Realistic Utilization of Kung Fu Techniques in Modern Self-Defence
In the endlessly evolving world of martial arts, the fusion of traditional Kung Fu elements into modern fighting styles such as boxing and Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) presents untapped opportunities. Drawing focus on the use of Bong Sau, Tok Sau, and Lop Sau techniques, the highlight is not only on incorporating these Kung Fu principles in the realm of combat sports but also their practicality for self-defence. Mixing Traditional Kung Fu with Boxing and MMA As inspired by the content from the ‘Hard2Hurt’ YouTube channel, the conversations and demonstrations center around the realistic application of these traditional Kung Fu techniques in boxing or MMA. Notably clear from the discussion is: it’s not just about learning a technique but understanding the principles behind it, the context of its application, and what follows after its execution. Understanding the Techniques: Bong, Tok and Lop Sau Let’s dive in! Consider Bong Sau, an often-misunderstood technique. It embodies the principle of using the arm as a wing to redirect incoming blows. By raising the elbow and turning the palm upwards, the technique works as a flexible, resistant structure to intercept and divert an assaulting arm. However, using Bong Sau effectively may involve more than just wing-shaped arm placement. A grasp of the context, such as the distance of an opponent or the direction of an incoming blow, is crucial. Hence, it calls for a blend of tactical awareness, speed, and proper execution. Similar principles apply to Tok Sau and Lop Sau. Translating to “Lifting Hand”, Tok Sau can be an effective counter-technique in certain scenarios in a fight, enabling the fighter to disrupt an opponent’s guard, opening opportunities for counter-strikes. Lop Sau, or “Pulling Hand”, could also provide tactical advantages in a bout, combining deflection with a leveraging action to unsettle an opponent or create openings in their defences. The Power of Context and Application Talking about power in close quarters, the notion of the ‘one-inch punch’ and even its lesser-known equivalent, the ‘one-inch kick’, can’t be overlooked. Rooted in Bruce Lee’s demonstrations, these techniques stress on harnessing the potential of minimized movements maximized impact. However, the key here is understanding the practical context for such techniques – they’re not about delivering a knockout punch from an inch away; rather, they revolve around delivering effective strikes in space-compromised scenarios. Taken in surface value, these techniques might seem to belong exclusively to traditional martial arts. But divested of their cultural trappings and examined purely in terms of mechanical efficiency and effectivity, these Kung Fu techniques arguably find a place in the toolkit of a modern fighter. On Fusion and Adaptation What’s the takeaway from this exploration of Kung Fu techniques in MMA and self-defence? It’s about fusion and adaptation. Recognizing that body mechanics are universal and are the tools for implementing intent can be a revolutionary insight for martial artists. Identifying and understanding related movements across different martial arts and incorporating them effectively in one’s fighting style – that’s the hallmark of a truly progressive and adaptable martial artist. And in the realm of self-defence, the same principle holds: technique only becomes meaningful when allied with the right intent and application. Hence, regardless of the martial art form one follows, mastering the principles – the physics and biomechanics behind each technique – is ultimately what builds a solid foundation for realistic self-defence.Blablabla
Hard2Hurt is a YouTube channel owned by Icy Mike. This channel is primarily dedicated to self-defense and fitness training. Icy Mike, the owner, is a self-defense specialist with real-world experience. His engaging tutorials and expansive knowledge form the core of the Hard2Hurt channel, making it a go-to resource for fitness enthusiasts.
Self-Defence Block
When I started martial arts, "Sticky Hands" was a training method that I thought was only taught to children as a "basic" introduction to sparring. I thought of it like that for years and years It wasn't until later that an instructor trained me almost exclusively in sticky hands sparring for about a year as an adult that I realized it's value and potential.
Over the course of the year we went from static one handed sparring (the most basic), to static one handed with strikes, to static two hand, to two handed with strikes, to moving one handed with strikes, moving two handed, moving two hand with strikes, moving two handed with strikes and takedowns.
After a year of this progression we finally "split apart" the sticky hands by about an inch. Then began sparring.
