Martial Arts and the Mirror Image


Book Description

A groundbreaking approach to martial arts combining psychology and Qigong, featuring practical exercises and 100 step-by-step illustrations Martial arts teacher Phillip Starr draws on more than 60 years of experience to introduce the Mirror Image Technique—a method that recognizes the reinforcing nature of body and mind and the way we hold ourselves in our personal lives and in our martial arts practice. Starr pulls from Self-Image Psychology and Qigong to offer readers a unique set of physical exercises that can be applied to any martial art tradition—as well as our personal lives. Unlike other self-help books that consider the mind as the sole gateway to change, the Mirror Image Technique shows that cognitive transformation starts with the body. Starr takes readers through: Demonstrating key principles of Qigong with exercises like The Unbreakable Arm and The Unliftable Body Improving your stance Increasing your strike force Insights into the mindset for breaking boards (tameshiwari). Intended to enhance growth and personal development, the techniques in Martial Arts and the Mirror Image offer a renewal of confidence and enthusiasm for one’s particular practice.




Martial Arts and the Mirror Image


Book Description

A groundbreaking approach to martial arts combining psychology and Qigong, featuring practical exercises and 100 step-by-step illustrations Martial arts teacher Phillip Starr draws on more than 60 years of experience to introduce the Mirror Image Technique—a method that recognizes the reinforcing nature of body and mind and the way we hold ourselves in our personal lives and in our martial arts practice. Starr pulls from Self-Image Psychology and Qigong to offer readers a unique set of physical exercises that can be applied to any martial art tradition—as well as our personal lives. Unlike other self-help books that consider the mind as the sole gateway to change, the Mirror Image Technique shows that cognitive transformation starts with the body. Starr takes readers through: Demonstrating key principles of Qigong with exercises like The Unbreakable Arm and The Unliftable Body Improving your stance Increasing your strike force Insights into the mindset for breaking boards (tameshiwari). Intended to enhance growth and personal development, the techniques in Martial Arts and the Mirror Image offer a renewal of confidence and enthusiasm for one’s particular practice.




Authentic Iron Palm


Book Description

An advanced training course for developing a strong striking hand to deliver powerful blows using the Iron Palm martial arts technique A comprehensive guide for experienced practitioners of Chinese martial arts—including kung-fu, karate, and taekwondo—with over 200 instructive images Iron Palm is a set of martial art conditioning skills—dating back to the Shaolin Temple of 5th-century China—whose purpose is to strengthen the hand while empowering the fighter to strike with force and precision. Training is focused and incremental, requiring the guidance of an experienced master. Author, instructor, and 5-time US National Chinese martial arts Champion Phillip Starr provides the definitive guide to Iron Palm, meticulously outlining the 3 sequential steps of training: • hardening limbs • developing technique • engaging Qigong for coordinating breath and mind The end result is a more powerful and precise strike that can impact the target’s viscera with no trace on the outer body. Lavishly illustrated with more than 200 images, this book is ideal for experienced martial arts practitioners.




Martial Structure


Book Description

A guide to becoming faster, more powerful, and more effective in martial arts through correct body alignment and proper structure In all martial disciplines—including karate, judo, taekwondo, and gong-fu—real martial skill does not require the development of large muscles or great strength but rather correct posture. Drawing on decades of experience as both a student and a teacher, Phillip Starr, author of Martial Mechanics and Martial Maneuvers, focuses on how physical posture affects not only physical abilities but also the mental condition and emphasizes the importance of developing power without exerting unnecessary muscular force. His thorough and accessible explanation of the principles of physical structure as they pertain to the human body and how these affect martial arts performance shows how anyone, regardless of size or strength, can learn to generate uncanny power with very little muscular effort through the enhanced stability achieved by maintaining correct alignment and proper structure. Abundantly illustrated throughout with photographs that provide step-by-step instructions, Martial Structure is essential for anyone wanting to understand how the laws of physics and biomechanics can be harnessed to make them faster, more powerful, and more effective in actual combat.




Kiko Hidden Power Electric Moves: A Revolutionary Discoveryabout Traditional Martial Arts for the Fight & Beyond


