Sunday, April 26, 2009

What's the difference between Karate and Kung Fu?

And why are there a lot more places to learn Karate than Kung Fu in America? Like I%26#039;ve seen many Karte learning centers/buildings but not one that says Kung Fu.|||Karate=


Hard


Okinawan


External


Power oriented











Kung Fu=


Soft


Chinese


Internal for the most part.


Speed oriented.








Karate and Kung Fu aren%26#039;t a style, they are a system of styles.





Karate has many styles along with Kung Fu.








Karate:


Shotokan Karate


Kempo Karate


Ishin Ryu Karate


and much more.








Kung Fu:


Wing Chun (What I take)


Praying Mantis


Tai Chi


And hundreds more.





Why is there more Karate than Kung Fu in America? After WW2 when the Americans defeated the Japanese, they had a check point in Okinawa and the Marines forced the Okinawans to teach them the art, then when they brought it back to America, they spread it and added the belt system to it. At the time, the Chinese prohibited teaching Kung Fu to westerners until Bruce Lee broke the gap between East and West which was in the 1960%26#039;s. That%26#039;s why Karate is more known than Kung Fu. Atleast that%26#039;s what I read.








Hope this helped.|||Kung fu is a generic label for Chinese martial arts, doesn%26#039;t actually have anything to do with martial arts. There are many different styles and they are vary as to what types of techniques they teach.


Karate is also more or less a generic label for martial arts from Japan/ Okinawa, means open hand. Again many different styles with different focuses on what they teach.


As to why there are more Karate schools than Kung fu schools, several reasons. One of the main ones being the %26quot;Kung fu craze%26quot; of the 70%26#039;s, it kind of resulted in lots of bubble gum schools or as a lot of people on here call them McDojo%26#039;s. These are basically money makers for the people who run them, they basically feed you a lot of BS and don%26#039;t really teach too much worth anything. In my opinion Chinese martial arts and Tae Kwon Do have been there worst effected by this.


There are plenty of really good Kung fu, Karate and TKD schools out there, you just have to check them out pretty good before you go signing contracts and giving your money away.


Be mindful and check a school out before joining.


Best of luck|||Karate is Japanese hand-to-hand, while Kung Fu is a Chinese term for Great Achievement in any field technically. Wu Shu means Martial Arts in Chinese. Karate is copied from a few Chinese styles. There is a wider range of moves in Chinese styles. Chinese boxing styles have dichotomies. They are divided into Buddhist = Shaolin and Taoist = Tai Chi Chuan and into Northeren and Southern styles. Japanese are not as racist as Chinese are. Many Chinese do not teach their martial arts to non-Chinese.|||Firstly Karate is Japanese and Kung Fu is Chinese. After that there are just too many differences to name.


Whichever you decide to study, try to remember neither is about fighting. Both are a way of life, a philosophy, and as such can be applied to every aspect of a persons existance.


Don%26#039;t just take the class, study as well. Go to the library and read books. There is so much more to both than you could ever imagine. For a start just Google %26#039;The philosophy of karate / kung fu%26#039; and see what comes up. just that one action could set you on a wonderous journey of education and excitement.|||One is Japanese and the other is Chinese. Is the most obvious. I believe back in the 40s 50s after WW II, Karate was introduced to the USA by mostly American military personnel that fought in the Pacific campaign. While it seems the Chinese have long been in the U.S. they were much more secretive about sharing their martial arts. This was going on well into the 60s and early 70s. Also Kung Fu seems more available on the west coast in places like California. They%26#039;re also far too many different styles of Kung Fu and Karate to say exactly what the differences are. Some are more hard line linear and some are more circular. Then are some that are a little of both. So unless you are asking about one specific style then its very hard to say exactly.|||Kung Fu is more of an open hand style. Karate is closed fist. I saw a tournament of different fighters and the Kung Fu style was graceful, but when it came to striking, they had to use closed fists like everyone else. |||Karate is Japanese and Kung Fu is chinese.

Is kung fu still useful as compared to muay thai and gracie?

