Dengfeng – A Rural Chinese Kung Fu Town After living in Dengfeng for 6 weeks, I thought I’d do a photo blog to give you an idea what a rural Chinese kung fu town is like. Dengfeng is a small town that sits in the Henan Province of China, with best proximity to the famous Shaolin Temple. Dengfeng is only accessible by bus or car from Zhengzhou, a large Chinese rail hub. Dengfeng and the surrounding villages are mainly rural and sit in somewhat of a basin amongst the Song Mountains, which can be seen in almost all directions. Although Dengfeng itself has lots of different shops, the roads sprouting out from the town are lined with kung fu schools and shops. There must be close to 100 schools tucked in and around the area, from the grand theme-park looking ones to the most basic. I reckon there’s probably a 1:1 relation between shops and schools too. You typically see several shops in a row all selling similar merchandise – clothing, swords, staffs, pads and human looking punch bags. You can tell the town isn’t used to tourists. There are no English signs, most people will stare inquisitively at you as you walk down the road and the odd child might shout “hello” as they skip past. It tends to be the younger generation, having learned English at school, that I can communicate best with. It’s only when you’re in a town like this that you realise it has a more balanced demographic. I’m used to the demographic of a City of London residential neighbourhood – therefore skewed towards 20-40s and only a few babies and elderly. Here, you have more of a balance, with families being carted around on scooters and makeshift tractors which move close to jogging pace, in front of a cloud of noise and smoke. By fuel efficiency.Buses service the area with master bus drivers. they share the road with lots of mopeds (some silent electric ones) and people scooting about their business. because they’re masters in fuel efficiency and dodging people/motorbikes. because you rarely have to wait more than 5 mins for a bus and will take you for a bargain price of 1 CNY (about 10p) per ride. I say masters. By dodging skills. . they purposely cut out the engine when going down hill or coming to a stop. I can’t complain about them though. when they overtake. This gives rise to the common sight of either an old person diagonally running across a large junction clutching a small child in each arm or a Shepard herding animals in the same way.Road rules are very different to what I’m used to. However. They horn when they about to move. I mean lots and lots. It means furiously looking in every direction and crossing roads like the infamous game “Frogger”. going up the road the wrong way in order to make a turn. they more than behave when it comes to speed and alertness. When I say lots. telling cars how long they will be red or green. Having broken all the directional rules. Traffic lights are highly informative. It’s typical to see cars and mopeds driving up the slip roads in the opposite direction. . if you’re green it seems like you have the ability to cut across stationary roads any which way you can. Their highway code is effectively mirror-horn-signal-hornmanoeuvre-horn. when they want you to move. Whilst you think you have to look for cars coming from the middle of the junction a moped might be cutting right across. Cars are used to pedestrians and mopeds so tend to drive at a pace slow enough to trip you up rather than kill you and horn lots. the pavement is used by everyone.In town. . Mechanics use it to sprawl out their work and fruit sellers to display their goods. . . talk. aside from a few surprise-inflicted tears. . I witnessed a child hitting something plastic with a stick. Luckily. The elderly sit. only to find that when it exploded. play Chinese chequers and otherwise relax. the child was fine.Children are left to roam and play on the pavement. it was a cigarette lighter and he learnt a lesson in combustion. Restaurants come in three categories. (b) a hole in the wall or (c) well presented establishments but completely hidden from the street view. . They’re either (a) dingy.It’s taken me a while to realise where the restaurants are here. largely empty shops void of picture menus. Funnily enough. but neglect the pavements. I’ve never seen so many road sweepers. who desperately keep the roads clear. . in the middle of the street through the gap. Babies are dressed in pants that have a huge slit at their base and rear.b. so the following photo I simply swiped from the net. I could bring myself to take a picture of it. They do this by excreting at will. If you’re unlucky. The idea is to remove the necessity to have nappies. If you’re lucky. it’s by a drain.Dengfeng is the first place I saw the most “practical” baby clothes around. it’s into a parents lap or a passer-by. N. . or because they can’t be bothered to move them after having used what they needed already. Rubble tends to be part of the ascetics here. I don’t know if most stacks are there because they’ll use them to build more in the future.The town seems to be sucked into the furious building phase encompassing most of China. . with most buildings looking partfinished alongside a stack of bricks. slates or sand “dumped” right outside. stones. . . They can do this. The government is looking to take over land in the area to boost tourism by building modern hotel facilities to cater for tourists.From what I’ve understood. you’d realise that your best bet to cash in on an opportunity is to construct lots of buildings on your land. because land is owned by the state government. so you sadly have some of the better views of the area needlessly being spoilt by temporary ghost houses. who have the absolute right to evict you (with some compensation) to find a new home. the government are going to swallow up a large amount of land in the area. there are little options for tourists. If you knew that the amount the government would compensate you was based on the number and size of buildings you had. very cheaply as close to the compensation date as possible. At the moment. That is happening right now. . not being taught moves in a new form (set of kung fu moves) I had started learning. but I couldn’t understand what why. Secondly. It didn’t feel like the reason behind not teaching me anything new was malicious. . I was doing countless laborious movements 100s of times a day. Firstly. I wasn’t throwing my toys out the pram over a one day thing. there seemed to be time during the breaks. feeling the lack of material progress in my kung fu. It was down to a combination of two things. It’s all in the … Leading up to last weekend. I was stretching my hamstrings and repeating the forms I had learned. I began to get a little frustrated at the kung fu school. it definitely impacted my confidence and I didn’t know why. I was being told “yidian” (little by little) and “mingtian” (tomorrow). but after a week of no progress. when the other students would mess around and choreograph kung fu fight scenes. These were breaks I was happy to forgo. every day and had worked hard on extra training. Even if there was no time in the lessons to learn. I know the students here have a different attitude to training – they have no issues skipping odd training sessions – bumps on a life long kung fu road aren’t as important for them as they are for me. It felt like my time at the school was running out and there was something I was missing. But in the last two weeks. The message was this: “sorry. i am isolated. but then no teach. On the Saturday morning. you’re a good friend. I had none of that. other students want to play. I wasn’t worried about odd classes missed for reasons like that or dwelling on the past (if the past was that he didn’t understand my desire to learn). my legs worked hard and my back get stronger. i don’t want to sound like I complain. i want to be a good student. i train with injury. day or night. I copied and pasted it into Google translate on my laptop and hoped for the best (if you’re not familiar with google translate. please please please teach me. i want to train hard. “Mabo” (horse stance) is one most people are familiar with. even though I had kept my head down and concentrated on learning as much as I could. but I wasn’t able to sink any further (and not enough to be a credible use in my mind). I didn’t know where. but i’m upset because i can’t learn. I wasn’t able to get myself into the stances in the way they described but I wasn’t able to see how I could progress into it. it’s pretty sketchy with Chinese translation). you only teach me a little. hoping that when I returned. I thought about the other issue I had – the stances I wasn’t able to do properly. i can only come here 2 months. i leave my life. rather that the final two weeks weren’t going to be a write-off in my own learning. I wasn’t sure if my body was fully reconditioned or if I just wasn’t pushing myself enough.” I think he understood the message and my frustrations. I had felt my hips loosening. I wrote up a heartfelt letter to the senior student who’s been teaching me at the school. I knew my body was getting stronger. i leave my family. i can train any time. . but my chinese is not good. but the gist I got was had to head into town to get it his phone fixed on one of the mornings.As for my progress in the basics – in the first month at the school. i have little time here and i want to leave here with good memories. Although I had built up strength. I left the school Saturday. you say tomorrow. — Over the weekend. english student learning in china is very tough. it would be a new start. If it was the latter. i leave my job to come here. you’re a good teacher. i train when other students rest. I was pleased with the way I learned the Pan Gen form. I couldn’t fully understand the reply. before leaving the school to head into Dengfeng town. it’s the perfect full squat. In various schools and teachings I’ve had in the past. The one in the picture is about half as low as this guy can go. I wasn’t sure whether to be excited to have found out or annoyed that I only just found out. you could be forgiven for having a back leaning forward slightly. I made a big boo boo. it’s not an option. back completely vertically straight (no leaning forward. a wide stance or feet off parallel (pointing at 45 degrees sometimes). Essentially. that once I realised. . the better it is. I thought ability to do this was all about strength and balance. no tail bone sticking out). The Wugulun version is with feet fully planted just a little wider than shoulder width apart. I missed something so fundamental. hands relaxed on your stomach and lowering your upper body to sink into the stance as low as you can. Deeper the stance. Here. both feet perfectly parallel.  