What the training had done after about a year of training was, once we split apart, I had gained an almost subconscious ability to have that "feeling the opponents movements" that you get with sticky hands but without actually having my hands on the opponent. My sparring took a frankly, exponential leap and It was fucking wild that I felt almost superhuman in being able to react to opponents before they even really knew what they were doing with their own bodies.
TL:DR – Sticky hands is vastly underrated as a training tool and was one of the most valuable trainings I ever had.
There is no Canadian geometry. What works, works. It doesn't matter what you decide to call it.
the fact that u ahve zna hoodie ::::wooshh boi
So that confirms my theory, combining wing chun, boxing and of course BJJ for ground is an amazing combination
I love these Martial artist orgies
Awesome video! I learned wing for 10 years along with other styles and I found it effective when incorporated into other styles. But the key is pressure testing…
The biggest issue with kung fu "punches"(or "strikes") is that they have NO POWER. Even in STREET FIGHTS, totally bare knuckle; you NEED POWER in your strikes. And this isnt related to size or strength or something that traditional martial artists will say to defend kung fu and karate and all the rest of them. You can be 5 foot 2 and 125lbs just like Mighty Mouse Demetrius Johnson and STILL have KO power in your hands(well, for a dude THAT small, you WILL have KO power as long as you're fighting dudes your own size, or about 5 to 6 inches taller than you, with up to 50 pounds on you, but of course its gonna get harder and harder to actually KO them the heavier and bigger they are) BECAUSE KO power is generated with the WHOLE BODY, starting from the ground on up, esp using the legs and hips…its why even BOXERS have VERY muscular legs; and same goes for kickboxers/muay thai guys(like myself). You don't really need a huge upper body to KO people since that's not where the majority of the power in punches comes from(SOME of it DOES come from your upper body esp the waist/shoulder/body rotation, but its not usually 'one shot KO" type of power, but just extra power to add on to your hip rotation that already generates great power; its the type of thing you throw when you REALLY need to KO someone in one shot, or bust through someones guard; thats how I see it anyway; and its a fact that the majority of your power comes from your legs, directly from the ground on up).
I myself don't have much of an impressive upper body. I got big shoulder muscles, big forearms compared to other guys(not like Popeye the sailor or some shit though), a hardened and muscular mid section from abs to delts and I have a very muscular chest; these are the "punching" and "kicking"(and kneeing and elbowing) muscles of course. My Triceps are also more developed than my Biceps lol.
Anyway to get back on point after that LOOONG digression: Kung Fu is a bunch of nonsense no matter what anyone says or likes to pretend. In my gym, I train Muay Thai(and prior to that, jiu jitsu); but my coach is also a certified Kajukenbo instructor(the thing one of the guys in this video practices)…however…from what I have seen, kajukenbo is basically some sort of MMA-like system but WITHOUT sparring; and I see MANY jiu jitsu/judo techniques used in it that I can do well, or even better than most of the guys doing kajukenbo in my gym. But if you dont actually spar with these techniques you'll NEVER be confident using them in a real fight, be it a street fight aka a mugging or something, or else in actual competition where guys are throwing at you with real bad intentions(and you are doing the same to them).
And about Kung Fu being some sort of "battlefield art"…even during the time it was invented, back in the 16th century in china if Im not mistaken, it was ALWAYS a "spectacle" type of thing where the kung fu guy would flip around and pretend he knows how to fight(and fight many men at once and win lol) while the pickpockets and cut purses he is partnered with to go steal the money of everyone whose eyes are glued to the kung fu clown. That was and STILL IS actually the primary purpose of kung fu as sad as it is to say. Its why Kung Fu has SO MANY STUFF that would NEVER work in a real fight.
Karate, while def WAY MORE "REAL" than kung fu, faces many of the same issues particularly with its punching(which is SUPER BAD), its hands down lack of defense for the head, and its total lack of full contact sparring/sparring with punches to the head/face allowed. I hear that many American schools get rid of that nonsense and have their students engage in full contact sparring, and those schools are INFINITELY more legit than pure japanese karate. I also hate, about kung fu(and even karate and other TMA) that they always have to "mirror" the other guys stance EVEN IF they are NOT natural southpaws they will still go southpaw when fighting a guy in southpaw stance; and vice versa for southpaws going orthodox to fight orthodox fighters. It just isn't very smart let alone optimal in fighting.