Dont get me wrong I am a student of Hung Gar and I love it and will stick with it for years to come. But in this day and age, is Kung fu a preactical martial art?|||Do you allow fear to cloud your abilities? Are you true to your convictions? Will you follow through with the attack determined to neutralize your opponent? The efficiency of any art depends on the ability of the practitioner. Muay Thai is an easy art to learn that is why people can get it to work after a short period of time. With Hung Gar your determination, hard work, and patience will, over time, mold you into a better fighter. Hung Gar is a much more complete system of combat than Muay Thai.


Yes its still useful


Good Luck!!!|||Hung Gar is a great style of Gong fu.Definitely stick with it.Yes Gong fu can defeat mma and muay thai and so on.Just be violent in action and focused.Also remember that most martial art schools will allow you to sit in on a class and watch..it will help your learning greatly. Report Abuse
|||Well that question has been put to the test, ad nausium, in the early gracie challenges, as well as the early UFC ( no gloves or time limits, almost no rules).





Over and Over again Kung fu practitioners were destroyed by other arts, especially BJJ. Go to youtube and check some of these fights out for yourself.|||well as noted above - the gracie skill set is good but ONLY if you are fighting a Single opponent.





Since the real world is less likely to contain %26quot;gangs of one%26quot; Kung Fu seems more likely to be of use there.





Not so sure about the Mua Thai.





But as far as practicallity of your art is concerned, don%26#039;t be afraid in real life to complement one style(or Art!) with another as the situation warrants.|||Kung Fu techniques work but alot of Kung Fu martial artists wont be able to use those techniques well in a real fight because all they may have done are forms, it all depends on the school you go to, but Kung Fu it self is effective, it all depends how to train.





The issue most people have with TMA is that they don%26#039;t spar enough and dont really test to see what works and what doesn%26#039;t|||Yes, it is useful against multiple attackers. Gracie jiujitsu is great one on one but against multiple attackers it has it disadvantage. Muay thai is great but it doesn%26#039;t have the weapon part or form part of the martial art. Kung fu is the most complete martial art. Don%26#039;t worry about the pratical part of kung fu because in the street you will fight against some bullies or some drunk, not against an expert so kung fu is very adequate against them.|||depends on the what kind of Kung fu. If you say bajiquan i%26#039;d say yes, but hung gar, i don%26#039;t really know much about hung gar....


The thing is most kungfu do not spar and punch sandbag. Because in the old days almost all school of kungfu do those things to develop their body and punching skill.





-1 sparring = 10 hours of training alone|||In which way are you talking about in MMA or just self defence?





If in MMA then I would say that it is not a good skill to know because the rules in MMA would hamper the skills that you are taught in Kung Fu. Also from what I have seen you require a good deal of space to use your more effective attacks and your opponent would not let you get the space to do that, but I might be wrong?





But in Self Defence it would still be a good style to know as no rules governing the use of skill so neck stabs, pressure point attacks, hammer hits, and others would be allowed because there are no rules to restrict what you use.





But with MMA I think that Muay Thai and BBJ would be more effective at the moment, but that could change as MMA is a evolving sport so we%26#039;ll just have to wait and see.|||If you mean practical in MMA, then Muay Thai really is more effective. Muay thai fighters really train for in ring fighting.





Now if a Kung Fu guy and Muay Thai guy met on the street, where anything goes, well it would really depend on the skill of the fighters.





I%26#039;m sure a kung fu fighter would do very well in defending himself from an attacker, just as a muay thai fighter would be succesful as well. As long as you%26#039;re good at what you do, anything%26#039;s practical and useful.|||In a ring it probably on it%26#039;s own would not fair well. In self defense if you have had a good instructor and trained hard and raelisticly then yes it could stand up very well. TOO many MMA people on here confuse the ring with self defense. Not street fighting, I said self defense. the early UFC%26#039;s were designed to highlight BJJ because the Gracie%26#039;s started it. I do not see laying on the ground with someone for 10 minutes in a self defense situation.