He said the word “yidian” again (little by little). which was annoying. a mirror and a Glow Draw drawing app on my phone. work on it bit by bit. I put the point across that my centre of mass was passed my ankles the lower I went. Here’s what I sketched: I tried to explain that I can do the squat as long as i lean forward. “engwish”. The context being. or lean forward to stop toppling backwards. That was causing me to either stay high. I contested that my legs were strong enough to hold me. as I’d been working on this a lot. After exchanging Chinese words for “strength” and “legs”. .It started with me asking one of the senior student why I can’t do a this full squat stance in a combination of Chinese mandarin. I thought. Instead. one him (‘Ni”). We’d been working on this stance every day without fail since I had been here. Then it clicked. mobility in the ankle = ability to = ability to = ability to maintain your balance with build strength upper body proper and generate perfectly over grounding power your hips as . This guy was probably twice as flexible (could get double the angle of deviation) than me.. He demonstrated a couple of exercises we had been doing daily. Thinking about what this meant. I got a positive response. one me (“Wo”). This time. if you’re not actively trying to stretch into them (like the hips). were just for loosing the hips. they were massively different. how did I miss that when I’ve been watching the guy for hours every day?” I thought.I sketched out another couple of stick men. Blimey. These exercises. I needed to draw a more acute angle at the ankle. I asked about “flexibility” in the ankle. It’s the ankle. and I think this is something I had been doing. I realised that in order to have the weight going straight through (and therefore be balanced). whilst sketching it. However. “Gees. it’s easy to miss the benefit. these also worked the ankles. We compared ankle flexibility in the mirror. Reading on. so lesson learned – ankle flexibility is the key to my progress now. unlike hamstrings or other parts of the body. my balance isn’t great. Lack of flexibility in my ankles mean if I deviate my body passed a certain point. There’s me thinking I’ve got good. that’s plausible]. due to past injury) The truth is.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=gWTmg4dHiKg Why aren’t my ankles flexible? I found that ankle dorsiflex ability (ability to lift your toes up) can be impeded by two things: tight calf muscles (most of the time) scar tissue (rare occasions. strong legs so therefore I can balance. [ok. “Are my ankles genetically different that I can’t stretch them” I thought? I spent Sunday afternoon googling about it. I’m ready to topple like a bowling pin. Here’s what I found… How do you do a full squat? I started with something like – “full squat”. the feeling seemed different – it felt a bit “bone on bone” type restriction. “is it not my fault”. lack of walking around in bare feet. Essentially.youtube. where in fact. Faint memories of someone commenting that asian people have genetically better ankle mobility led me to google “ankle better flexibility asian” too. when I should have been working left to right. This comedy video was onto something. I’m not actually sure which one is the major cause for me. How possible is it though? Is it something you can even work on or are you just born with it? I tried to stretch my ankle. . then (compared to them). but didn’t actually tell me why my ankles aren’t flexible… http://www. Ok. Damn it. for women they blame tight calves on heels and for both sexes.you lower I had been working from right to left. In terms of tight calf muscles – I never thought mine where tight. Only that weekend.html Better still –  ankle mobility with glute/shoulder pain - http://www. Shortened calf muscles caused from wearing shoes with heals higher than the ball of the foot (even an inch or less) is also a main contributing cause to plantar fasciitis.html My lesson from this? Ankle flexibility is really important in martial arts and my key to taking my progress to the next level. .maximumtrainingsolutions.com/Shoulder-Injuries. I had already transitioned to barefoot running and gone through the calf ache that comes with it. which can lead to multiple knee injuries”.“You didn’t grow up squatting on a regular basis so your calf muscles shortened. then knee valgus. I recall one specific spraining my ankle in football after kicking into someone else’s foot pretty hard. but I’ll work on them. For now thought. Not sure if my calf muscles are that tight. I rack my brains and think back to childhood for any ankle injuries? I can faintly remember times when I sprained them. in the last 6 months. Women who wear high heals every day have an even worse problem with this as they find they can’t wear flat shoes or go barefoot comfortably. What are the implications of lack of ankle flexibility? The scariest one is – “Poor Dorsiflexion will usually cause foot pronation. I had just done 16km in my barefoot running shoes and didn’t feel any calf ache. But you’re a kid – you just try and get back to playing footy as quickly as you can. It’s something I can get checked out in London on my return. I decided I was going to concentrate on ankle flexibility for the rest of my time here. However.maximumtrainingsolutions. after reading Born To Run.” They recommend walking in bare feet. I can’t be sure why my ankles aren’t flexible.com/Ankle-Dorsiflexion-GluteInteraction. That’s likely for me then – I’ve clocked up a lot of football minutes in my time. Onto scar tissue – they say it’s common in footballers (link here and here) from past ankle injury. There are several links between ankle mobility with knee pain - http://www. so I could go to the guys here and speak to them. The place I’m at is the hand I’ve been dealt and those things won’t change. Having a couple of sessions rained off and others that were shorter than normal didn’t help. I felt frustrated by repeating the same stuff (even though I was fully prepared that this is likely to happen and didn’t want to admit it) and I felt time was being wasted in-between the tougher training sessions. The detailed version is described below… These were my thoughts. I thought I’d try to consider why I was frustrated. I sat down and structured all my thoughts on paper. I realised I was making excuses for my own lack of motivation and blaming others for it. I need to learn to cut them out. I realised I was making a far-reaching mistake. I was feeling a bit disappointed with the school and the teachings. what I found myself blaming it on and what I concluded the real cause was: Thought: I find it hard to concentrate on the breathing I blamed it on: Kids always messing about and the sound of car horns Real cause: I’m not slowing down my breathing. The short version is that. concentrating on the moment and I’m letting things distract me. I decided to arrange a new schedule going forwards. My Realisation About A Dangerous Habit Towards the middle of last week. Learning to concentrate is the skill in itself that . By the end of trying to get my head round it. Thought: There isn’t enough time spent on training and the time I am spending is still on the basics. Did I really expect to jump into the more advanced stuff sooner rather than later? No. I blamed it on: The structure of classes they’ve come up with is too slow and suited to the guys who are here for years. rather than an active decision against it. I realised last Saturday morning that when we all went for a run. body building) more specifically on the upper body was slowly diminishing and my running fitness not being kept up. Real cause: Was I really maximizing all my time practicing? No. I met a spanish guy called Raul in the hostel. I can work on the upper body without causing too much tension and go for runs without tiring my legs before a training session. I had read the first couple of chapters from “The Power Of Now“.e. After giving them a try. They have more time and this is ALL they are doing. I had always said that i was never in “the right place” to read the book in detail. Now couldn’t be a better time and reason and apply it to the classes here. I was blessed with timing Master Wu walking past as I was using them and gave me the thumbs up. As for weights. My mind was playing games. This is their choice. His story was that he left Spain and came to Beijing to get work. I’m missing out. not blame it. On the weekend. I blamed it on: Not having someone readily available to translate. Thought: It’s really difficult learning with the language barrier. Of course you would have different objectives if they’re here for X years. I’m lucky that there are a set of concrete kettle bells here at the school. I’m here for 2 months. I. I can add this to the kung fu schedule and it will be my schedule. Only then did it occur to me that it’s just not something they’ve trained at. They can’t be against the principles here if he’s giving a thumbs up. Thought: I’m upset that the work i had done on my body (i. I was ignoring the fact this has to be learned. He spent loads of his own time learning Mandarin and by 18 months. that the nature of controlling your mind as described in the book. I could take a stab at saying the monks in the mountains just didn’t have the environment to need to run far. I have to put effort and come up the curve myself. but what really struck me was that’s not the first time Raul had just got on a train to somewhere where he didn’t speak the language and just . Am I as flexible and strong as the advanced students? No. Usual story there I know. Sometime in the past. Of course they’ll take things easier. Real cause: My own lack of motivation and a not putting together a schedule that can work with my kung fu training. I blamed it on: Restrictions that didn’t really exist. I realised now. he was fluent. I’ll use the time that they don’t train to do my own stuff. they were all REALLY poor at it. In conclusion.e. they’re not forcing it on me. He was spending his weekend visiting the Shaolin Temple. has a massive impact. a matter of ignorance. I need to adapt the system. What’s the point of learning Mandarin if I’m only going to use it here? Real cause: I’m not learning as much Mandarin as I possibly can and it IS useful. My strength and flexibility is down to me. rather than something that they’re actively against doing.I need to practice. work and my hobbies to date. I’m in the best possible place to learn Mandarin. It’s the original school schedule with my own one interleaved. So here’s my new schedule as a screen saver on my phone. then I’m almost certain that if you did that thing EVERY day for a year. so I have no excuse not learning it. These were the things I decided I would do whilst I’m here at the kung fu school: I will spend an hour a day learning Mandarin I will spend an hour a day internalizing the book “The Power Of Now“ I will do a session of Push Up Fu every day. During this process. (FYI. Wednesday afternoon and Saturday morning are my running days) . By the time I leave. somewhere with a loosely defined structure to the day and I’m making excuses for not fulfilling what I want to do here. By the time I leave. I’m letting a busy mind control myself. I’m going come up with my own things that I do everyday to make a positive difference to my time here”. I realised the habit of excuses and lack of motivation is something that’s most likely grown over time and has made an impact in my life. I have the tapes. it would be the most significant thing you could do to improve your life. it’s the perfect time for me to go through more Michel Thomas tapes. I realised. I will build up my running distance to half marathon in my barefoot running shoes. The world was an open place for him because he was willing to work at any language barrier.committed himself – he speaks 5 languages fluently. I will be able to do the Big 100 (100 press ups) I will use the weights I have here to train my legs daily and a different part of my upper body every day. something you can do every