Book Description

Title: This work is the result of thirty years of observations about the function and behavior of Ki (vital energy) in traditional martial arts. Master teacher, Hayashi Tomio, author and Buddhist monk, with over a half century of teaching experience, leads readers into the extraordinary realm of internal martial practice with a revolutionary perspective that the effortless power derived from proper Ki technique may be the result of human's ability to control their bioelectric field as a signaling mechanism to charge their musculature for impressive gains. Hayashi lays out the amazing Ki principles and techniques embedded in most traditional forms. Electrifying your practice takes on literal meaning. Through the Kiko lens Hayashi answers many longstanding questions about the traditional martial arts such as the hidden reason why martial artists are told to keep their knees precisely bent, to crescent their step, to bend their wrist during certain parries, to make certain tonal sounds, to breathe deep into the belly, to stomp their foot, lift their heel, or turn the feet inward or outward in various postures, or to pause at certain points in a kata. Learn about the startling distinctions between open and closed hand moves, why katas should start in a specific cardinal direction, why the arms should or should not cross with certain limb configurations, why turns in a kata are often 45 or 90 degree angles, why duration; the amount of time expended during strength moves, exerts an unusual influence on body-generated power, why certain tonal kiai's are made in kata, why moves done in sets of two or three should not be identical. Learn how to increase both your speed and punching power. Learn about the hidden effects of using certain weapons. For instance, a long or short bo (staff) has a Yin and Yang end. A steel blade can cut meridians without contact. Sai act like lightning rods drawing Ki into a user's body, how simple visualizations can double your strength or make a lock placed upon you difficult to achieve, how redirecting your Ki can seal against pressure point strikes, how everyone possess a unique energy signature—and more.




Developing Jin


Book Description

A no-nonsense and entertaining guide to harnessing the power of jin in your t'ai chi or internal martial arts training Developing Jin provides a complete and progressive training regimen for increasing and refining chansi-jin, also known as silk-reeling power or coiling power—the true power of the internal martial arts. With step-by-step instructions and photographs, experienced teacher Philip Starr walks readers through a variety of techniques designed to help practitioners feel and use jin in their martial arts training. While much of the existing writing on jin relies on cryptic and mystical descriptions of internal power, Starr takes a direct, no-nonsense approach that addresses commonly held myths and identifies the real body mechanics behind this unusual power. Useful for novices and advanced practitioners alike, Developing Jin is a crucial addition to any serious martial artist's library. Table of Contents 1. Got Jin? 2. How To Use This Book 3. Basic Conditioning Exercises 4. In The Beginning 5. Structure and Alignment 6. Training the Breath 7. The Nature Of Qi 8. Let's Get Engaged! 9. Beginning With Stillness 10. The Breath Coiling Form 11. The Secret Of Tendon Power 12. Internal Coiling 13. Applying The Coiling Power 14. Putting It All Together 15. Training Routines For Coiling Power 16. Three Become One 17. Combative Applications Conclusion




The Science of the Martial Arts


Book Description

The secret to both physical and mental strength. An instruction manual on breaking boards, concrete blocks and meditation. By learning the proper techniques of basic physics and meditation you can make incredible advances in your martial arts and progress to bigger and better breaks and inner peace.




Average Joe's Martial Arts Diary


Book Description

The story begins with Joe, an average thirty-something-year-old guy, who has just earned his brown belt. Joe is an accountant, husband, and parent who is overweight, hypertensive, and unhappy with his life in general. During his two-year journey towards earning his black belt, he discovers himself, transforms his life, and finds happiness. Though we all know that basic characteristics for success include confidence, desire, discipline, persistence, faith, and learning to deal with failure, many of us lack one or more of them. Through his journey from brown belt to black belt, Joe transforms himself into a positive-minded individual willing to take on challenges and make decisions. His journey is one of self-improvement, from being dissatisfied with his life to being in control of and happy with it.




The Making of a Butterfly


Book Description

The only American heir to W. C. Chen, Phillip Starr continues the master’s teachings in this useful guide that also profiles the exciting early years when martial arts were still new in America. Through this entertaining collection of personal anecdotes involving Master Chen, the author, and his classmates, readers learn a particular aspect of the traditional martial arts. Included are explanations of the importance and meaning of courtesy and the custom of bowing, the significance of training with weapons and how it impacts bare-handed skills, and the value of traditional forms and how they relate to actual combat.




Baguazhang


Book Description

A comprehensive guide to the fundamentals, sequences, and applications of Baguazhang. Baguazhang is unquestionably one of the most esoteric disciplines in martial arts. Based on the eight trigrams (bagua) of the Yi Jing, it emphasizes the importance of maneuverability, evasion, and change to deflect an aggressor's attacks. Unlike martial arts systems that employ overt punches, kicks, and grappling techniques, most of the bodily weapons of the baguazhang arsenal are well concealed, agile, and smooth. Utilizing deceptive forms of footwork and body shifting, the principles and techniques in this book will help readers develop a firm foundation and build a critical skill set for this unique martial art. Longtime martial arts practitioner and author Phillip Starr introduces readers to the basics of baguazhang, showing how the movements of this widely misunderstood art can be practically applied in self-defense. Readers will learn: • Key baguazhang principles • Footholds • Basic stepping techniques, walking exercises, and postures • Proper alignments • "Mother palms," or basic exercises critical to the development of the "bagua body" Ideal for newcomers to baguazhang, this introduction elucidates the two foundational Single Change and Double Change Palms and offers a refresher for advanced practitioners looking to further explore applications for movements they already know.