Self defense is do damage and get safe. Too many BJJ people laugh about Multiple attackers or weapons. guess what they do happen. I am not against MMA I think it would be fine for self defense, but Traditional Arts give you a lot more than just that. Also they try not to teach deadly stuff to anybody who walks in off the street.|||Any art is good if you understand it. Can you generate power without telegraphing? Kungfu or karate without power is just embarrassing. Can you block all attacks? Do you know your arts strengths and weaknesses?





Do you know you art well enough that it is a part of you? This allows you to move at super speeds and frees your mind to concentrate on strategy.|||Absolutely. Kung fu would have fallen off the map by now if it wasn%26#039;t as useful as the other styles mentioned.|||sorry bud, only in the movies.

How can you tell whether a Kung Fu school is authentic?

I%26#039;m in the process of choosing a Kung Fu school and wanted to know how to choose between different schools. What shoud you look out for if you want to choose an authentic Kung Fu school?|||1. The same way to can tell an authentic Chinese restaurant. If there are lots of Chinese students its a good indicator that it%26#039;s authentic. If there are very few Chinese students I%26#039;d be cautious.





2. This is especially true if there are lots of Chinese kids (under 12) as many Chinese parents will seek out an authentic kung fu school to train their kids.





3. Find out where the Sifu/Shifu was trained. What is the lineage of the school as is he officially recognised as a Sifu by his teachers?





4. Does the Sifu actually train the students - or does he leave it to instructors or other students? If the Sifu doesn%26#039;t take a personal interest in your training - leave.





5. Observe how many senior students there are. If the school is full of beginners then you know that students are leaving as fast as they join. There must be a reason for that.





6. How good are the senior students (not the instructors) and how long have they trained? You can use this as a benchmark for your own performance - if you were as good as they are after that much training - is that good enough?|||you have to appreciate good humour?well why did this braind dead moron report my answer for abuse?


my answer.haha humour there%26#039;s not enough of it here.by the authentic menu? Report Abuse
|||There really is no fool-proof way to determine the authenticity of any martial arts school or instructor. People have mentioned lineage, but that only works if everyone in the line held true to their master%26#039;s teachings. In many cases, the student has gone on his own and did things his own way.





The best thing for you to do is observe a few classes at each of the schools you are considering. Try to view some of the advanced classes. If they are doing the types of things you are looking for, then go for it.





Good luck!|||An authentic %26quot;Kung Fu%26quot; school will both know and honor it%26#039;s lineage. Your Sifu, or Simu will know the language, culture and history of the style that they are teaching.


Kung Fu comes from the Shaolin monks. Look for an instructor that upholds the moral values that go along with the Taoist based teachings. For example, in my school, nothing is killed. This includes (biting) centipedes and bees.


Kung Fu lessons are much more than learning how to fight. A good school gives you an education in philosophy, natural remedy%26#039;s and healing, history, and language. You are in a good school if you walk out of the building feeling stronger, happier, smarter, and healthier from the first time you meet your new master.


When I met mine, I knew he was the %26quot;real deal%26quot; because he radiated a light of energy, strength, and wisdom. I hope this helps, and best wishes on your journey. :)|||if you walk in and everybody is kung fu fighting then youre in the right place|||Linage is important- a lot of people make up crap about their linage.. like %26quot;my teacher was a real shaolin-monk%26quot; from pre-communist China.. or %26quot;my teacher fled China to escape a communist takeover%26quot;





Most of this is just plain crap. You would have to be over 80 for THAT to be true.





Also, I suggest NOT taking a martial art like Kung Fu from a %26quot;white person,%26quot; I know that sounds racist or whatever, but many times they make up great stories about their %26quot;masters%26quot; and what have you being %26quot;chinese%26quot; or %26quot;monks,%26quot; its better to go somewhere that is internationally recognized...has a legitimate linage, and preferably taught by a Chinese person.. You get more respect from them than their European counterparts.. just a societal thing. This I know from experience.





If you feel in any way that the teacher is trying to manipulate you, leave.





If a school is forcing students to teach other students- leave





If you suddenly sign up and realize classes lack good stance training (such as holding stances for a long time to gain such strength) then leave.