day and only takes up to 30 mins of your time.” I thought to myself – “here I am in a place where I’m cut off from the life I’ve led so far. when the kids are learning Maths and English in the evenings. A teacher once told me: “Think of something that you’ve always wanted to do. I will be able to do a one-legged squat. If you’ve come to the conclusion that it’s THAT important to you. I remembered back to something I heard once that seemed really applicable. so what if I’m in the deep end of the Mandarin pool? So I decided. I’ve got a better chance of actually doing it.Why blog this? Because I know myself well enough that if I tell people I’m going to do something. The takeaway is this – making excuses for anything is a subtle but dangerous habit to have. This is what makes your life unique. Write your own script. . The world is yours to make the most of it. . certainly at this stage. overcome pain barriers and finally come back wanting to wear a kung fu suit every day. coming to the end of my time here at the school. Learning About Yourself When I told people that I’m going to China to spend 2 months in a kung fu school. questioning and peeling back layers in my thought process one by one. The process feels like noticing. I wasn’t quite sure how that would happen here. I look back and feel that I’ve learned a lot about myself. one of the important aspects of my time here. Now. but a big step in terms of understanding. They assume that you’ll learn to fight. It’s difficult to put a price on it. was to learn more about myself. It’s by no means the answer to everything. The gut feeling was that the most traditional teachings of something extremely deep was the key. For me. perhaps learn a few party tricks. most people would imagine a purely physical experience. exposing important truths underneath. but a leap of faith told me that it would. so time is put a side and dedicated wholeheartedly to specific activities. Whilst I’ve taken time in the past to read and learn such things. it’s easier for that not to happen. It allows me to record how I’m feeling at the time. blogging. Lastly. Hearing feedback from readers goes a long way too. I’m relatively new it. By writing a blog post. I’m a big fan. With dedicated down time (lunch and evenings). what I’ve learned and why I think it’s important. Typical “life chores” are all done at the weekend. Waking early each morning to perform meditative breathing exercises does well to clear the mind and start from a clean slate. often I’ve found it difficult to then dedicate the time to really understand and reflect. helped provide some much-needed rational. reflect and structure my own thoughts. down to the meaty bit – what have I learned about myself? Reading The Power of Now. . I’ve found that by breaking the normal habits of life the rest can become clear. Whilst I’m not completely sold on only thinking about the now as the book suggests. The day is structured here. eating. Kung fu. It’s like a momentum thing. Turning up here was something of a shock to the system for me to begin with – the way of life is very basic. you can think of it like an experiment on yourself as the control.In this post. The philosophy here is one of patience. with old habits lurking in the background ready for you to fall back on and changes vanish as quickly as you understood them. so it feels much more like I’m in control of my time. repetition and everything you perform is started from a calm mind. it means I’ve had time to consider new ideas. Here. it has helped me pose some interesting questions to myself. I’m learning how to recognise. To a scientist. I explain how I think the time here has allowed me to do this. How has the time here allowed me to do this? Life here is simple and structured around non-mind activities. reflect on myself and grow to understand more. Taking myself out of the interruptible and habitual way of life that I’m used to back home trains the mind to be less sporadic and this means it’s easier to understand and spot patterns in myself. but after my time here. I have to say that the blogging has most certainly helped. What I’ve learned? So. remember how I was feeling looking back and retrospectively understanding the changes themselves. I understand how I react more strongly in current scenarios after related negative past events. I couldn’t really relate the two events. I did this with my expectation of the lifestyle of the kung fu I would learn. the learning environment of the school and how long was the “right amount of time” to spend here. I think it added to the culture shock. I could have been anywhere. It’s not nice realising that something else is subtly in control – the else being my mind. I did. Funnily enough though. will do me good. I didn’t know why I was either at the time. remove all distractions. In short. When I turned up at the airport in China. it’s just something that takes desire. I got lost on a hiking trip. the more frustrated I became. When I consider how it affects me dayto-day. many being personal. I’d recommend it. Realising how the negative past does affects me. I didn’t go out of my way NOT to. “well why did you have those expectations anyway?”. Put aside some time. which is in an off road in outside the nearest rural town.Comparison with Past or Future My first realisation I made. I believe my desire to always know where I am has manifested itself to limit some of the exploratory decisions I make. but most importantly. It was certainly something which my mind framed as “don’t let this happen again”. is that I become most emotional and waste most energy when I have a vision of some future expectation or past event and I try to relate it to my current situation. So. I would disagree. One might say. wrapping up various negatives emotions with it. This is something I’d like to learn to do. Although I didn’t think I would have a problem with that. I didn’t understand the power of the mind in generating false realities and how often it can “run away” with ideas. I’ll give one example. For anyone who thinks “you are who you are based on your past experiences” and you can’t change them. If you want to do this yourself. I became much more at ease when I stopped creating a “difference” in my mind. I didn’t go out of my way to paint a picture. After questioning how past and (desired) future events can shape you. to summarise to something meaningful by saying that after questioning myself honestly and wholeheartedly. time and practice to do so. I would feel happier. Until I got wifi. When I was younger. The further my view was from reality. Training myself to do otherwise going forwards. What I’ve learned is that they’re not there common and practicing the art of clearing the mind has massive benefits in happiness and focus in life. I spent some time questioning whether past events could affect me in the actions of today. could throw up a GPS map on my iPhone I wasn’t comfortable. I noticed them and assumed those exaggerated events were few and far between. . I need to learn how to think less about the past. be brutally honest with your fears and deeply question how they may have affected you now. Whilst I’ve known few special times when my mind has “run away” with negative thought loops. the truth is. In some ways. I was picked up from the arrivals and driven 2 hours to the school. Without divulging all of them. I think you can. I think the answer is. When reality moved closer to my view. it doesn’t do much. You can try to change the situation. The more you think about the cold. accept anything that’s currently happening and will happen to you as you take part and you’ll be much happier. you’re concentrating on your next turn and with hiking. Doing Tough Guy each year can be seen as training in the art of acceptance. How you take the bad ones. by choosing different ways of doing obstacles or what to wear. I realised. Both are activities which you’re forced to think about the present moment and you’re removed from many of life’s distractions. I always thought it was good to go through the pain of the event. I made some more realisations – skiing/snowboarding and hiking. The commonality amongst them and why I like them is more clear now. If you’re not familiar with it. With skiing/snowboarding. here’s a brief YouTube intro. through the similarities with the kung fu I’ve learned. The way contenders help each other climbing out of ditches. some bad. It then very quickly disappears and is replaced with something similar without time to be distracted in between. If you don’t have the ability to remove yourself from it. It’s another activity with a very similar environment and benefits. The key to completing it. changing it or truthfully and wholeheartedly accepting for what it is. The 7% Rule If you haven’t heard of this before. Enjoying the Moment Considering other activities and the similarities with kung fu. the more it hurts and affects you. and come out on the other side. it states that “communication is only 7% verbal and 93% non-verbal (the 93% made up of 55% body language and 38% vocal tone)”. picking up people who have slipped over or sing “always look on the bright side of life”. is to accept it. I used to think that figure was very exaggerated and often found myself being the type of person . You’re cold enough to have hyperthermia. but largely speaking. Both are some of my favourite past times. I realise that Tough Guy is a great way to conjure up a pretty bad situation for yourself. you should have the ability to accept. Couple this with an environment of little or no phone reception and you have the makings of something very peaceful but physically rewarding.Accept. Some good. With each situation. We all know that life is full of situations you are dealt. the mud. I realise are in full acceptance of what is the current situation. The more you pay attention to the feedback from the terrain. your next step. change or remove yourself from it. you’re caked in mud. you’ve probably been electrocuted. through to your body. This. or any pain that you’re in. Accept every obstacle. How does this relate to Tough Guy? Well. Change or Remove I spent some time considering my emotions alongside activities I do. something which should be applied to many a (bad) situation in life. I now understand why I like taking part in the Tough Guy event and how I can apply the reasoning to other situations in life. is key. goes a long way to determining how at happy or at peace you are. probably looking up at a 20ft cargo net you need to climb and the whole time your mind is in shock – constantly questioning why you’re doing this. you realise you’re concentrating on the very moment. Until you’ve lived in an environment similar to what I have these 2 months. Unlike the society I’m used to. I won’t forget the happiness on their face of the students when they’d get and answer correct and get to crack open a can. when someone’s being told off or congratulated and when I’m being alerted to something). everyone dresses in the same clothes. Happiness with what people have got and not being bombarded with what you haven’t is a peaceful way of life. It was lovely to experience something non-commercial. before (a) being able to say the word myself and then (b) actually looking up the specific translation. the 7% rule has proved more true than I originally thought. Why it’s important to learn about yourself . the influence of money is minimised. the