Plum Flower Post Training

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Plum Flower Post Training

“	<div class="flexinode-body flexinode-1"> Author: Eric Townsend <div class="flexinode-textarea-5"><div class="form-item"> Article: The Secret To Drunken Style Stepping [IMG]discussion/attachments/instructional/1037-plum-flower-post-training-plum_lead_ws.gif?d=1108303028[/IMG] Plum flower post training develops the essential drunken style footwork by encouraging balance, strength, endurance, speed, and accuracy. The public often misunderstands Chinese drunken style boxing. To the untrained eye, it seems to be a style of fighting which lacks balance, power, accuracy, and speed. However, drunken style is a powerful composition of these attributes. Often drunken style's flair belies its demand for focus and exactitude. The first noticed and misunderstood strategy of drunken boxing is the staggering steps. What is often mistaken as loose improvisation is actually focused deception. The individual who trains in drunken style can easily put his body into positions which appear to be off balance or out of control. The strategic result, however, would be an opponent who becomes confused by the staggering steps and assumes the individual is out of control. The opponent would respond with less than full effort in battle. By using the art of deception and subsequent surprise, the drunken boxer has half the battle won. The Six Harmonies This particular style of Chinese drunken boxing also involves the concepts and development of the &quot;six harmonies&quot;. The body has three external and three internal harmonies. When these six harmonies are functioning properly, the mind-body connection is functioning properly. The three internal harmonies are: mind, thought, and energy. When an opponent punches, your mind reads the attack and the thought process occurs and realizes the punch as a threat. Then it sends signals to the body to defend itself. Then the energy is sent to the needed area to prevent any damage from that attack. The three external harmonies are: shoulders-hips, elbows-knees, and hands-feet. By having these in line, the body will have proper balance and energy flow. One of the main goals of a drunken boxer is to misalign the opponent's six harmonies. The opponent cannot fight to his full ability when these six harmonies are out of alignment. Understanding the six harmonies allows drunken style to be much more effective in combat. Drunken Footwork: Concepts & Training The most essential training method of drunken style boxing is the plum flower post training. This extraordinary method of training develops so many needed areas for drunken boxing. Plum flower post training develops the essential footwork by encouraging balance, strength, endurance, speed, and accuracy. It also encourages proper alignment of the six harmonies. Plum flower post training is done by placing five posts in a plum flower pattern. The beginner should train with very short posts standing about six or eight inches off of the ground. The beginner should space the posts far enough apart to allow a wide base of support. The short posts decrease the chance of injury during a fall. As the trainee advances in skill, the spacing can become closer and the height increased. Stagger Stepping There are two main types of footwork used in drunken style boxing: short stagger stepping and long stagger stepping. The short stagger stepping is often used for an ankle or knee break. Because of the drunken boxer's staggering steps, the opponent cannot predict the ability of the drunken boxer. The drunken boxer can slip in these attacks unexpectedly. The short stagger step also repositions the body just inches out of the opponent's line of attack, helping the drunken boxer slip in strikes to the opponent's open windows that seem to be unnoticed by the drunken boxer. The longer and higher stagger steps are used to gain greater distance in a technique such as a knee trap kick. In an evasion effort, the drunken boxer will use the opponent's force from the attack to execute the desired technique. While the feet are transporting the body into the desired area of attack, they are also executing trap and shin kicks, foot stomps, sweeps, and locks. The stagger stepping should be practiced diligently on the posts to enhance the effectiveness of the footwork on the ground during combat. This footwork training is essential to the drunken boxer because of the areas it develops. [IMG]images/articles/0202/plum2_ws.gif[/IMG] Strengthening the Joints Since footwork plays such an important role, it is necessary to train the lower body. The plum flower posts training must be taken seriously and the trainee must develop the body so it can handle the constant strain. The individual who wishes to train drunken style must obtain strength and endurance. Strength must be developed not only in the muscles, but also in the tendons, ligaments, and joints. Every section of the lower body must be developed: toes, ankles, knees, hips, and waist. The toes and ankles are vulnerable because of their excessive use and exposure to an opponent's kicking and sweeping. If these joints are not toughened through proper training, they will become injured during combat. The knees, hips, and waist must be properly developed because of the constant twisting, pivoting, and low stance work. If training is not done properly, it may cause health problems in the future as well. Developing Balance Even though already developed in most