Also not every place that says %26quot;kung fu%26quot; is authentic.|||the more people it has in it with yellow skin and slanty eyes.|||If the kicks are fast as lightning you%26#039;re good.|||Authentic schools require their graduates to snatch a pebble from the masters hand.





They are then rewarded by having to lift a red hot flaming kettle with their fore arms. This causes scarring and disfigurement that lasts a lifetime.





Any school with out this is not authentic.|||You have to appreciate good humor!





There are a few things you need to look for when choosing an %26quot;authentic%26quot; kung fu school (kwoon). I would break it down to three bare essentials. though:





1.) Lineage Tree - This is comparable to a family tree and shows how the system has been passed down and its roots. It should be rather plain, straight-forward, and have little deviation. If a school has origins all over the place, chances are it is mixed and/or not authentic.





2.) Spear/Kwan Dao Set - Most, if not all, authentic schools have its own unique spear set or kwan dao set.





3.) Tai Chi Chuan - Despite whatever external system the school teaches, there will at least be a fundamental knowledge of a branch of Tai Chi Chuan. Most teach Yang family and at least know the basic 24 movement set. If they teach anything else, make sure you research and make sure they aren%26#039;t just doing their external system at a slower pace! There is a certain Kenpo chain school that does that...





Of course there are other factors such as teacher experience, class size, class structure, and cost just to name a few, but those are things that would apply to all school background checks regardless of the system. If you want to learn really %26quot;old school%26quot; style, the kwoon won%26#039;t even have a belt/sash ranking system!





Good luck in your search!|||The teacher is suppose to make all non asian strip to underwear and stand outside in cold weather to do forms for an hour before the class.|||kung fu is all fancy crap. dont take that, if you wanna become a fighter take muay thai or kickboxing.

What are the weaknesses and strengths of monkey and mantis form of bung bo kung fu?

I%26#039;m learning kung fu, and was wondering what are the strengths and weaknesses of monkey and praying mantis for kung fu. is their a way to counter or exploit a weakness in these forms, and how would one do so? any help is much appreciated.|||No one here can tell you unless they have had extensive training in the art - years of practice.





No one here is qualified to give you this info. The two answers before mine are people who just like to answer to gain points.





Ask them if they have years of training.





I can tell you - just by the way they answer... they don%26#039;t.|||im sorry but monkey and mantis form buggy boo kung fu has no weaknesses or exploitations. they simply cannot be defeated. monkey form with mantis form... well lets just put it htis when, when enemy approaches you leap upon him life monkey surprising him and scaring him as well, but he knows how to counter because he has trained in shaolin arts, but then immediately you SPRING FORTH with clasping arms of the mantis, knocking him out cold. you win.|||monkey, unorthodox n%26#039; strength, mantis-speed.

What is the main difference between karate and kung fu and which is best for self defense?

My five year old grandson just started taking kung fu lessons. I was a bit disappointed he wasn%26#039;t enrolled in karate instead. I welcome the opinions of anyone experienced or knowlegeable in either or both arts. Thank you.|||Both %26quot;karate%26quot; and %26quot;kung fu%26quot; are very generic terms. There are over a dozen styles of karate and I%26#039;ve heard it said over 400 styles of kung fu, each with their own emphasis and %26quot;flavor%26quot;. Neither method is particularly better than another. The effectiveness of any system depends on the quality of the teacher, the realism of the training, and the conviction of the practitioner.|||Kung Fu developed in the Shaolin Temples, from the teachings of the Buddhist monk, Bodhidharma. The two largest temples were the Northern and Southern Temple. The Southern Temple trained many people in Fuzhou, who later immigrated to Okinawa, then part of the Chinese Empire. (The 42 families) The Japanese eventually took over Okinawa, and Kung Fu, then called Kara-te (China Hand) in Okinawa was renamed Karate (Empty Hand, which sound the same but are written differently. Like the words %26quot;weak%26quot; and %26quot;week%26quot;) . Karate became popular in Japan in the early 20th Century when the Okinawan teacher, Gichin Funakoshi moved to Tokyo and founded Shotokan Karate. Shotokan was brought to Korea, which was then a part of Japan. Korea gained it%26#039;s independence after wwII and renamed their system Tangsoo do (China Hand Way) then later Taekwondo.


