Is Shaolin Kung Fu an effective form of Self Defense/Combat?

Many people are saying that the only practical styles of Kung Fu are arts like Wing Chun or Sanda and that the forms of Shaolin Kung Fu like the Animal styles are flowery and useless. And I know that there are quite a few people that only practice Shaolin Kung Fu for the health benefits so I am unsure.


Please tell me what you think and why you think that way.|||Shaolin Kung Fu was made for combat/self defense against invaders, and all the arts have a lineage traced to the Shaolin temple, so to say it%26#039;s ineffective is to say your Great grandfather is useless.





That being said, unless you%26#039;re going to China, it depends on the Sifu you train under. America tends to be very watered down and unoriginal when it comes to most martial arts, especially Shaolin. That%26#039;s why people dislike it. But when you see the average Shaolin Monk from China, you see how hard he conditions his mind, body soul? These people train for hours and commit their life to Kung Fu, of course it%26#039;s something effective. These people train to put spears in their throat and then lay on it. Even balls conditioning.








So that%26#039;s the real Shaolin for you. In America, it%26#039;s really different, but it can still be effective depending on the person you train under and how much effort you put into what you do.|||I don%26#039;t know about Sanda, but Wing Chun is about the only good Kung Fu. The rest are just flashy and useless for a real fight.