only thing money could buy here are the small luxuries that you would use outside of “normal time”. I’ve used body language to understand what’s going on in social situations (tension between people. I’ve learned that I can do more to stop being affected by the pressure of society. lives in the same building and is given the same opportunities to learn. I’m so used to commercial celebrations back home – Christmas and New Years being a classic example. leading up the event. Likewise. I couldn’t help but think how kids back home take things for granted. I’ve learned a lot of Mandarin like a young child would learn their first language.to pay a lot of attention to the words I used when communicating with people. dance. I’ve realised that by relying almost exclusively on body language and vocal tone. Naturally. The mood was high because the people made it so. I landed in the school here and spent a large chunk of time without fellow english speakers and started from an almost non-existent command of Chinese Mandarin. This year.e. there’s little pressure to compare what you have to what you could have. but largely because of the pressure society makes them feel. in MidAutumn Festival. During my time here. The pressure of buying presents or forking out for a “good night” is usually felt. whether it be a song. Without outside media influence too. The school ran a quiz giving students with winning answers cans of Coke. I’ve found people have been able to understand me and my emotions too – proving to me that it goes both ways. whilst I was at the school. The Pressure of Society Mid-Autumn Festival in China is a night of celebration held on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese calendar. every student spent their free time leading up to the evening practicing some kind of performance. Relating that to my experience here. but was largely similar food to what you’d expect day-to-day. it fell on September 30th. The lunch time meal was served in “sharing” dishes. not because of what was spent or received. i. Instead of buying presents for the evening. I had asked “what should I bring to the evening?” only to be told “yourself – just being there is more than enough”. poem or magic trick. Here at the school. you may not have experienced an egoless society. I began to understand what words meant through repetition and association with actions. you’re more likely to forgive. That’s because when you understand more about others. The second benefit of learning more about yourself is way it opens the door to understanding more about others. my life certainly feels like it has a lot more focus. understand more about others and these personality conflicts that existed in the past will be more harmonious. Changes After A Week Of The New Schedule . I feel like I’ve learned a little more about why I do or don’t get on with certain people and visa versa. Because of this.With better clarity of mind. The differences in how you deal with societies pressures. how you spend your free time and how you treat people all stem from your underlying belief system. Knowing those. Lift out of your own subconscious worries. I can start tending towards them now. I understand why I’m doing certain unnecessary or unhelpful things and what I can do to benefit me greatly. It’s a little early to consider what it means to me. I managed to pull out a 9km run. having 4 weeks left and needing to get to 21km. then you need to work on the strength to hold it there. I realised that flexibility is a big key to being able to progress to the next level here. But after finishing the reps. Where was flexibility in the primary school curriculum in London? Weight training with on my legs whilst the kids are doing their cleaning chores seems to be working nicely. Echkart Tolle’s statements in The Power Of Now are forcing me to ask myself some tough questions. It appears in the week just gone. Day-to-day Training . I realise that’s mind games. for those familiar with the app. which I’m quite proud of. I can feel a sense of self-denial at the moment. I start writing this on Friday evening at about 19:00. if you read the book. because I feel much better after completing them. there’s a sense of feeling sick. It’s slow. If I assume 2 running sessions per week. As for the running. In fact. after the toughest prolonged period of training ache in my legs. much has changed.After blogging about my frustrations and realisations last week. I’ve been taking the opportunity to work on my flexibility. there’s a clear statement that “time” is somewhat of an illusion. but there’s plenty of time for the content to soak in. then first you need your leg to be able to get that high. Right before I strap on the arm band that counts the reps. I’m most of the way through Stage 5. but I’m working up the weight stack bit by bit. My morning Pushup Fu ritual is something I’m slowly getting used to. I’ll increase the distance by 1 or 2km (5-10 mins) each time. How can you work on the power and stamina needed in a deep stance if you can’t actually get your body in the correct stances? If you want to kick high. So what’s changed exactly? I’ve religiously stuck to my own new mind/body/soul workout schedule The day-to-day training from the school has become more physically demanding I’ve made some progress in learning to meditate I can be understood more with my mandarin My outlook on the art here has widened It feels like the end of a long week. because my legs are generally tired from the day-to-day kung fu training. but I’m shattered enough that I’ll just jot the main thoughts and complete it Saturday. The New Schedule During the kung fu training sessions when the students take a break. I think the stray mountain dogs are starting to recognise the new scent.  Another factor that’s upped the training here is that Master Wu is dropping into more and more sessions. There always seems to be improvements to be made to the exercises done by the seniors. but little form. which you’d think had mastered them already. which means Twisting Root. Mr Miyagi was a wise man. Mandarin . he has very high standards and the tone of the class becomes much more serious to cope. my legs are D. Meditation The task of settling my mind and body down seems to be getting easier. but it only occurred to me at the end of the week why that was so.O. B and C in isolation. They feel more worn than doing the 3 Peaks. I’ve been taught a form known as Pan Gen. there was just a few of us training amongst the trees for a change. which acts like your own pace maker. a half marathon and the hilly bit in Tough Guy one after the other. there are the older ones who have more muscular power and mastery of form. Now that we should have mastered the principles of the stances. The form is designed to teach you to maintain balance whilst moving from stance to stance. it appears it’s time to sink into.E. twist. It was the first time. I’m not sure why. It seems like there’s a sweet spot among the students. When he does.D. because you’ve put in the time mastering the all important basics. I did question if my knees were past their sale by date and learned the hard way to warm them up gradually. Now I realise these types of exercises are good for stretching the muscles and building power. but will pull the slyest tricks to get out of trying to do the exercises. bounce. it becomes more about slotting well-known pieces of a jigsaw puzzle together. but I had the opportunist urge to walk to the other side of the area. who appears to have somehow rubbed off onto Master Wu. I’ve been quite impressed with myself being able to learn the form. When you find yourself introducing the correct breathing too. At the other end. At one end. when most of the students were off running some errands. find myself a rock to sit on and meditated for a solid hour.T. After a week of doing these exercises daily for hours. Interleaved with the more physical exercises. Early on in the week.Y. Being told through various hand waves and broken Mandarin that I’m learning quickly was like a gust of wind in the right direction for my kung fu boat. When the teacher demonstrates move A to B to C. when you’ve spent copious amounts of time perfecting stance A. On Friday. It was pretty refreshing to be honest. jump and leap from stance to stance whilst trying to maintain perfect form (straight back. It’s a shallower learning curve. I actually felt like it was something I intrinsically wanted to do. head held high).R.The classes have moved on and become more physically demanding. There’s a link to Master Wu demonstrating it here. there are the young and flexible ones who are happy to attempt anything with ultimate enthusiasm.E.S. Hours a day of moving from horse stance to horse stance as deeply as you can is both a mental as well as physical test. having trained in other forms of kung fu in the past. taking their balance like sweets from a baby – it was something I’d not seen before. Outlook On The Art After I finished meditating on Friday and turned around. like line up. I hope I get a chance to absorb some of this myself during my time here.Some of the students can understand what I’m trying to say. in context. it demonstrated that if you have a strong stance and know your opponents balance and weak points. I saw the senior instructor showing three of the other students some simple fighting techniques. The funny thing is. take a break. when writing this. The progress is largely one way. I’ve been building up a translation list of useful kung fu related words. Something like “if someone were to punch you like this… I would do this” type scenarios. The ease and fluidity this guy dealt with everything that came towards him and gracefully floored every one of them. but a step in the right direction. so looking forward to that. although I’m sure the opportunity presented itself. I’m starting to recognise some of the instructive words in class. We’re kept in the dark with the power training. It should be longer and more complicated than the one this week. I was truly impressed with what I saw. Now I’ve seen a fair few techniques like this. From what I saw. I’ll be posting up as a reference for others in the next couple of days once I fill in the last gaps. you can have their arms trapped and them falling over with ease. But I have to say. move. What’s on the cards for next week? I’m told there a new kung fu form to learn. I take back any thoughts that this form of kung fu neglected the point of the upper body. I couldn’t tell you what they are but at the time. Surely it can’t get any tougher? First Full Day Home Destinations Asia Travel China First Full Day . I can. So either my charades skills are improving or my pronunciation of my Mandarin. He didn’t have to hit any of them. I woke to the sound of their bell. with an air of “panic” on their faces. kids started running out their rooms and making their way downstairs. instead. A very loud bell. However. . First Full Day I had set my alarm for 05:20 with the idea that I would beat the bell they have and be ready a little earlier. What I realised. is that they have one bell at 05:20 to wake people up and another at 05:30 to congregate outside. When the second bell went off. At 07:00. I had the luxury or experience from my kung fu teacher in London explaining the concept and read about the importance of it before I arrived. the first and third lines trotted off and myself in