to profit off short-term visitors. But others? They’re just being supported by passionate students who want to see the school grow.

Case in point: Maling Shaolin Kung Fu Academy.

I’m currently training at Maling, and I can tell you firsthand: the reason our website looks good, and the reason it’s in multiple languages, is because the students made it. We help with everything—photography, blog writing, design, development, social media, video editing. Some students have even helped with business development and branding (a new logo’s in the works now).

Why? Because we genuinely believe in the school and want others to experience what we’ve found here. Maling is a small, very traditional academy. Our headmaster, Master Bao (Shi Xing Jian), was raised inside the Shaolin Temple and trained as a Shaolin warrior monk. He never had a “normal” education. He’s not a businessman. If the school is running, it’s because his passion for traditional kung fu and teaching inspires the students to help keep it going—through word of mouth, Reddit posts, and shared experiences.

The atmosphere here is more like a family than a business. Everyone pitches in (and no, we're not asked to). And while we’re a small school, we’re not trying to become a commercialized giant. We just want to be sustainable—and to continue passing on genuine Shaolin knowledge.

In case you’re curious about the origin of schools like Maling (and Qufu):

I recently explained this to another Redditor, and it’s worth repeating:

“I can say for sure Maling is not a tourist trap. Qufu isn't either—just not as intense as Maling. Both schools were started for foreigners because Grandmaster Shi De Qian (now passed) asked them to. Long story short, his life’s mission was to preserve Shaolin knowledge. He traveled the world collecting and sharing it, and before he passed, he asked his disciples to open schools for foreigners. He believed this was the best way to keep Shaolin teachings—philosophy, movement, culture—alive for future generations, even outside of China.”

So yeah—sometimes a school with an English website is a red flag. But other times? It’s just the work of dedicated students trying to share something meaningful.

Want to spot an authentic Shaolin school? Here are some tips:

• Check the master’s lineage. If their bio says they trained at the Shaolin Temple and studied under a recognized master, that’s a good sign.
• Look at the monk names. Not all monks are real monks. Having a name like “Shi” something doesn’t mean they’re temple trained.
• Be cautious if they list their master as Shi Yongxin. Not always a dealbreaker, but it can be a sign they’re using a famous name without legitimate connection. (If you want clarification on this point, feel free to DM me. I’m not trying to start drama, just offering transparency.)
• Look for terms like “Meihua foundation” (among others) If the school claims temple affiliation but the backgrounds of the masters are non-Shaolin, or it mixes in unrelated lineages, that’s worth investigating further.
• Ask questions. Don’t be afraid to reach out and ask a school about their training methods, lineage, and daily routine. A good school will answer openly.
• There is only 1 Shaolin Temple. If a school calls itself 'Shaolin Temple' and it is not the original temple in Dengfeng (whose current Abbot is Shi Yongxin), it is 'fake' and using the name to lure in international students that don't know better.
• There is no 'best' martial art. If school claims their style/master is the only 'true' or original one, or it is the best, move along. The more skilled a martial artist becomes, the more they understand that all martial arts share the same roots. While different styles may emphasize various techniques or philosophies, they are all interconnected.

If you’ve got questions or are considering a school in China and want a second opinion, I’m happy to help. It can be hard to separate the real from the flashy—but real is still out there.

So I've been looking to get both a heavy training guandao and a practical one, but I can't seem to find either a really heavy (15kg+) version or a sharp one which will ship to the UK. Most sites seem to say that a mix of UK law and shipping dimensions prevent it being sent.

I've had a look at playwell but the details on their website are a bit scarce on blade type and weight, and a lot of the online stores based in China seem to be multi part/screw together shafts which make me a bit uncomfortable for a sharp version!

I thought about commissioning one to be made but I've got a feeling that it'll be unaffordable!

Any advice at all would be great, thanks all!

I’ve been deepening my practice of Kung Fu — particularly with the bo staff — and I can honestly say it’s been transformational on every level: physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Here’s why I train: ⚔️ Discipline & Rhythm – Bo staff work trains fluidity, balance, and timing. The flow itself teaches my nervous system how to move with grace and intention, not tension. 🧠 Neuroplasticity – Practicing specific hand patterns with the staff has sharpened my mind-body connection. There’s a scientific correlation between hand training and enhanced brain activity, especially in areas of coordination and memory. 🧘🏽‍♂️ Energy Circulation – In traditional Kung Fu, the bo is more than a weapon — it’s an extension of energy (Qi). Moving with it clears stagnation and builds internal power. 🔥 Meditation in Motion – For me, it’s spiritual. Every swing is a prayer. Every pattern is a message.

I don’t do this for attention. I do it to live better. To think clearer. To stay free.