And you know? ANYONE who says they are "kung fu fighters" or something similar, but ACTUALLY fights like a boxer or a muay thai fighter or something else LEGIT(with a handful of "kung fu techniques"), and does well in some sparring match, and says that it "proves" kung fu is "legit"(or any TMA they are trying to "prove is legit"), no , you actually won cause your boxing/muay thai/jiu jitsu/so on is good, not because of kung fu. You see this CONSTANTLY even in pro MMA and the like.
You HAVE TO be SPARRING REGULARLY in ANY martial art you join for it to be LEGIT and REAL and WORKABLE in real life in both fights and also in competition and naturally in your regular sparring, too. This isnt optionally. You HAVE to spar to get good at fighting. you cant get good at something by not doing it. And you HAVE to join a fight gym where you spar AT LEAST once a week(bare minimum) but preferably every single class like my gym does; and you HAVE to make sure that at the gym you join up at or think of joining at, punches to the face/head ARE ALLOWED and in fact are ENCOURAGED(cause they're so effective and also cause everybody with a brain is gonna be doing just that, even if they are untrained and assault you on the street they will be punching your face and head not your body or something); and you also gotta be good at defending vs those punches. Even 100% full power HARD punches to your face you gotta be capable of calmly seeing it coming(this is HARD at first before you get kinda desensitized to all this) and deflect it off your guard(or outright just "block"/stop it even though you'll be taking many of shock from the punch if you do it that way…deflecting off your guard is the best way to block punches imo…it frustrates the other guy and tires him out and makes him feel like hes not getting anywhere, and YOU conserve energy to attack in between his punches ideally.
If you already train; the next time you spar, you should REALLY focus on just watching your opponents throw the slight eye openings in a traditional high guard. Thats my own preferred guard, too. You can EASILY see all you need to see of your opponent, and be focusing on your upper chest, OR, on their lower chin or nose. If you wanna play mind games look them dead in the eyes at all times, just make sure that doesnt backfire. It can and OFTEN DOES also heat things up more than necessary more often when you mean mug the dude your sparring, and he does the same to you in response. And its just not effective. Its not about SEEMING whose toughest or who looks away first; its just about winning the fight, or doing better than the other guy in sparring if thats your thing. I personally like to work on certain things during most of my sparring rounds except vs the guys closest to my own skill level where I cant take any chances at all with. But always be calm. Always watch them closely and without blinking or turning away EVER; with a high guard. You can work head movement and footwork while doing this, too, even with a high guard. You can deflect or block and you can also parry or evade. Its good to have rounds where you are STRICTLY on DEFENSE ALONE and cant attack(except maybe with a jab like our coach lets us do in our "attack and defense" drills that are literally this), it forces you to do what Im describing here. You feel and actually ARE so much safer doing this. The cowardly thing to do is take your eyes off your opponent and shell up mindlessly, resist that to the death; keeping a high guard very tight, eyes on opponent ALWAYS even when punches are coming and striking your guard, is absolutely necessary if you wanna win.
dude I was fan, but alll this subtle racism with "bong, tong" all that shit.. not neccessary. Go talk to shit to a Sanda guy you clown
Another great video. I coach Wing Chun and Escrima….and this video is gonna be required viewing for my group. IMO, Mike's really got it right. He may not study WC, but he understands the concept of bong sau/wing block, "inch punch" (short power), and chi-sau (hand fighting) …and how that stuff would actually be applied in fighting (not staged demos). Yeah Mike, you ARE a "kung-fu master" in the only way that matters –fighting application!