the remaining second line began doing walking laps of the forecourt. dodging a few trees in known positions is easy. I spent an hour on the phone to hear listening to advice and information about the school to decide and prepare for the trip. I joined the line of students and went for breakfast. to await another bell ring to tell us the late morning class was about to start. The land contains tall trees and some stones scattered in the corner. I could see they were starting to form lines in what looked like a height or age order. this allows us to train in the shade (the branches almost perfectly meet at the top) and give some temporary cover from the rain. I wasn’t sure if this was the usual drill or if I had messed something up for the line by not saying something and the laps were a “punishment” shared amongst the line. Whilst we stood in a line. we were dismissed back to the living quarters. the senior student stood in front of us and demonstrated breathing exercises. the bell was sounded again and the student lined up for breakfast. we jogged a few more and came to rest. Cultivating Qi is the fundamentals for this form of kung fu. she had told me she would be in the area while I was there and would drop by. I had no idea what to say. In other words. it’s pretty obvious that washing wasn’t going to occur in the morning. The late morning lesson was taken in the plot of land behind the living quarters. the students get 30 mins to wash and change before breakfast. The idea is to straighten the spine so that the Qi energy flows from top to bottom better and is the basis of the strength and power they generate. take a break etc. the food was really tasty and I’m being given big portions. Again. The other students had the luxury of watching. all without impeding on usability of the space – i. but chose not to shower for fear of getting caught in the middle of a shower with the bell going.e. With around 30 students and 3 bathrooms. I watched the other students to know when to stop. To deviated for a moment. continue. I had to try and work out what was going on instinctively. bread and a soup. I noticed Master Wu Nanfang sitting with the manager and Veena. After breakfast. Cleverly. listening and following. facing the students said “new?” to me. Although at the time of the call she was based in England. We watched and followed. that after the first hour of training. As I came outside to line up. to which I replied “yes” and nodded. I used the time to brush my teeth. I was told that the soup contains a fruit that promotes Qi. Each student said something and then they shuffled along to form tight lines. I randomly chose the second line and parked myself at the end. As the class is taken. The trees have been planted (or grown) with almost perfect spacing between them. Then. After walking several laps. A senior student standing in front. After an hour of training. What progressed from standing breathing exercises. Veena was someone who contacted me after I initially reached out to the school by email many months ago. After a brief greeting. The lesson started with the same . evolved into exercises in a stance with the tailbone of the back tucked under. Breakfast consisted of some vegetables. He addressed the group.As I went outside. I was told yesterday. so I naturally said what most aliens would say – nothing. the class was dismissed. He had visited the school in the past and practiced the breathing techniques daily ever since. I could see a schedule in Mandarin on the wall as you come through the front door of the living quarters and was able to place where we were in the schedule. he told me a little about his story. I was warned that the hose for the bathroom next to me didn’t work (I also found out the hard way that the toilet flush didn’t work either) and that the one across the hall would take 5 mins to warm up and the one downstairs would take 2 mins. I think his appreciated was very genuine. I was able to work out that the afternoon training was next and started in about an hour. Squatting on the floor with a hose was so refreshing that the views/smells of the bathroom were put to one side. With time to spare. As he unpacked. The manager translated by telling me that Master was very thankful of supporting the school and the money would be used to build new facilities. He had been incredibly helpful over email from the US. With some translation about the fact this money was for one month and I will follow up with the rest in town. Master Wu Nanfang showed his appreciation. He practiced kung fu to help recovery and maintain a regular level of health after spinal surgery. The lesson was about 3 hours long. spotting the symbol for the late morning training. Also. The spinal surgery was performed to fuse two vertebrate in his back after his vertebrate shifted over one and other when he was younger. What’s really nice. When he entered the room. where the students and I sat on the rocks (like Westerners would around a camp fire – only without the fire). I fell asleep on my bed. Until now. fluent Mandarin to the Master’s son (I confirmed that was in fact the Master’s son at that point). answering my questions about his past experiences. they had taken me in. I never know whether I’m intruding on peoples space by using various rooms/bathrooms. what sounded like. My hanging wash kit doubled up as a hanger for my clothes. trained me and hadn’t even asked for any money. Another result on my packing list. The bathroom upstairs was taken and I opted to go downstairs one. I used the the time to have my first shower. fed me. They’d entertain themselves for the break with their mobile phones and lighthearted chat. split with a “break” period. is that the senior student who takes the class relaxes with them.. Not knowing who is living where in the building. I crossed paths with the manager on the way back to my room and asked him if I could give him the money for the first month of stay.breathing exercises as the morning and evolved to some twisting and weight shifting routines. The westerner turned out to be Matthew. He invited me to give this to Master Wu Nanfang and took me to his room. Showering was an interesting experience – no hooks for your clothes (or anywhere that looked anywhere clean enough to place clothes) and a drop toilet right next to you isn’t the most glamorous. so you can see there’s a real bond with him. He had told me he was arriving on the day after me and it was quite refreshing to have him turn up. After the late morning class and lunch we retreated to our rooms again. But there’s a definite respect when he takes the class. Because his wife being . a former student of the school who had stumbled upon my blog a couple of weeks before departing London. he was speaking. I awoke and saw two people entering the room – it was the chap who accompanied the taxi driver yesterday and another westerner. The breathing and fluid repetitive movements are ideal for this. I left the school with Matthew to go and meet Ibo for dinner in Dengfeng.native Chinese. Unfortunately. I was lying on my bed and although it felt like I had been here a while. I never have to know where to be (we all march off together). Ibo was a past student here. because the accents were thick and a lot of the vocabulary new. I can understand how these techniques are almost meditative. he said they all stayed in the main house where the food is served (we lived in a separate house). the bell represented something like a military academy. and there was only a few adults so was taught my Master Wu Nanfang himself. Now. I think I’m way more relaxed and bedded in now. but bad because it meant I was probably going to struggle for the remaining 55 days of my stay The bell was something new to him. so I can relax in my room until then and with everyone meeting outside. Good to know that I wasn’t being thick struggling with the language. There’s two ways you can look at it. 1) I’m missing my life back at home 2) I’ve got used to life here I think it’s latter. Training continued with the internal techniques. with more time spent understanding it. one of the senior students gave a lesson in Chinese medicine. What was apparent after talking to him. because I don’t have that desire to pack my bag and do a runner. That evening. was that even his understanding of Mandarin he struggled to understand their dialect at times. Maybe this represents my place in the society that represents the school – I’m ignorant and need to learn the methods. Later that evening. the bell was actually a great way to communicate that I have to be somewhere. Ibo is best described as a happy . who actually made the transition into “real life” as he called it when Matthew was previously at the school. The Real World From Another View During the rest after lunch. with that lesson being given in fluent Mandarin. it was only my second full day. I skipped it and relaxed in my room. For me. For him. When he was last here. he had learned Mandarin to communicate with the in-laws and embrace the Chinese culture. his goal is to lead this professional life to the full. being the chief translator for the school. Overall. practising ChanWuYi daily.guy. he found it difficult to do this in the work environment). Hidden Skills Of A Kung Fu Master Home Destinations Asia Travel China Hidden Skills Of A Kung Fu Master . which is funny when you think about it. bowl of boiling water and access to a conveyor belt of fresh ingredients to chuck in. He hadn’t done a full-time profession job before then. with a big heart. I’m told he lived here for 4 years. What he was describing was the “real world” from another view. We went to a “hot pot” restaurant. wanting to please and answer anything that you request from him. The funny thing about the conversation with him. except you were each given a controllable hot plate. Ibo no longer lived at the school. He described how when he got stressed. then find a happy medium. One of his talents was also his English skills. I came back bearing a gift of a clean sponge and washing up liquid for the school sink. he used to answer “I’m not sure. Probably the healthiest meal you can have (if you don’t go for all the spices and sauces available). He said that often students would ask him “what should I do to relieve tension in X or to deal with Y stress”. which was basically your equivalent of an all you can eat conveyor belt sushi restaurant. Having missed the dinner at school. Funnily enough. because I’ve not experienced it”. was that this was a guy coming from the complete opposite as me. All he had known was the life I am about to lead during my travels. He spoke about how he noticed people slouching at their desks and working without breaks. he would step out for an hour and practise ChanWuYi (although at first. His reasons for leaving were that he needed to step into the “real world” and earn an income to support a family. Training for an hour in the morning. They were wearing their regular clothes and the mood was much more light-hearted. They would dash past with some sort of cleaning apparatus and say “Ni Hao” (hello). brooms and sponges and cleaning the school up. . then cleaning duties and free time. It was a joy to see all the kids grabbing mops. Hidden Skills Of A Kung Fu Master This morning after lining up outside. we were told that Saturday is a half day. I think it’s a combination of the mood that they’re not training