Today there are many styles of Kung Fu and many styles of Karate, but all are related. If I were to say Kung Fu has more forms (called Kata in karate) I%26#039;d be generally right, but Wing Chun, probably the most popular form of Kung Fu today only has 3 forms. (kata) Shotokan Karate today can have more than 30 kata (forms), but the founder of that style only practiced around 10. (maybe 12, maybe 8 depending on the source) Uechiryu Karate had only 3 kata (forms) up to the 1950s, then added some for competition purposes. Isshinryu Karate still only had 8 kata. (empy hand forms anyway, they also have weapon forms) Northern Shaolin Kung Fu has hundreds of forms, which nobody knows all of, though each monk masters usually one, and sometimes a few.|||Karate came from some early kung fu styles. Kung fu has fluidity. the animal forms of kung fu were broken down into individual techniques by karate. There is still flow in karate but it has lost the intent of kung fu animal forms. True kung fu is always better, but few real teachers. Pressure-point fighting came from kung fu, They have it also in karate but is reserved for advanced students. I did karate for 20 years before shifting to kung fu. A hundred karatekas will basically move the same way right out of the book. Not so in kung fu were secret moves are really secret.|||The difference in style is not important, especially for a five year old. The quality of the instruction is, however.





As far as self-defense, the same applies. No style is any better than another. It%26#039;s the instruction and the application by the individual that means more. In my experience, I would look for a teacher who stresses situational awareness and avoiding danger first, then physical self-defense techniques.|||they are both good arts.





kung fu is much older and is one if the many styles that has influences the development of karate.


there are quite a number of styles of kung fu, kung fu was influenced by indian martial arts and also the middle east martial arts. there are may have been other countries that influenced chinese arts as well.


kung fu is both internal and external as well as hard and soft. the same is true for various karate styles


karate was influence by chiniese arts, philippino, vietnamese, mauy tai and japanese jujitsu.





as other have said more important is the quality of the instructor.|||Both Arts are great! But more important as Rob B states is the instruction, also different styles are for different people. I think in this case, the student/teacher relationship is more important than any style. At this age, children should be getting a good base, and knowledge on the whys of martial arts. I always suggest that parents/or grandparents try a few different schools. I don%26#039;t know of any instructors who wouldn%26#039;t give a free class.|||Karate is going to be a better art for real life self defense than Kung-Fu.


Kung-Fu is going to be flashier and better for winning trophies. Kung-Fu is very impressive to watch but on the street you don%26#039;t want flashy, you want what works.


The most important thing is that he likes it. If he likes Kung-Fu and doesn%26#039;t like Karate then forcing him into Karate will make him quit martial arts all together. He%26#039;s 5... let him choose what class he enjoys most.


The school and instructors are the most important thing. Visit many schools (even if they are too far away) of both arts and watch the advanced and kids classes. You should be able to get a good feel for the best school.


Attend the classes he takes! I have so many parents drop their children off and never come in to watch just what we are teaching them.|||As I have studied both Kung Fu and Karate i can say they are both exquisite martial arts. They are very different from one another. Karate is very power and weight orientated. Whereas Kung Fu focuses on well placed fast strikes with specific hand shapes.


They are both suitable for self defence, as is any martial art. Self defence is 50% mental and 50% physical, if you have the correct mindset and know how to react in a situation then self defence wont ever be an issue. This is what martial arts teaches people, the funny thing is you may not even realise it !





I certainly wouldn%26#039;t be disappointed that our grandson had taken up kung fu instead of Karate as they are both equally as effetcive.|||Karate is descended from Kung Fu which is a Chinese art.


Kung fu styles tend to be more evasive, circular and fluid, while karate tends to be more linear and strength based (emphasizes a block hard hit hard approach).