Great video! I am a kung fu practitioner that studies Wing Chun and the way you guys are applying the techniques makes a lot of sense to me because it all about the concept. I like to see various techniques based on their concepts such as Jut Sau (which is like a pulling hand but with the heel of your hand), Kwan Sau (tight- made up up two shapes- tan sau and bong sau), and other ones. I like the bong sau idea. I would use it similarly as well. I am not super good a sparring but by being both a practitioner and teacher of Kung Fu, I am able to figure out how to effectively apply them. Because I have teach them and be able to explain it. Having to explain in it detail helps me understand the technique better. Keep up the great videos Mike!
Is that a ZNA hoodie!? I love that guy!
Nice ZNA productions merch!
This is just bad boxing. If you’re reaching that much to parry a punch wtf you doing when he feints jabs throws hook?
The problem with the application of the Huen Sau shown here is the opening of the ribs. Having the elbow out creates a massive opening to receive a hook to the ribs. Huen Sau with the elbow down keeps the ribs closed.
The “one” inch punch is the most misunderstood technique in Wing Chun. The demo Bruce Lee did shown one application of punch power with limited explanation. The idea, penetration. With proper training and experience martial artist should be able to penetrate from wherever their hands rest. Boxers traditionally understand “1 inch” power through use of their body, structure, alignment, speed, and power from using a total body concept.
For example if I close the gap and my hand is at an opponents face, the idea is to punch through where I am at and take his space.
Also, whenever a person strikes, and is not using a punch to set up; the idea of punching through the opponent and taking his spine is a good example of penetration and 1 inch power. Good video, I enjoyed the demos.
nice ZNA hoodie!
Great vid. Exactly what i have been saying in my own vids. Your "huen sau" pronunciation was good 🙂
as a pressure testing WC student, theres a LOT of traditional WC that is too showy or minute to use reliably in a (real) fight (sticky hands, rolling, etc). the centerline theory, bridging to close distance and several blocks works well. Also we train boxing, kickboxing, and bjj for improved working techniques and situations WC doesn't cover. this was a really good workup of the parts of WC that work well, as opposed to just razzing on chunners. thanks.
"You keep that bong tight"
You just made all of Gen z Piss themselves😂😂
The Jeet Kune Do guy is right on Bong Sao.
Its still relatviely bullshido, especially when dude thinks he's hand trapping and dodging with two hands. That might be the occasion during sparring and or fucking around. But boxing has showed us what happens in movement, when two men are going at each other. Kung-Fu is cute, quaint even, but it is not effective.
One thing ,the huen sau, ur wrist is only supposed to move keeping ur elbow vertical. That's why it's called the fixed elbow position, alot of things in wing Chun or Ving tsun, certain movements are just 4 chi sau ,they are chi sau specific. I.e. meaning if u get into a close hands on hands grabbing fight,which in my opinion should never be allowed to happen lol. But if u watch Loma from the Ukraine, the boxer he knocks the guys gloves away and hits,it's taught in Ving tsun, but that doesn't make it only wing chun. Lomachenko pulls the glove away and hits like a pak da. Also sau does mean hand. Good video, like ur content.
Anyone who says, "That's not Kung Fu, that's just Boxing," needs to look up the Boxer Rebellion in 1899. You know what, don't worry about it, I'll tell you, about one million kung fu fighters started whooping european asses all over China until the US sent in the Marines. Any form that teaches how to exchange punches is boxing, just like any sword form that teaches how to duel another sword fighter is called "fencing," even if it's with a katana or a chinese broadsword.
Jeet Kune Do's not kung fu, and it's based on an action stuntman who never mastered anything. The only things that work or make sense in the "style" come from Wing Tsung/Chun.
Bruce Lee only mastered the martial art of PR, at best. Please stop inviting that marketing poser to represent "kung fu", or the mediocre Wing Chun/Tsung knockoff.
At the time, filming things was still costing a lot of money. I dont think it is just bruce's fault that the skill is just demonstrated as only the effect. it is the tools that was still limited
Also, even though those skills have the same concept as one inch punch, but the damage cant be compared to the real one inch punch. if one land on your stomach, you would feel not good. it feels like an energy is going through from in front of your stomach to your back.
