One of my all time favorite vids!!!

Rainforest Qigong

Qigong in the Rainforest!
What is Qigong?
The literal definition of qigong, (chi kung, chi gong) is “life energy method”. In qigong we seek to align breath, movement and the focus of the mind. Qigong is an excellent method of exercise, healing and meditation that can bring one increased focus, energetic balance, and a sense of emotional well being.
The class will focus on the healing benefits and meditative practices of the Six Healing Sounds and Eight Brocades Qigong (Chi Kung) sets. Set in the wonderful surroundings of the Butterfly Pavilion in Westminster, Colorado this class allows one to practice in the beauty of a tropical rainforest in the middle of Colorado!
The Six Healing Sounds is designed to cleanse and tonify the organ systems of the body while the Eight Brocades works to balance and store the body’s energy and provide an excellent form of extremely low impact exercise.
The combination of the Six Healing Sounds and the Eight Brocades provides an hour of moving meditative health practices that leave you feeling centered and energized.
Classes are taught by Chris Haynes of Yizong Arts – Westminster, CO. Chris is an avid martial artist that has pursued the Chinese martial arts for 15 years, and has specialized in the arts of Baguazhang and Xingyiquan for 13 years. In that time he has also gained an in-depth understanding of the practices of Qigong as it has been a key part to his training. His training is primarily in the Yizong branch of Gao Style Baguazhang and Hebei Xingyiquan as taught by Luo De Xiu of Taipei, Taiwan.
All levels are welcome!!
Class date and time:
Sunday, September 8th from 7:45am to 8:45am

Location:
The Butterfly Pavilion
6252 W. 104th Avenue
Westminster, CO 80020 -
Fees:
$8 for members - $10 for non-members
Pre-registration is preferred. Please register online using the link below, call 720-974-1861, or email registrar@butterflies.org to sign up today!
For more questions about Rainforest Qigong, please don't hesitate to call us at 720-974-1877 or email education@butterflies.org.
This class is intended for adults. Children 16 and older may attend with a parent.

Great throw counters!!

This is an excellent example of someone smaller using skill to counter and defeat someone larger!!

Head Movement!

This morning I ran across this video on RSF and the topic of head movement.

This is a great example of how valuable head movement can be in confusing your opponent and make it very difficult for them to hit you.  I have been exploring head movement quite a bit lately and trying to incorporate more in my sparring and have noticed a vast change in how my sparring partners are reacting. I like watching how boxers use their head movement with footwork and angle change, it get's me thinking about my bagua and xingyi and how the body movement principles of those arts can be tweaked to focus more on the head/body movement we see in boxing. I then look into my xingyi and bagua goodie bag and see what I have that has a similar body movement, and then I tweak it. While sparring have been pulling a couple of things out of the Xingyi animals, in-particular the bobbing and unpredictable movement of monkey. Monkey has a lot of level change and angle shifting which allows the head to travel relatively quick in different directions. As far as practicing it, obviously sparring is a great medium, but I don't always have folks to work with. If that's the case I'll usually try and plug it into some shadow boxing or bag work. Very fun and useful stuff!

Yi Zong Xing Yi Monkey

Here's a brief clip of Matt Autrey describing the use of Xingyi Monkey at last weeks workshop!

Matt Autrey seminar review

Hey all,
Just wanted to put up a quick review of the workshops put on by Boulder Internal Martial Arts, and Matt Autrey...

Saturday's workshops on Xingyi Monkey and circle walking and palm change techniques was amazing! One of the things I really like about Matt is how he presents his material. He chunks it out so that you can easily remember how the forms are applied. This was very evident when we went over the monkey form. He pointed out the usefulness of monkey's unique approach to fighting.
The circle walking and single palm change stuff was great because we had some less experienced people in the class and I could see that those people were getting some great basics, while at the same time the more experienced folks were getting some goods to! For me personally, it has given me some insight on my circle walking practice that has me fired up and wanting to train more!!

Sunday's workshops on 5-elements san shou and crossing power flowed seamlessly together. We worked on finding some of the very subtle but crucial set up points to apply the 5-elements. I can honestly say that almost everyone in the class felt different on their entries by the end of that segment. This is largely in part to Matt taking his time to go around the room and make sure that everyone is 'getting the feeling' of what we are doing. Even if they don't get it right away, they at least know what they are looking for.
Personally I felt that this segment of the day flowed right into the applications of crossing very well! Everyone knew what they should be looking for as far as entries because of the previous material, however, this material was not as subtle  Matt did a wonderful job of showing us how to use the principles of crossing when at the wrist, forearm, shoulder, body and legs.

Obviously there was more than I can put into words, but I can say that if Matt is doing a workshop in your area you should try and see him. Anyone, experienced or not can benefit from this mans generous teachings.
Big thanks to Matt for coming out and working so diligently with our group. Big thanks to Owen Schilling and Boulder Internal Martial Arts for organizing this awesome event. And thanks to all who attended - I genuinely appreciate all of your hard work training and loved working with all of you, old friends and new!

Yiquan push hands demonstration...

This is an interesting display of the methods used in the martial art of Yiquan.  The gentleman on the left has a solid root and a good structural base that he is using while his opponent (the gentleman on the right) is leaning in, overextending, and applying excessive pressure that is being used against him.  I think that this is a good example of borrowing force.

Ving Tsun - good drills

While I'm not a Ving Tsun/Wing Chun guy myself, I appreciate their use of angles and principle!  There are some excellent uses of footwork in this clip.  I find it interesting that we use similar footwork in Xingyi and Bagua, although the footwork used in Bagua may have a bit more depth of movement to it.

Su Dong Chen - Xing Yi

An early demonstration of Su Dong Chen doing Xingyi.  I love the clarity in his demonstrations.

Classes resuming Tuesday 4/30!

My public classes in Gao style Bagua are resuming for the summer next Tuesday, 4/30!
We will be focused on key elements of the hand and body usage in Bagua.
Please let m know if you'd like to join - the first class is always on me!

Bag Work!

Great bag work session yesterday afternoon!  Here's something to try...
1. Jab
2. Jab + cross
3. Jab + cross + hook
4. Jab + cross + hook + uppercut
5. Front kick rear leg
6. Round kick rear leg
7. Front kick front leg
8. Round lick front leg

Twenty-five reps per side.  The key here is DO NOT DROP YOUR HANDS THE ENTIRE TIME!!!
Great workout in about 30 minutes!!