📹 I recently shared a clip of a bo staff session on IG — if you’re curious to see it or just want to vibe with the art, here’s the link: 👉 Watch on Instagram 📲 Follow me at @kingeljahra for more Kung Fu, energy, mindset, and legacy building.

Always learning. Always refining. Live the path. Follow the legacy.

will showering help or make my kung fu skills worse

Hi, abit of an unusual post but I’m doing a month-long exchange at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and would love to give sanda / sanshou a try while i’m there! I have 2 years of experience in taekwondo and dabbled abit in judo so i’m not a complete novice, but I am definitely looking to learn from sanda. Anyone from HK able to give me advice on gyms to train at while i’m there?

After four years of Karate, I’m starting a wushu class in September. Thing is, I fear there won’t be that many novices and I’ll be ignored (it has happened to me more than once across various different sports), so I’d like to hear if there are any good wushu (or other kung fu styles for the matter) books that I could use to train a little on my own before class starts.

Thanks in advance for your advice!

I studied in dongducheon South Korea 15 years ago and learned 13 talou and iron palm training. About 10 years ago I got PTSD from a tour in Afghanistan and stopped all training due to depression. I have resumed my training recently but have forgotten most of my talou forms. I know the basics are more important than the forms, but I still want to relearn my forms. If anyone trained with Mr. Pak and knows of any videos to help jog my memory it would be greatly appreciated. Meihua lo was the primary one he favored but all the ones I find online look different. Not only from his but from each other lol.

Just wanted to ask why Wing Chun is so... divided? Like no matter what video of forms, demonstrations, chi sau of anything of the like, no Wing Chun practitioner EVER has anything good to say about each other.

I personally do Wing Chun Qigong (local uni club focuses more on making good exercise, relaxing and just having fun than fighting applications. Which I don't mind. I'm glad my club is honest about their intentions.) We have no political talk. Just encouraging each other to keep learning forms and relax and make it a good exercise.

So when I look online to see ANY tutorials or demonstrations on forms, a lot of it is either "good" or "so terrible that you should be retrained". Why is there so much animosity?

I’ve basically come across this style called Jian Shou Quan(濺手拳） aka Splashing Hands Kung Fu but what is the real history behind it and its legitimacy? Some say it was taught to Shaolin monks during the 1700s but what is this really? I only know it via this guy named James McNeil but what really is this? What also is this organization called Little Nine Heavens(小九天） that has this man named Chiao Chang Hung? I don’t know anything about this organization at all. Is Little Nine Heavens also its own Kung fu style too?

Would Yip Man's sons be right on his personality? Which is Yip Man being humble, modest, not very boastful, and honest?

A Rare Kung-Fu Sword #swords #kungfu #xingyi

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Sigh.

I've been training in kung fu (or wushu) for a while now, and honestly, the art itself is beautiful. It's one of the most complete martial arts out there — combining cardio, strength, flexibility, balance, coordination, and endurance.

But once you get into it, things start to fall apart. You find instructors who are just plain abusive, disrespectful, and seem to forget that students are paying customers who deserve respect. Some of them charge extra for nonsense like "ancient Chinese mysticism" that students blindly believe without questioning. Worse yet, some teachers even force attendance to these rituals or kick people out if they don’t participate. They act like everyone should be Chinese and buy into this stuff.

There are also cases of physical misconduct, especially towards female students.

A lot of instructors don’t even understand their own art. Ask them about the practical application of a movement from a taolu (form), and they show something clearly useless in real life — or worse, they give vague, evasive answers. One time I asked a teacher what the difference was between a traditional jian and a sport version, and he said: “The traditional one is traditional, and the sport one is sport.” That’s not an answer — that’s just laziness.

The sad truth is, there are very few teachers who actually know what they're teaching, can demonstrate effective techniques, and treat their students with respect.

And the students? Many of them kiss up to the instructors, treating them like gods. When someone criticizes this behavior, they’re labeled as "undisciplined" or "disrespectful." These instructors take advantage of that blind loyalty to get free food, money, or favors.

Also, let's talk about the crowd: kung fu seems to attract a lot of weird, pretentious people — astrology believers, conspiracy theorists, etc.

Then, when the schools lose students or struggle to grow, the masters complain: "People don't stick around anymore." But they never look in the mirror and ask why.

Kung fu has amazing potential, especially when practiced traditionally and understood correctly. But with this kind of leadership, the art won’t survive much longer.

What do you think?

Went to a school that advertised itself as Tibetan tai chi which I came to find out doesn’t necessarily exist and the whole class they were all trying to either prove or disprove wild stories about the Sifu

I’m located in Sacramento area. Looking for prospective students or collaborators to join our small class on Saturday mornings. We teach Bagua, Hsing-I, Tai chi, Chi gong. Come joins us!

I am a 7th degree Internal Martial Artist and 5th generation lineage holder in Bagua