Well, in scientific language, it is not an energy like what they show in dragon ball or any other anime, but still it is like kinetic energy just crashing your organs to each other
About the one inch punch , exactly right , except it doesn't need space between the punch and the body. All Kung Fu actually is about achieving this skill , but the only problem is that it is extremely rare anyone could actually do it. Most of the time , people just squeeze their muscle to look like a one inch punch , and without the distance it is just pushing at best.
I just want to elaborate a little more , the one inch punch is kind of like a myth , most just pretend they did it because the fact is that it is extremely rare , so when Bruce Lee really achieve it , it is kind of crazy. The advantage of the one inch punch is actually saving strength while delivering a high speed punch in extreme close distance. But once you got the idea , it could be applied to different part on the body. It is not always the best thing to do , but it will caught your opponent off guard for throwing the element of surprise.
It’s interesting how IcyMike slams the idea of learning martial arts from some master in some remote mountain when he talks about Systema in another video with Rokas from Martial Arts Journey (where he ranks martial arts), but here he idolizes Kung Fu which gets its prestige from being about learning it from said mysterious monk-master figure up in some remote mountain in inner China.
It all leads back to the ideals of the intercepting fist.
Offense provides defense, defense is offense.
They occur simultaneously, a yin yang balance.
Because of this your opponent cannot prepare to strike you back or block your attack, as your attack is launched while they are preoccupied with their own.
Its alot more technical of a fighting style, which is why it is not as popular or prominent.
It's not that "all kung fu is bad" or "boxing is better than kung fu."
Kung fu is hard as fuck to learn.
The level of flexibility, fight iq, and hand eye coordination required for many of the techniques makes it an unfavorable fighting style for most because it is simply an unachievable fighting style for most.
Dog style shaolin is a great way to set the standard for how difficult advanced forms can become. (Its the one where You literally jump into the air and land on your stomach/ back to prove your ferocity and level of pain resistance.
Usually, if a master is teaching dog style, it is because he is the fiercest and most deadly master present at the temple.
i mean, there are monks out there who can literally throw a fuckin sewing needle through a pain of glass.
I do agree with the whole demo vs application thing. But back then, cameras were new and film was rather expensive apparently. Don't mean to play devil's advocate but he probably did show the application and trusted the word of mouth to spread the concept around, thinking that American Martial Artists weren't so secluded with their information as Asian Martial Artists…yeah…
Master Wong still better then you lol
Please find and talk to someone who ACTUALLY knows a style of kung fu to a high standard. These guys sadly do not. They are missing so much. It’s insulting how little you know about it all and how much advice you feel it responsible to give. It’s the same as you feel when you watch people who know nothing by about sport fighting and boxing etc talking BS about the subject. Painful
I honestly think kung fu and other so-called "exotic" martial arts are just victims of marketing. I know karate has other circumstances affecting its development, but in America especially, because these styles were from China or Japan and people in the West are ignorant of the culture and like to romanticise it, they got marketed as some incredible superior styles and really hyped up, which caused a bunch of shitty instructors to start appearing because everyone wanted to learn it. In reality it's just another form of fighting like any Western combat styles or African styles or any other group of people that developed a means of combat or self-defense.
4:00 ain’t no way that works
hey i have made a discord server talking about martial arts and was wondering if i could put ur vid in my server?
love this video btw awesome!!!!!
@hard2hurt Is this Wing Chun?
I personally use the 1-inch punch allot when i notice there not covering there face. So basically i set it up by going into a muay thai long guard then when the think im just making distance i fire at there face with a 1-inch punch
The thing about the Lee demo is you have to understand what is being demonstrated and *why*. In the '60s and '70s the indepth knowledge of how and why punches worked were lacking. The idea that you either had to chamber like in so many karate styles or throw from a guard like in boxing with a mandated body movement to make the punch work with a very strict sense of what range punches could be done in. The one inch punch demonstration was to show that most of the thoughts/beliefs were wrong, that far more power than previously thought could be generated in significantly less space and using a different way of generating the power.
It wasn't meant to be a "here is a self defense punch". And back in the day it wasn't how people were taking it, this is a modern take on it which has become more prevalent since the late '90s.