Wing Chun Las Vegas
Kung Fu School

Martial Arts Articles

Article Sitemap

Martial Arts Article RSS Feed

More Articles

Martial Arts ArticleKung Fu How to Pick a Kung Fu School

Martial Arts ArticleMartial Arts and Adult ADHD Overcoming The Symptoms

Martial Arts ArticleThe 4 Lines of Self Defense

Martial Arts ArticleSelf Defense Choosing to be a Survivor Instead of a Victim

Martial Arts ArticleT ai Chi for the Masses and Others

Martial Arts ArticleLearning Self Defense At Home Or In Class

Martial Arts ArticleChin Na Fa Skill of Catch and Hold

Martial Arts ArticleKubotan for Self Defense

Martial Arts ArticleDiabetes and Tai Chi Therapy

Martial Arts ArticleFor Valentine s Day Give The Gift of Self Defense

Martial Arts Article10 Greatest Martial Arts Movies Of All Time

Martial Arts ArticleReality Based Self Defense Training 19 Principles That Will Save Your Life

Martial Arts ArticleThe Bo And Other Long Wooden Staff Martial Arts Weapons

Martial Arts ArticleWhere To Get Your Martial Arts And Self Defense Equipment

Martial Arts ArticleMartial Arts Training More Than Just Self Defense

Martial Arts ArticleSelf Defense Reality A Reason to Study Reality Based Martial Arts amp Self Protection

Martial Arts ArticleIp Man the Man who Taught Bruce Lee Kung Fu

Martial Arts ArticleWhy Martial Arts Is The Best Thing You Can Do To Get Your Child Ready for School This Year

Martial Arts ArticleThe Shaolin Workout Harmony

Martial Arts ArticleTough or Smart What s Your Most Powerful Self Defense Weapon Mind or Body

Martial Arts Articles Self Defense

The Shaolin Workout - Body and Mind

Lo Man Kam Wing Chun Las Vegas Kung Fu School

The Shaolin Workout - Body and Mind

Author: Sifu Shi Yan Ming

It's most important to stay loose and relaxed in mind and body. To enjoy your life, you must be relaxed. When we were children, our bodies were loose, relaxed, and flexible. We could do splits, flips, jumps, and twists without thinking about it. We were pure mind in babies' bodies.

But you're never too old -- we just get too tense, too stiff. We think too much. One of the most important lessons you can learn doing the Shaolin Workout is how to get back that childlike relaxation and flexibility -- to be at home in your body again. It makes no difference if you are in your twenties, fifties, or eighties. Relax. Never feel old. Tell yourself you're not getting older every year -- you're getting younger!

Sifu explains that there are two kinds of meditation: action meditation and no-action meditation. In the West, we're most familiar with the no-action kind. We can all form images of Buddhist monks sitting with their legs crossed and their eyes closed, still and silent, for hours and hours, as they strive to achieve enlightenment.

The only problem is that too much no-action meditation can be as bad for your joints, your back, your neck, as sitting at a computer all day. This is what Da Mo saw happening to the monks at Shaolin. They spent so much time sitting in meditation that their bodies were as stiff as wooden dolls. He saw that Ba Tuo had not given them the proper tools to adapt Buddhism to Chinese life. Why do we meditate? To cleanse our minds and open our hearts. But if we burden our bodies with tension and pain, our minds and hearts can't be cleansed. Your mind and your heart and your body are inseparable.

Kung fu is action meditation. The goal of kung fu is to relax your body and your mind, to extend your body and your mind, to cleanse your body and your mind. To be relaxed in your body, and relaxed in your life, is how you live fully in the present, experiencing this moment, here and now.

In our modern world, there's another benefit to action meditation. We all have lives, jobs, families. We have wonderful things coming into our lives every day. Who among us has the time to sit and meditate for hours a day, like monks in a monastery? As you'll find out, a half-hour of action meditation can be as liberating, for your body and your mind and your heart, as several hours of no-action meditation.

Kung fu and martial arts represent a refined form of action meditation. But any exercise program can be a form of action meditation -- running, swimming, playing tennis, riding a bike. In the West, we speak of that point in an exercise routine where we "get in the zone," where we "release endorphins," where we achieve "the runner's high." Those are all Western ways of approaching the same concept: action meditation. A relaxed mind in a relaxed body.