Kung fu is often criticized for its %26quot;showiness%26quot; but if taught correctly it is a very effective form of fighting, self defense and fitness. |||what i watch from discovery channel last month,it show where karate originated,actually karate was born from the mixing of kungfu and teakwondo..that how karate was born..and it not from japan,it from okinawa island..now it part of japan..dont felt disappointed,karate is very good because it teaches hand and kicking technique a complete workout of upper body and lower body..there are many style off karate,just ignore what style as long as it is karate,it good for u..


i have some link of fight quest documentary about karate,kyokushin style.





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVAHJp7Yf... part 1 of 6


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghcRs9QpZ... part 2 of 6


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWfOtLoqx... part 3 of 6


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rg_m8cxqc... part 4 of 6


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVPEcNVfJ... part 5 of 6


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9EbXqgjC3... part 6 of 6





here a karate expert was suddenly attack by street gangster:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=psAdlXkJ_...

















|||i know they are both striking martial arts.


one has a bit of grapples(karate)


kung fu is really to flashy and mainly only used in action movies if you will.karate is way better and has more techniques|||both are good for self defense. It depends on your dedication. Karate is japanese and kung fu is chinese.|||most kung fu is based on animal movements|||i agree with sensei rob,he does get it right occasionally.|||Any external style of Kung Fu is better than Karate in terms of completeness and development, although, even though as a kid I was a HUGE Kung Fu fan (still am actually), when I did personal research in college about various Kung Fu styles, I came to respect Karate for its simplicity. Kung Fu is not for everyone; many of the forms can be incredibly complicated and require a great deal of patience to learn.





As a general rule in martial arts, the simpler a form, the more power it requires, and the more you rely on physics and momentum rather than raw strength, the more complicated the technique. Simple technique is easy to learn but you need a lot of power to use it effectively, and if you want to overcome a more physically powerful opponent, it IS possible through the principles of physics and how they apply to human anatomy (namely kinesiology). If a move is simple, it needs power, if a move is complex it barely needs any strength at all but boy is it tough to learn.





Kung Fu is branded as %26quot;impractical%26quot; because so many of the techniques, especially the Chin Na joint locks, are so highly reliant on physics, and the only way you can use the principles of physics on the human body without too much strength, is through very precise application that demands many years of practice. I looked into a lot of Kung Fu styles; traditionally, per influence of the Shaolin temple, every Chinese Boxing (their traditional name for Kung Fu is %26quot;boxing%26quot;) style has 5 forms to learn, each form being 108 steps long.





From style to style different teachers have had different approaches, some using only 1 cohesive form, others using 3 and some styles even have had a whopping 10 forms to learn. The varieties were endless, chaotic, and as a result, only the traditional styles have survived. The world of Chinese martial arts produced so many variants and offshoots, it is impossible to keep track of them all. The Tibetan Crane style of Kung Fu, has over 5,000 techniques, and I believe 20 unarmed forms, and whopping 40 weapons forms. It has such a ridiculous arsenal of techniques, the martial art has few traditional masters of it anymore, the people who study the Tibetan Crane style now study a %26quot;crash course%26quot; version of it and even though it has been severely stripped of all but the most rudimentary forms, it is still an exhaustively hugely arsenaled style.





One of the things people fail to realize is the time issue; it isn%26#039;t just enough to simply KNOW a technique, you also need TIME to practice and refine and polish it. See that is why I like Karate; you can learn a total of 12 forms, the original recomendation of Master Funakoshi, the longest of them being 40 steps long. You practice each form 5 times a day 6 days a week, if you are fit, you can do it in the space of an hour. To practice a Shaolin form 5 times a day, 6 times a week, would easily consume up to 6 hours, meaning, even though the forms are shorter, the fact that they are shorter means that with Karate you can practice more. In the time it takes a Shaolin practitioner to practice one form, a Karateka can practice a Kata up to 10 times.