and they’re probably less weary of my presence. We’ll find out with time. . Fail. is not just a master of kung fu. so that I could run through them in reverse on the way back to recognise the turn off. he gracefully painted up the scrolls for Matthew as the students watched and stamped on the Wugulun academy seal. As a returning student. Master Wu. I took the opportunity to go for a run. It’s either a combination of not wanting to use something they think is mine. so you can’t go wrong. A combination of being a westerner in a small rural town and something like a “why is this guy running” (because even the poorest people here have at least push bikes). as it was becoming evident. Without the late morning training session. Matthew asked Master Wu for a special favour of writing some calligraphy on two scrolls he carefully brought with him from home. They all continued to wash their bowls and chop sticks with their hands. it a success. umbrella. hill. After doing a practice run. but calligraphy too. big rocks. or they’re just so used to washing up with just cold water. The school is half way up the 10km road from Dengfeng to the Shaolin temple. Other than hitting a tree branch with (thankfully) yellow pollen on my yellow t-shirt. I watched to see how many of the students would take my “gift” of sponges and washing up liquid. so the best way is to cover the distance on foot with a straight road. Yellow sign. As I ran the route. I memorised landmarks as a way. I took position on the edge of the main road and started jogging.After breakfast. I thought it would be useful to know how to get to Dengfeng on my own. I got some pretty funny looks while I ran. It makes me glad I stumbled upon the school I’m at. You could see the horror on their face that I was even considering it. I gave myself a hypothetical pat on the back for not over packing and leaving room to temporarily carry gifts (we’ll see how good a plan this is when I try actually try to send them in Hong Kong). I appeared to get some respect from the senior students seeing me jogging and doing more training. with the emphasis on using force. jumping and more theatre type movements by 100s of perfectly synchronised shouting kids in bright red outfits. As I turned the corner returning back to the kung fu school. Matthew and I took the bus (for 1 RMB) into Dengfeng. . I don’t blame them. I bumped into the students walking to lunch. With two missions. With the other students left to their own devices. I ended up buying four suits to be sent home. to find the Shaolin Traveller Hostel that I had been recommended by both Veena and the Lonely Planet. and secondly. All of these schools are the traditional “wushu” schools. Firstly. which was nice. they explained that the cost of sending them would be more than the suits themselves. These schools practice the external art of kung fu. Whilst the shop could have sent them home on my behalf. than from a small rural village. To me it demonstrates the imbalance that exists in the world. because my understanding of the Wugulun practice appears to be something special.The road that I run down has so many kung fu schools. to go to the clothes shop to get some presents. They suggested that it would be cheaper and easier to send them from Hong Kong. With Hong Kong on my plans after China I decided to take them as they were. I booked myself a room for the next weekend and headed out to grab dinner. even offered to take me to the local mobile phone shop to help me get a Chinese sim card. Climbing Mount Song Home Destinations . Comi. free wifi and washing machine facilities. we naturally stumbled upon another hot pot place and did our best to eat 6 plates of vegetables and noodles. the guy at the hostel.After struggling to find the hostel (even armed with an iPhone and a pre-printed map) we jumped in a cab and got dropped off at the hostel. Well kept rooms. To celebrate the success of the mission to Dengfeng. I can see why many of the foreign students come here at the weekends to relax and have a good wash. The hostel had a great feel to it. comfy chairs. What a legend. Little did I know. but even . It’s in the middle of construction. [many thanks to Comi at the Shaolin Traveller Hostel for ushering me to the shop and being a mobile phone tariff translator]. Asia Travel China Climbing Mount Song Climbing Mount Song Sunday is a rest day at the school. where Master De Jian (the ultimate master of the art and devout monk) lives. More importantly though. Matthew suggested checking out Song Shan. that Song Shan actually meant Mount Song. It’s one of the beautiful mountain ranges that you see from the Wugulun school. De Jian sought the home from two nuns and started building a temple there in the heights of the mountain. it’s the home of ChanWuYi. which was one of the places I wanted to visit here. the rest of the day was free. so after heading into town in the morning and picking up a Chinese sim card. workers would carry cement mix from the base of the climb to the top whilst others chipped into the mountain face to make room for the building and use the stone as material. the opportunity to stand up there and soak in the view meant a lot.what is there now was breathtaking. In terms of the actual climb. I understand there’s another route up which includes more cliff exposure and bridges. there are rails to protect your humility. we were taking pictures) and probably carry several bags up each day. from the route we took. These guys took almost the same amount of time as us to get up the mountain (given. To build the temple. Even though I didn’t get a chance to see De Jian. but technically easy one – about 30-45 mins up with stairs. . For those (like me) who have a fear of heights and don’t like exposed edges. it was steep. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves…. A Bit About Wugulun School and My Progress Home Destinations Asia Travel China A Bit About Wugulun School and My Progress .Rather than describe any more. It’s part of a rural/farming area with a million dollar view (above) of the mountains in the area. A Bit About Wugulun School and My Progress I thought I’d write a bit about the Wugulun school. What’s a typical day at the school? . half way between Dengfeng and the Shaolin Temple. the training and the progress I think I’ve made after a week. Dengfeng is the nearest town to the Shaolin Temple littered with countless martial arts schools. Where is the school? The school is about 5km outside the town of Dengfeng. but it’s largely building on what was taught in the late morning session. noodles. medicine for the kids) or for us. The breathing exercises make up the majority of the time and are the fundamentals of every training session during the day. with pressure from the kids parents. Breathing exercises. The food is surprisingly tasty although I’m only a week in (I’m guessing some of the other students have seen the same meal twice now). which is done in the land behind the school amongst the trees. forms. At 18:30 there’s dinner followed by lessons (maths. dumplings or lentils. Where is the training performed? Below are some photos of the front courtyard of the building we’re sleeping in and the land beside it with the trees. There are three separate classes going on. they sometimes have egg. At 21:30 the bell rights one final time for the lights out. We train in both. bread. Other than that. We do it as the sun comes up. At 15:00 it’s the afternoon training session. At 08:00 it’s the late morning training. The break consists of squatting on the stones that surround the land. so to me. If it’s raining. stepping exercises. so each class is specialising on some topic. english. At 07:00 there’s breakfast. weapons etc. breakfast tastes like lunch and dinner. there’s some limited room inside the building. what is covered depends on the group you’re in. another relax time. they actually sleep here. It’s similar to the european siesta where they take rest during the hottest part of the day after a hearty meal. Like the late morning. It starts by warming up doing laps of the grounds outside the school building followed by breathing exercises. every meal is similar. Again. vegetables. they’re highly meditative because you end up slowing your breathing right down and noticing every minor detail with the physical moves. . Whilst the strictest traditional Shaolin diet contains no dairy. they’re vegetarian and consist of some soup and some vegetables. At 11:50 it’s lunch followed by “relax time”. With all the meals at the school. Saturdays have some limited training in the morning and Sunday too (although I’ve only experienced one weekend to date). it’s a 2-3 hour session. This is a 2-3 hour session broken up by a 15 min break in the middle. it’s rice. By relax.At 05:30 we have an hour of early morning training. If you concentrate enough. To be honest. however. . I could noticeably feel the improved strength throughout my legs (and positive posture). stepping/balancing exercises (the fundamental building blocks of everything else you’ll learn) and rotational exercises (moves are generated using rotational power all the way from the hips up to the shoulders). What changes have I noticed? More flexible – by the end of today’s session. It’s not surprising because all the time is spent on here. I can tell by the rotational smoothness in . I’m able to jump from one balancing leg in one spot to another leg in another position. hip joints and all the small muscles inside the groin. I noticed a big improvement in my hamstrings. Improved strength – my legs are far far stronger.So what have I been taught so far? Meditative breathing. Better balance – I’m able to very easily balance on one leg for extended periods of time. I’m almost able to do a full one legged balancing squat and after going for a short run. I wouldn’t put it passed the new appreciation for squatting toilets and interesting wash rooms lending a hand here too. Further still. postural exercises (to tuck in the base of the spine and straighten the neck). Core strength is improved too. As for the room itself. …. first you have to have a compassionate heart. The Shaolin monks had to meditate deeply but sitting in Zen. Basically. If he shows any rage or hatred while practising. it opens into the top floor of the building. the students are free to explore nearby Dengfeng (or for the youngest ones. so they tried to find ways to stay physically and mentally alert and also be more healthy. You have to practice kung fu with this attitude. That’s all without any sit up or stomach focused exercise. the wushu culture became integrated with the Zen culture and formed the unique Shaolin Kung Fu. private bathroom. he will not master kung fu. meet and train with other foreigners. which has a mirrored room with lots of space. I’m by no means hungry here. For me. A Brief Summary of My Understanding of Wugulun Kung Fu So after a couple of weeks. be picked up by their parents) for the weekend.my waist and ability to hold my legs higher for longer. slouchable seats. there’s three big meals a day and they’re carb heavy. Upper body – nothing in the arms or chest. the lower back and obliques have been worked loads throughout. … If you want to show or teach people fighting. it meant a chance to stay at the Shaolin Traveller Hostel and indulge in some luxury. I mean a mattress to sleep on. On Saturday after some morning training. Firstly. Firstly. Weight – I can’t weigh myself. so I have no idea what the difference is now if any. contains an interview with Master Wu Nanfang. However. and as more people came to the Shaolin temple the kung fu. It is not intended to replace teaching and instructions from the people who have practiced and perfected the art. I’m told that foreigners from all the martial arts schools in the area use the hostel in the same way. You have to be calm and peaceful to . a washing machine. When I say indulge in some luxury. wifi in your room and no early morning bell. videos and the limited tuition at the school. Summarising: “Shaolin kung fu originated in the Shaolin temple which is a Chan Buddhist temple. Chance to relax. I thought I’d blog a bit about the Wugulun Kung Fu I’ve learned and my thoughts on it. Kung fu was already practised in many parts of China. a bit of background of the art and how it originated… This documentary video from Pankaja. When learning Shaolin Kung Fu a person should have great depths of mercy. western toilet. sometimes they became sleepy. Only general ache in the upper back from all the stretching. vegetables and soya they have. I don’t know if I’m getting enough protein because (a) they tend to have less because they think it makes you feel sluggish and (b) I have no idea how much protein is in the rice. though a mandatory disclaimer… What I write about here represents me communicating my view and understanding as it currently stands from books. beginner or master. This is for lengthening the spine. that’s a deep topic. expels bad toxins from being indoors and stretches the body to awaken it. And you can control it in a perfect way and not hurt them. they will practice the standing breathing exercises daily to cultivate Qi and perfect their posture. regardless. For us beginners. Perfecting it that little bit more each time. When you use this kung fu to fight with other people. So this kung fu is practised firstly to achieve a strong and healthy body and secondly for self defence and fighting. you perfectly straighten your body from the waist up. By grounding. With both lengthening the spine and tucking your tailbone in. but simply to say it’s the energy that flows through your body. but the times I’ve performed it with Master Wu in a quiet place. Through repeated daily training over years combining all these elements a unique fighting skill is formed. I mean connectedness of your body with the ground. The exercises regulate your breathing (which over night has probably become more random). This special form of Shaolin Kung Fu became renowned in China and later the world. you need to be well grounded to balance. . athletic Shaolin wushu functions only from the outside. we actually do these exercises at the start of every session. But the performing. It is just coordinated movements for performing and competitions. body and qi together. “ So what does this mean for the type of training I’ve done so far? When you ask someone to stand up straight. The result of this is to allow the Qi energy to flow as efficiently as possible from head to toe. you’ll noticed it’s a position that requires muscle tension to maintain. In addition to tucking the tailbone under.. Training in kung fu in this quiet and calm way and combining it with the training in Zen meditation means a person gains an understanding of the relationship between his internal organs and meridians. After each repetition. you gain more and more feeling in each and every joint. muscle and nerve as you attempt to perfect the motion each time by synchronizing each component perfectly whilst completely relaxing others. you’ll often see an arch in the base of the back – where the tail bone exists. This kung fu is different. So. Being a newbie to the motions. twist and move with speed. if you’ve ever tucked your tail bone in and very slightly compensated (to balance) by sinking into your feet. In other words. What is Qi? Well. you take the pressure off your waist/hips/legs at the expense of “grounding”. Starting in the dark and finishing the hour session at dawn. straightening the neck is also important. It is a way of teaching him to live in a better way…. With this method the aggressor becomes humble and respectful. it takes energy and effort to stand like that. Concentrating firstly on your breath then moving your body in time to it helps you concentrate on the now. Why do we tend to arch our back? Well. and enables him to integrate heart. Whilst for usual day-to-day activities it’s ok not to be grounded. for someone about to perform something very physical like kung fu. They say it takes 3 years of daily practice to perfect this and cause it to be more of a natural stance. By arching your back and sticking your tailbone out. which I won’t go into too much detail on. For any person. you don’t fight to kill. it’s a little addictive.The real Shaolin Kung Fu is a proper combination of body. keeping my eyes open means it’s harder to concentrate on the “now” and really get into it. They’re supposed to be done in an extremely relaxed state and it’s pretty meditative performing them. mind and qi.grasp this method of fighting. but you use your skill to dissolve or diffuse the other person’s aggression. the first thing we’ve being doing every morning is exactly that. It’s the kind of burn you get when you’ve gone up and down a mountain. So if the dan tian has enough qi it is reflected in your meridians and the health of your internal organs. First the hips. rotating and recoiling with the legs. not for kung fu. As a real. So this kind of kung fu is the inside and outside working together. but with the entire body. it promotes flexibility (i’ve discovered muscles in my hips I never knew I had in all my sporting and martial arts past practice) and builds power by perfecting the synchronisation of the movements with the muscles. becoming aware of the problems in the heart and mind and thus causing them to disappear will create a harmony in your body and soul. Holding these postures for long periods of time creates great stamina. traditional Shaolin student training in Zen is very important. … To defend. “ Every day. so that your head becomes a moving target both horizontally and vertically. The process of training in Zen. just the inside of the hips instead of the outside. Constantly try to know yourself and understand yourself. rather than sprinted for a bus. Here is a demonstration video of the standing exercises done by Master Wu - http://www. The inside of my hips feel well used from all the twisting. The base being your legs. … The rotations should not be done with the arms alone. Shifting weight exercises keep the body nimble so when you evolve to fighting techniques. slowly and methodically.com/watch?v=UYsAFw4zlXw . so that the two hands are two doors of your body. In particular the footwork should be coordinated. It is not only striking with the hands. Similar to that feeling you get after the first day of skiing. In your daily life walk. you want to carry this posture with the best possible base and use it to generate power. waist and shoulders. the legs and arms follow. When the hip starts to turn the body rotates. you can get the right feeling of kung fu. Done extremely slowly. All the parts follow. you adapt on the fly depending on your own balance and your opponents. Shaolin is famous for Zen. As you are turning there can be many ways of rotating. Zen is kung fu. When you turn. Dan tian is the source of qi.youtube. It’s definitely building my flexibility and strength. regulating the diet. i. These exercises are trying to building the speed and power in your legs to regularly change your height (but maintaining stability). A lot of the exercises involve changing from upright to crouching like a spring. In this state you enter into Zen meditation. The principle is that after working on the posture to perfect the energy flows throughout the body. You can also say it is a process of Zen training. sit.Where’s all the hard work then? Well. use the qi to turn the body. In the traditional kung fu you first protect and then attack. I’ve been doing exercises that involve moving from one stance to stance. sitting. In this state. The legs are worked far before anything on the upper body.e. Zen is wisdom. multiple planes of motion. Whilst doing it slowly. This kind of form stresses consistency. lie down with awareness. If your footwork is coordinated you can use every part of your body to attack. you can gather all the energy from every part of your body – especially your legs to give yourself total power. so most of the exercises I’ve been doing as a beginner have been strengthening the legs. … It is not only about one part of your body it is about all of them together. There’s more in the documentary that discusses the energy flows and why you train from the ground up: “Qi Gong is training the qi from the dan tian (stomach). There are some that are done fast and with power. It doesn’t matter if you ware walking. you take great care in noticing the change in your centre of gravity from leg to leg. lying down – Zen should be everywhere. that’s where the legs come in. The exercises are the stepping variety. which will turn your whole body into a fist. changing position from left to right to front to back keeping the tailbone tucked in and rotation at the hips up to the neck. Everything is Zen. What about all the kung fu fighting? None yet. Off-the-bat. lets define appearance. He pulled over one kid. I’d probably have no cartilage left though. because that’s how people tend to look at it in western culture.How hard are these power leg exercises? Well. but I’m working on it – I need to improve a combination of flexibility and power. Another one you can try to test your balance – can you slowly squat down to the floor with one leg with your heel on the ground whilst keeping back completely vertical? With the heel up. If he did that with me. I’ve been used to one in my bedroom. i’m a beefcake). but I got the point. one in the bathroom. I personally can’t do it from one leg yet. So I questioned why do we care about appearance and why doesn’t it matter here? Firstly. pay attention to fashion trends (because you’re . put his hand on his head and sprung him up and down like you would bounce a ball. a good appearance usually signals that you have money (because you’re spending it on yourself). Is there any fun in the training? A funny moment was when Master Wu was trying to get his point across to the group about needing to be springy. I’m not talking about genetically good looks. but you’ll notice you’ll lose all grounding so if you try to stand back up. when I went to shave my beard. I realised that it’s nice to be in a place where appearance isn’t an everyday pressure or a signal of social status. that the only place there’s a mirror around here is by the dinner hand out window. In London. it’s easy. compared to the guys here. I didn’t understand a word. I’m expecting that in weeks 7 and 8 (or so I’m told). rather I’m talking about well-groomed you are. your power’s all gone. The Pressure Of Appearance It only struck me yesterday. Being top-heavy does you no favours (yes. one in the lift and handful in and around the workplace. put it this way… can you throw yourself up from a one legged squat position (heel on ground) and twist 180 degrees and land perfectly? These are some of the tougher ones. who manage to slip through. you can get a seat at the table with chairs. because it show just how much more can be done to work on and improve your technique. continuously late arrivals. Which room you eat your meals – This is somewhat related to the food queue.wearing it) and you’re popular (because we associate super groomed celebrities with popularity). Top floor corner is a little more like a ghetto. So the younger kids go first all the way up to the oldest. If you manage to jump the queue. There’s a handful of older. It’s obvious to me that any time a younger kid is late. Ability to “jump” the food queue – Dinner should be handed out largely speaking in age/height order. there’s little indulgence with celebrities and their lifestyles. without newspapers and limited TV. you’re basically looking for a replacement for an attribute that demonstrates social status. It doesn’t signal money. Seat at the table means a tasty meal. they get some penalty exercises to do. because no one here has much – it’s a much flatter monetary hierarchy. What it means is that the more feedback you get. some of the older kids have been sneaking in sauces to have with the food. Fashion trends aren’t applicable to a small rural town because even if you knew what the latest thing was. Recently. what must Master Wu think about me?”