trainees, balance can be exponentially increased through plum flower post training. The unorthodox positioning, which purposely extends the body beyond the centerline of gravity, places the body in an unknown territory. Plum flower post training removes the feet from the familiar floor plane. Not only do the posts elevate the body, increasing the influence of gravity, but they also make the connection of balance and foot placement essential. At a more advanced level, a cross-step should place the heel of the foot midway between the altenate knee and hip. During the foot's descent, the upper body is extended beyond the hips. This constant flux of gravity on the body and the constant disruption of the body's centerline increase the individual's awareness of balance and accuracy. Developing Strength It is essential that the feet, legs, waist, back, and abdomen be strengthened for drunken style. Drunken style consists of exaggerated twisting and unusual repositioning of the body. Without the proper strength in these needed areas, the training will severely damage the body. When the body is put into these awkward positions it causes constant pressure (isometric tension) on the body's muscles, ligaments, and tendons. This type of training develops iron silk energy. The surface of the body remains totally loose, but the inside of the body (muscles, tendons, ligaments) become tough. Constant pressure on the lower body of the trainee also develops strength in the toes, ankles, and legs, which will cause the body to become fatigued during training. If the trainee continues through the pain and goes beyond the limit which he has set for himself, then the endurance and strength will increase. Before a fighter can defeat his opponent, he must first learn to defeat himself. Simple repetitive practice and determination will be beneficial in building endurance. Developing Speed Plum flower post training also develops the speed needed during a fight. When first beginning plum flower training, the movements will be slow. Once the trainee becomes more comfortable with the awkward positioning of the body, he will gain confidence and begin to build up speed on the posts. If you can learn to move from post to post quickly while keeping good balance and proper alignment (six harmonies), you will become a much better fighter. For proper speed to be obtained, the trainee must have proper: o Flexibility, which is obtained by the stretches needed for drunken style; o Muscle tone, which is achieved by traditional drunken training such as the plum flower posts; and o Alignment, which is obtained by understanding and practicing the six harmonies. Developing Accuracy Plum flower training also develops accuracy. As the trainee begins to walk on the posts, he should try not to look down at the posts while moving. This helps him develop accurate stepping, which will in turn lead to accurate techniques with the legs. By keeping the eyes off the post, balance becomes much more difficult. As the level of skill proceeds, the trainee should begin to execute kicks, punches, and eventually shadowboxing on the posts. Once the drunken boxer starts to shadowbox with stability and gains confidence on the posts, he should begin two-person training and eventually two-person sparring on the posts. The training objective should be to misalign the opponent's six harmonies. This type of training will develop the mind into a state where the drunken boxer is no longer concentrating on the positioning of the feet on the posts, but rather on the open target areas of the opponent. The drunken boxer begins to feel the position of the posts and no longer is concerned with maintaining balance or keeping the six harmonies in line, because the plum flower training has installed these attributes as a natural instinct into the practitioner. When this level of skill is achieved, he can be assured that his balance, strength, speed, and accuracy have excelled. Conclusion Plum flower post training is essential for drunken style boxing because it provides a good foundation for balance, strength, speed, endurance, and accuracy. It supplies the drunken boxer with proper evasion and attack maneuvers, and trains the body to align the six harmonies. By developing these needed attributes on the plum flower posts, the drunken boxer will improve his ground fighting ability. Footwork is the most important building block in drunken style. Without this foundation of training, the techniques are useless. Although the style is unorthodox in execution, Chinese drunken style boxing requires the basic physical attributes common to all martial arts. What separates it from other, commonly accepted styles is that drunken style demands a high level of dedication and focus on those attributes for even the most basic level of performance. Chinese drunken style boxing is a tough and rewarding art form. Hidden within this style are some of China's most deadly footwork, techniques, training strategies, and mind-body connection concepts. Training on the plum flower posts will help you discover its amazing secrets. a Eric Townsend is a drunken style instructor and a closed-door student of master Tim Pickens' Ng family style kung-fu.	”

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As a practicioner of Zui Quan, I know for a fact that this works. Having strong and flexible legs also helps when a Judo practicioner tries to break your knee. >.> I also know a few exercises for conditioning some of the lesser used arm muscles. Props on posting this.