However, its a trade off; Karate%26#039;s shorter forms allow for more practice and greater polish but see, it requires so much power, the use of your entire body weight if you don%26#039;t have any power or not enough to use against the heavy hitters, that it DEMANDS practice, where in Kung Fu, believe it or not you can get away with practicing a single set of 5 animal forms only once a day, and you would STILL develop enough hand-eye coordination to defend yourself against a large bruiser. Again its a tradeoff; Kung Fu offers a large arsenal, so large, that even though practice is demanded, you don%26#039;t really need it because the martial art is so well developed. Karate is simple, and you can practice and refine a single Kata to unbelievable levels but see, you NEED to do it, because if you can not put your entire body weight behind EVERYTHING, Karate simply doesn%26#039;t work.





Furthermore; Karate%26#039;s power is reliant on movement of the entire body behind every punch, every block, and every kick. When a Karateka kicks, what he is in fact doing, is concentrating their entire body weight into roughly the space of two knuckles, or, a small space of bone on either side of the wrist, or the ball of the foot bellow the big toe. A Kung Fu stylists power, come from the centrifugal force of the circular motions of the techniques; in Kung Fu everything moves in a circle, because if you used to spin a jump rope over your head as a kid, or any kind of rope, you know that once a spinning object gather%26#039;s momentum, if it accidentally hits someone it HURTS. See, that is the principle behind the circular motions of Kung Fu; you move your fists in circles, so that they connect with greater impact without wasting too much energy nor using too much of your body%26#039;s strength, hence the reason its superior to Karate.





However again, that superiority, com|||a gun is best for defense.





either kung fu or karate is good for kids to learn

What traditional style of Kung Fu should I try?

This question goes to all the seasoned Kung Fu masters out there. Having watched Kung Fu Panda for the third time, I%26#039;m stuck between Tiger style and Monkey style. I%26#039;m five foot seven, and I weigh at least 200. Please send me your best answers. Thanks!|||Wing Chun.





I%26#039;d suggest.





Best wishes :)***|||Find out what schools are in your area. Visit them. Most will give you a free lesson. If they try and pressure you into a contract - leave! Visit a few schools, and see if any of their training styles appeal to you. You will also want to check the credentials of the school%26#039;s Sifu and talk with him to see if he is someone you want to learn from.





Also, depending on where you live, the most common %26quot;animal style%26quot; you will find is one form of mantis or another. Although many martial arts incorporate various aspects. For instance, in Wing Chun, you will may see a crane beak, or panther fist, etc.





Best of luck.|||U will find that cartoons Rn%26#039;t exactly accurate in their portrayals of things.Martial arts is no exception.Most systems integrate all 5 animal styles in2 their system.What U need 2 look @ is whether U want the wide long circling motions of a northern style or the small inside short circling motions of a southern chinese style.It really depends on what U feel comfortable with. If U just want an opinion,the northern is going 2 look better if U can master but the southern style will B more effective if U ever need it in real life situations.|||from kung fu panda, the style u should try is panda style. sitting and centrifugal force of a 100 lb punch hurts. well actually %26quot; monkey style%26quot; is more like acrobatic.. yea and if your five seven, 200 lb... gonna b pretty hard... no offense. but from kung fu panda, i think that preying mantis kung fu is best?|||Tiger is really fun I am five nine and really enjoy that fighting style|||Depends on what%26#039;s around your area and how good that instructor is at teaching.|||...gasp

What are good shoes for kung fu training?

I%26#039;ve just recently started taking kung fu lessons 3 times a week. And I need to know what kind of shoes are good for this type of thing. I need something flexible, light weight, durable, preferabley flat soul, nothing too expensive or flashy, good grip(good enough to keep my balance on fast one foot motions but not enough that I can%26#039;t turn fast on the ball of my foot) and most importantly comfortable. Any ideas?|||Kung fu shoes are great for wing chun and such. But if your style involves more pivoting and movement or acrobatic techniques, then these shoes will fly of your feet like a greased pig with wings. Feiyue shoes are the best overall shoes for indoor kung fu training: light, cheap, great traction, and stay on your feet. These are the choice brand for most martial arts schools in China. In fact they are the same brand that the Shaolin monks use. If however you are going to do any training outside on concrete and such, then I would recommend something more durable like Adidas Samba indoor soccer shoes. This are made of strong leather and the soles hold up longer on rough concrete.





