Plum represents a LOT of books, among them some real treasures. Typically, when we talk about the best ones, they usually share certain qualities having to do with technical information: a teacher generous enough to reveal principles, methods, even “secrets.” Andrea Falk’s newest book, Beijing Bittersweet, certainly includes gems of instruction from her own teachers, […]
Jun
5
2022
5
2022
Oct
22
2019
22
2019
Life is Too Short For Bad Kung Fu
Yes, it’s true! A new book in English by Adam Hsu. If this were Hollywood, Sifu Adam Hsu’s new book, “Life Is Too Short For Bad Kung Fu,” would be the tell-all on everyone’s reading list; not because it is gossipy—he names no names—but because it fulfills its promise to reveal the good, the bad, […]
Jan
19
2019
19
2019
Speed and…uh…Timing
I tell my students over and over to “go fast, but don’t hurry.” In the martial world, too early can be as bad as too late. After all, how long do you want to wait for the plane to land? On the other hand, who wants it to arrive maddeningly early? Timing is a necessity. […]
May
13
2018
13
2018
Coming Events
Plum will be travelling in May and June to a couple of kung fu tournaments: 10th Annual Tiger Claw Elite Kung Fu Magazine Championship, May 19-20, 2018, San Jose, California This year’s 2 day event will feature a NEW EXTERNAL DIVISION dedicated exclusively to Songshan Shaolin — the Kung Fu directly from Shaolin Temple alongside […]
Aug
20
2017
20
2017
Instructor’s Notebook: Revelations
Sometimes, words that once held deeper meanings are now expressed in shallow terms. It’s just “aaawesssomme.” For instance, when people use the word, “revelation” they are probably pumping up some slight thing, like office gossip, or promoting the discovery of the correct word in a crossword puzzle. But the core meaning of revelation has more […]
Aug
5
2016
5
2016
Managing Forms
You’ve been practicing awhile. You are no longer a novice. Your belt or sash no longer wears stiffly as though it were just a larger version of a bow tie. You now have “rank” whether or not it is formally recognized in your style. You have accumulated some formal training, too. You may have collected […]
Jul
21
2016
21
2016
Natural Speed: Three Step Program
I won’t keep you in suspense about what the three step is, so here’s the saying: “Slow is fluid, and fluid is fast.” On at least one level, pretty much everyone might agree with this. And, as your Kung Fu skills increase, that border between fluid and fast will start to wash away. The hard […]
May
31
2016
31
2016
Instructor’s Notebook #29: Metaphorically Speaking
Teachers have tools, great teachers make tools. But that’s not all. Students also make tools, in their minds. And the persistent teacher will go inside those active minds too, creating new ideas and ways to view things. All, of course, to the student’s benefit. Everyone who teaches the martial arts can fall victim to micro-management […]
Apr
23
2016
23
2016
Tong Bei, Loose and Powerful
Here is a pretty advanced Kung Fu puzzle: along with Bagua Zhang, Xing Yi Quan and Taijiquan, what do all of the following styles have in common: Liu He Ba Fa (Six Harmonies, Eight Methods,) Mi Zong (Lost Track,) BaFa Quan (Eight Methods,) Liu He Quan (Six Harmonies Boxing) and Tong Bei Quan (Through the […]
Mar
6
2016
6
2016
Another Modest Proposal
Through my entire martial career I have been listening to everyone’s questions and problems with traditional forms. For most people, it all centers on practicality. For some people, the answer lies in detailed analysis of the forms and what self defense and fighting treasures are hidden therein. For still others, it’s a lost cause and […]
Mar
6
2016
6
2016
FISTS AND PETALS
No one understands because no one can understand. There is something. There is something about martial arts. Opening and closing. Like the wind rising then dying down again. Like the mind with a thought blowing past. Thoughts like the rustling of trees in the invisible wind. Mind pours through the trees and they shake, they […]
Nov
7
2015
7
2015
Deep Practices
Learning Kung Fu can be a unique experience or, if you are not paying attention, it can be just another subject with the same tired educational template thrown over it. By a “unique experience” I do not mean the kind advertised on vacation posters. I mean an experience that shoots through your veins and hovers […]
Sep
20
2015
20
2015
Adam Hsu’s Basic Kung Fu Training Books
Much earlier in his career, Adam Hsu Sifu created a special series of three linking sets. Each of these were progressively designed to waste as little time as possible, getting that crucial fundamental information to the students. For instance, there are no repetitious sections. Also, each movement is a crucial basic. Two of these sets […]
Nov
16
2014
16
2014
Now You Can Look It Up
If you’ve been around in the Chinese martial arts field for a while and have tried your hand at translation, you probably will think the same thing I did on first seeing teacher Andrea Falk’s wushu dictionary: “Not only could I have written this, but I probably did…more than once.” The difference is that Sifu […]
May
30
2014
30
2014
Finding Freedom Everywhere
A good question to ask once in a while, knowing that the answer may be different this week from last week, is “What makes me feel free?” This varies a lot from person to person. It also varies a lot, if you stick with the martial arts for a long time, with your personal evolution […]
Nov
21
2013
21
2013
WeaponsSpace Part 2
Each pair of weapons creates a middle zone or, if you will, qi space, that can be thrilling for spectators and downright frightening for participants…
Nov
8
2013
8
2013
Buddhist Yoga and a Muslim Fist
If contrortionists make you twitch, and joints creating odd angles makes you wince, you might pass on this one…
Sep
8
2013
8
2013
Keys to Kung Fu
…if you teach long enough, you realize that special hints walk right through the studio every day, and many of them even leave muddy tracks.
Aug
5
2013
5
2013
A Thousand Years Ago: 1101 to 1125
excerpted from Professor Kang Ge-Wu’s martial history The Spring and Autumn of Chinese Martial Arts-5000 Years 1101 to 1125 Towards the end of the Northern Sung Dynasty, Wushu had become the main content of various performances, and it had many stylized routines. Dong Jing Meng Hua Lu records that Emporer Hui Zong watched the performances […]
Jun
24
2013
24
2013
Training: The Arrow Punch
This form of punching has many skills all wrapped up into one package.