As you go through your day today, relax. Stay loose. Be flexible in your body and in your mind. Enjoy your beautiful life every minute of the day.

Reprinted from: The Shaolin Workout: 28 Days to Transforming Your Body and Soul the Warrior's Way by Sifu Shi Yan Ming © 2006 Rodale Inc. Permission granted by Rodale, Inc., Emmaus, PA 18098. Available wherever books are sold or directly from the publisher by calling (800) 848-4735 or visit their website at www.rodalestore.com.

an excerpt from the book The Shaolin Workout
by Sifu Shi Yan Ming
Published by Rodale; May 2006;$29.95US/$39.95CAN; 1-59486-400-4
Copyright © 2006 Sifu Shi Yan Ming

Sifu Shi Yan Ming, a 34th-generation Shaolin warrior monk, is respected not only in the martial arts world but also in the entertainment world by stars like Jet Li, Jackie Chan, Wesley Snipes, and the Wu-Tang Clan. His kung fu classes have been featured in USA Today, The New York Times, New York Daily News, and Entertainment Weekly. Brian Gray of Inside Kung Fu magazine has called him a "living treasure of China." He has also appeared on the Discovery Channel, MTV, and CNBC, among other major networks. Sifu Shi Yan Ming lives in New York City.


More Martial Arts and Self Defense Articles

The Difference Between Karate and Kung Fu
For many people, especially those who are not familiar with martial arts, the question often arises on what the difference between karate and kung fu is. Upon watching somebody doing martial arts, the untrained eye will find it hard to tell...read more

Shaolin Temple: Dawn of Zen and Kung Fu
Shaolin Temple in Henan province, China is famous worldwide for its peaceful-looking monks who perform incredible kung fu stunts. For a long time, I have been fascinated by the martial arts skills of Shaolin monks . How are these monks able to...read more

How To Choose A Self Defense Product
Let's face it, martial arts and other physical self-defense courses aren't for everybody. They can be time consuming and expensive for some - and others may not be able to handle the physical strain of them. It is quite a commitment to learn a ...read more

Self Defense-Stun Master-Which One is Best for You
When it comes to defending yourself and providing some personal security in a situation that requires more than words and you never have had a handgun, a non lethal self defense weapon has got to be at your side to insure your safety. Of course...read more

Martial Arts - It's All About The Basics
Ask any professional how they became good at their martial arts skills and they will tell you practice. Ask them what they practiced and you will most likely hear "the fundamentals" or "the basics." I once interviewed 13 great martial artists. ...read more

Basic Self Defense
The First lesson to learn in Self-Defense is that you are important. The most valuable possession you will ever have is you. No-one has the right to hurt, intimidate or harass you. You have the right to protect yourself and you are well worth...read more

Physical Fitness - Is Your Workout Missing Something?
Copyright 2005 Mike Adams Hiking along a rocky trail, two of the three friends carefully picked their way from rock to rock. But one leaped from rock to rock, bounding by the others like a gazelle running and leaping from rock to rock. Never...read more

Emotion-Based Defensive Response - A Non-Traditional Martial Arts Approach to Self-Defense
When discussing self-defense training, we really need to be discussing more than just learning some tricks and techniques for dodging punches or escaping locks and holds. Why then, are most instructors content with stopping at, and most students...read more

The Bo And Other Long Wooden Staff Martial Arts Weapons
Besides rocks, one of the most basic of all weapons throughout mankind's history across most cultures has been the long wooden stick. This makes sense since sticks were always readily available in the forests or could be easily made. The Asian...read more

Self Defense Protection - Keeping Kids Safe Online
We all know that keeping our kids safe on the internet is a parent's priority lately. Here are some new tips and strategies to give parents solutions on how to protect their children. The biggest trick some child predators’ are using these days is...read more

Notice: These martial arts and self defense articles are gathered from various public sources and are presented "as is" for for informational purposes only. They do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of the Lo Man Kam Wing Chun Kung Fu Organization. The authors of this site make no claims and take no responsibility regarding the content of these articles.
Wing Chun Las Vegas Kung Fu School | 6366 W. Sahara Ave | Phone: (702) 768-1201