. the more experience you must have. So what does matter instead then? If appearance doesn’t. It’s good. it puts you in good stead. but not get reprimanded for it – When the bell goes off. Every so often. So we like to look good as much as possible. otherwise you’re left squatting on a mini stall. Thirdly. Which area of the building you live – Quicker hot water on the ground floor. working toilets and distance from the school room means all round better quality of life on the ground floor. you couldn’t get hold of it. whether by cleverly tapping someone on the shoulder at the right time or bullying your way through. you have about a minute to get from your room to a “line up” outside. Why doesn’t it matter here? Well. But it leaves me thinking something like “if HE [the instructor] is so far from the perfect form. . the reasons for having a good appearance here aren’t applicable. How much you get b*llcked by Master Wu – This one cracks me up. By jumping the food queue. These are the ones I’ve picked up on: Ability to be late. Master Wu will drop in a class and strategically takes apart the senior instructor who’s teaching us. fewer people per room. my time at the Wugulun Kung Fu school had come to an end. I can’t emphasise enough how much of a good experience it was. What I learned about myself. Two months there had flown by.Moving from a Small Town to the Big City of Beijing Home Destinations Asia Travel China Moving from a Small Town to the Big City of Beijing Moving from a Small Town to the Big City of Beijing By Monday night. understanding the benefits of the repetitive traditional . kung fu training. I caught my flight to Beijing. After a two hour cab ride to Zhengzhou airport. When it was announced at the dinner line-up that I’d be leaving the following morning. social hierarchy was back in the picture – economy/business/first class tickets and pushing for queue positions (it’s not a problem when you’re anonymous and will never see the people you’re pushing in front of ever again). How much will I miss it? I’m not sure – but time will tell. thank me with a hug and fall back into line. 30 sad-looking faces turned to face me followed by questions like “tomorrow?” and “you come back?”. Sitting at the departure gate I noticed that almost everyone SPECIFICALLY had iPhones AND laptops. It’s amazing how things change. most people hadn’t even seen an iPhone before. I began to feel the changes moving from a small town like Dengfeng to a big city. I didn’t think the difference between a small town and a big city would be that obvious. The most senior student had them all line up outside and each one stepped forward to take the sweets. I could feel the attitude of the people in the airport – you could sense the abruptness in their body language. Even at airport. An iMac shot by me on the conveyor belt at the baggage collection – just enough time to get a blurred shot. but it was. In the school. Suddenly. Before I left. A small meal at the airport cost 8 TIMES as much as the local place I religiously got my “egg & tomato noodles” from in Dengfeng. It’s not that I couldn’t afford it. . discovering the fundamentals of mastering any martial art and meeting such an open and loving bunch of guys. It didn’t last too long (realising there were sweets up for grabs) and I had a precession follow me back to my room after to find the sweets. It was a far cry from the initial culture shock I felt when I landed at the school. I bought some gifts to give out to the students – sweets for everyone and for the students in my group – a badminton set for the young ones and some bracelets for the senior ones. but I couldn’t help but think of the two families who slaved all day every day to earn an eighth of that and vehemently refuse any tip. the luxuries of the room were immediately obvious. an ensuite shower room (instead of sharing two with thirty others) with a western toilet (instead of a drop toilet) complete with loo roll holder (instead of needing to perfect the .Getting from Beijing Airport to the 365 Inn Hostel was very simple. Although there was little difference in sharing personal space (I got lucky landing a dorm room with no one else in it). and the fact that purposely missed the Beijing rush hour on the subway. people didn’t stare at me. I noticed for the first time in two months. Although their very helpful instructions did help. I was the happy owner of a mattress (instead of a light blanket on top of wooden slats). the big difference I noticed was EVERYONE I interacted with spoke Mandarin with an accent I could understand and they all knew enough English when I didn’t. As I walked down the street from Tiananmen Square to the hostel. Seeing a Westerner wasn’t a big deal to them like it was to everyone in Dengfeng. So no electricity. . it felt a little like camping. Sadly in the last couple of weeks leading up to leaving the kung fu school. I spent that evening.art of balancing it in one hand) and working electricity. but it felt like a Hilton Hotel presidential suite. As the sun set. the regular strong winds kept causing the numerous badly taped “fixes” to the electric wire that ran across the trees in the fields to break. Packing my bag on the last night in the dark was a challenge. I had St Joseph’s Church earmarked for an evening visit. the school relied on it to get access to water through a pump. no shower. no toilet (pits outside the school were even a push on the ones I experienced at Glastonbury Festival). no water (hot or cold). A side from the shelter. the church was beautifully illuminated and the wedding photography session continued. I was in a hostel dorm room. exploring some of Beijing. Whilst losing electricity isn’t a big deal in itself. The church on their main shopping street was being used by numerous couples for pre/post wedding pictures. .To get to the church. I meandered through numerous Hutongs (Beijing’s traditional alleyways) and stumbled upon a very busy food market where you could just about anything that grew on a tree or moved in its past life fried in oil and presented on a stick. .Starfish and snakes were the most surprising. I heard the square was big. . still used to my early morning kung fu wake up schedule. I got up and out of the hostel at 6am to see the raising of the flag in Tiananmen Square. but gees – I hadn’t estimated a 10 minute jog across it to make it in time. a security bag scanning station on entry or a couple of thousand people would be up at the same time to see it… all Chinese tourists from what I saw. underneath one of the badly disguised security stations that played tweeting bird music as you waited.The following day. complete with their tour guide colour-coded hats to keep them herded together. I got as close to the front of the crowd as I could just before it started. Wrong guards… . Only when the flag had fully raised and the crowd started dispersing. did I realise I had been watching the wrong guards and not the ones I had expected to see march perfectly in time as everyone was there to see.As the music played I focused on the set of soldiers that I heard would march to the flag. Damn it. Right guards… (on the right) . Now I had a two hour wait until the Forbidden Palace opened. Sunrise kite watching. a loaf of Strawberry flavoured bread and watching all the guards march into their resting place in the Palace kept me occupied. . . This is a view from above from the park opposite. The Forbidden Palace is MASSIVE.Like Tiananmen Square. . This one being the highest ranking building. .There’s numerous temples. each ranked using the number of dragons in the corners of the roof. These gold-plated vats in the grounds even had their layer scraped off. .The sight has been burned and plundered plenty of times in the past. It’s so big.Lots of the palace is being renovated by a small army of workmen. . they work 24×7 to keep up with it. with beautifully shaped rocks and foliage. .The palace has various parks inside it. . with plenty of quiet spots to relax. Both were beautiful. I walked through two parks – Beihai and Jingshan.Leaving from the north gate after 2 hours of roaming around. . doing tricks you would normally expect from Brazilian professional footballers. Even an old woman was part of the group. A group were kicking what looked like a gigantic shuttlecock between each other keeping it in the air with various kicks.I found the urge to practice my kung fu there among other tai chi lovers and elderly dancers. even had cabbages growing in it like flowers.One park. . cute restaurant called Hutong Pizza. .Walking through the Hutongs north of Qianhai Lake. I followed a Lonely Planet recommendation to a quiet. I’ve always found Lonely Planet to have real finds and this was certainly one of them. I’d have hesitated to go in if it wasn’t recommended. As I walked out. It felt like you were a guest in someone’s garden. . I urged on two timid passers-by who spotted the signs to take a look. Amongst the homes in the Hutongs and underneath a cloth front door was a restaurant where you could eat with the sound and view of koi carp underneath you.Whilst some travellers say you should ignore the guide books. If I’m being honest. . I made my way to the famous Tibetan-themed Lama Temple.Walking through the famous Nanluogu Xiang and the Hutongs that branched off it. . Like the Forbidden Palace, there’s numerous buildings containing shrines, each prayed to with incense by kneeling visitors. Close by to the Lama Temple, passing a domesticated street pig is Imperial College street and the Confucian Temple. Luckily, because it was close to closing time by then, I could enjoy the Confucian Temple with minimal tourists. Among the usual rooms associated with a temple, it’s home to some stunning trees and various confucian-themed statues. Thankfully though.My tour had taken 11 hours and I had covered it all on foot so I was shattered by the end. that’s a 4 hour ride away. Another 6am start tomorrow. from http://www. I trudged back to the hostel for some rest. so I can catch up on sleep on the way.thecounterintuitive. with a bus booked to the Jinshanling part of the Great Wall.com .