You can find them on http://www.martialartsmart.net





Hope this helped, good luck.|||I agree %26quot;Gong Fu%26quot; shoes.





The cheap ones with cotton or synthetic souls go for about $6 at my local martial arts supply store. The thing is... they come in a foreign size scale (I wear size 44.)





They also have more expensive ones, mine are called %26quot;Turf%26quot; by Adidas.|||Kung Fu Shoes!





http://www.karatesupply.com/Cotton-Sole-...





http://www.karatesupply.com/Kung-Fu-Shoe...





:)|||Chuck Taylor Converse hi-tops. (the classics) They actually work very well.

Does anyone know any good kung fu schools in San Francisco and or the bay area?

I am looking for a good kung fu school in sf area can anyone recommend one? thanks...im not looking for any particular style, but im 5%26#039;6 170 lbs if anyone can recommend a good one..i also have a background in karate, but I am willing to unlearn what I have learned from there.|||If you are looking for traditional kung fu, I am familiar with Wushu Central on Coleman in San Jose. I never trained there but my company was neighbors with them and it looked pretty good. They practice forms as well as fighting. I attend Cung Le%26#039;s USH gym; we learn San Shou kickboxing. It is also in San Jose.

Kung FU???

how do you look for a kung fu school/academy near you...cause i go to google or yahoo maps and they take me to Tae Kwon Do places and yeah...so if you no of a site, or something to help me out...thanks|||Look up these names


Wu Shu , Kung Fu


The styles are Northen and Southern. Mostly based on the clothing needed for the area. Less clothing, more foot work, more clothing more hand work. Southern China being colder, well the styles tend to be more hand boxing related. There are also schools of internal study and those of external. some styles I have seen and liked are


San Soo ( San Shao ) , Wing Chun, Bag Gua , TaiJi Quan ( Tai Chi ) , and Pak Kua.|||can i have fries with that shake Report Abuse
|||www.wingtsun.com.au if your in australia or look for wing tsun/wingchun/ving chun/ving tsun on yahoo i recommend wing tsun it is the style that is based on the way a fight goes on today but with the same techniques with new ones and the same concepts aswell with some new ones and is not entirely traditional were they practice forms and stances for hours you basically just learn to fight





EDIT: im not saying that traditonal martial arts/ kung fu only practice forms and stances but mostly that is the large part of training schedule forTMA classes it would help if you told us where you live what u just expect us to know where you live JEEZ|||You should be able to find a school in your local phone book yellow pages or try the internet yellow pages.





I saw where someone mentioned that kung-fu had several styles. Well last time I remember there were at least 300 known styles. And that is just the ones that the magazine knew about for sure there are actually many more.





Someone also mentioned that there were only two types of Tae Kwon do....... Sorry but there are at least 75 different styles of TKD in Korea. Off the top of my head I can think of at least five. Not bad considering I don%26#039;t and have never been a student of TKD. Just been around the martial arts for nearly 41 years.|||Hi:





I just went to this site yesterday morning,


http://kungfu.f-sw.com/





I got the white eyebrow (bak mei kung fu) instructional file, watched it, and have been learning it. It is a really intense form! I spoke to them, asking them when its going to be all up and running and they said tommorow night.|||OK I%26#039;m a martial artist and the only thing i can think of is try typing in on your google bar wing Chung kung fu schools you see kung fu is a martial art that has a few styles unlike tae kwon do where there is 2 tea kwon do and American tae kwon do|||it%26#039;s not where it is, it%26#039;s who teaches. are they fun? are they good with kids/adults? do they give you a good challenge? that it the question!|||Try Yahoo! Local. Or In the search engine type in Kung Fu ____ zipcode, and the first link should say %26quot;Find Kung Fu near _____ zipcode.|||You may not have a Kung Fu school nearby. They are fairly rare in certain parts of the country. Look in the Yellow Pages under %26quot;Martial Arts%26quot;.