Category: I Liq Chuan

Training Cause vs. Effect

Dad-joke incoming…

How many martial artists does it take to change a lightbulb?

100.

1 to get it done, and 99 to say, “That’s not how we do it in our style.”

This (bad) joke highlights a common source of debate in the martial arts community, rooted in a misunderstanding.

When viewed superficially from the standpoint of “techniques,” different martial arts styles can seem vastly different. However, when viewed from the perspective of “technique,” focusing on the underlying principles, they’re really all the same.

That said, the distinction between “technique” and “techniques” plays a pivotal role in shaping training methodologies, philosophies, and, ultimately, long-term progress. This distinction is particularly relevant in the context of I Liq Chuan, The Martial Art of Awareness.

GM Sam Chin’s father, Sijo Chin, Lik-Keong, The Founder of I Liq Chuan, used to tell his students, “I’m not going to teach you techniques. If you want techniques, pay me just $1 each; I’ll teach you a million, but you won’t dare use a single one.” Why, you might ask? Because no technique works (with a high success rate) without the underlying technique.

Confused? Lemme explain:

Socrates, regarded as the father of Western philosophy and critical thinking, emphasized the importance of questioning and dialogue in seeking truth and understanding.

A key aspect of the Socratic method involves starting by clearly defining terms. This helps ensure that everyone in a discussion shares a common understanding and can engage in meaningful, productive dialogue. This foundational step is crucial for dissecting complex ideas and arriving at well-reasoned conclusions.

With that in mind, before we delve deeper, let’s first define our terms:

• Technique: This refers to how little a trainee deviates from the optimum movement pattern dictated by first principles, often associated in Chinese martial arts with the Dao (道). The Dao signifies the universe’s natural way or path, emphasizing harmony with natural laws.
• Techniques: These are pre-choreographed responses to specific cues or actions by the opponent. They are practical applications taught to address specific scenarios.

Grammatically:

• “Technique” is used as a singular, uncountable noun, indicating a general concept or quality that can’t be divided into separate items.
• “Techniques” is used as a plural, countable noun, referring to multiple specific items or instances of actions that can be enumerated and described individually.

In summary, while “techniques” refers to individual movements or actions that can be taught and executed, “technique” refers to the overarching principles and quality of movement that guide how those actions are performed.

The Case for Training Techniques

When considering the approach of training techniques, we see a method designed for efficiency and practical application, especially useful in scenarios where time and resources are limited. This approach is particularly advantageous in environments such as military training, where recruits must quickly learn the fundamentals of hand-to-hand combat.

Advantages of Techniques-Oriented Training:

• Scalability: With a limited number of instructors and a large group of trainees, teaching specific techniques allows for a standardized training program that can simultaneously be administered to many individuals.
• Time Efficiency: In settings where time is of the essence, such as military boot camps, techniques provide a quick and effective way to impart essential skills. Trainees learn specific responses to common scenarios, allowing them to be as battle-ready as possible quickly.

Case Example: Law Enforcement Training

I want to relay an anecdote here from my own experience. When I went through training for auxiliary law enforcement, empty hand restraint techniques were only one part of overall defensive tactics, which also included using the baton and proper handcuffing techniques.

Defensive tactics in turn were only one subject taught in the compressed, intensive academy which also included subjects like civil rights and legal requirements for the use of force, and so on.

Within the full scope of martial arts, the few basic “come along” techniques  (basically joint locks, or chin na (擒拿)  being taught only represent a fraction of the potential grappling repertoire.

When GM Sam Chin was here in 2022, we taught an eight-hour workshop on the fundamentals of Chin Na within I Liq Chuan, and we still barely scratched the surface.

Grappling, in turn, is only one category of possible techniques used in hand-to-hand combat (which also includes kicking, striking, and wrestling).

Considering the setting’s limitations, it would make no sense, nor would it have been feasible, to get lost in the intricacies and nuance of proper technique. In this scenario, just giving the recruits a handful of three—and four-step reliable techniques was not only the most sensible approach, but it was also the only viable option.

Limitations of Techniques-Oriented Training:

While training techniques offer significant advantages, particularly in terms of scalability and efficiency, they also come with notable limitations. The most significant drawback is the vulnerability of conditioned responses.

When trainees rely heavily on pre-choreographed techniques, they may struggle to adapt when faced with unexpected or novel situations. Combat is inherently unpredictable, and opponents often do not follow the script. This can leave trainees conditioned to respond in specific ways at a disadvantage when their expected scenarios do not play out.

Additionally, a keen opponent can exploit reflexive responses developed through techniques-oriented training. An observant adversary can anticipate these predictable reactions and use them to set traps or manipulate the trainee into vulnerable positions. For instance, if a fighter consistently counters a particular attack in a certain way, a savvy opponent can feign that attack to provoke a predictable response and then capitalize on the opening created. This predictability can be a significant liability in a dynamic and fluid combat situation.

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The Technique-Oriented Approach: First Principles

In contrast to techniques-oriented training, the technique-oriented approach focuses on mastering the principles of movement, often referred to as “shen fa” (身法), or lik hok (力学) in I Liq Chuan and can be translated as “body method, or “mechanics” or “study of force.” In martial arts, these terms refer to the understanding and application of physical principles, such as leverage, balance, and motion, and the method of body movement and posture that aligns with natural principles of human physiology and efficiency.

This approach, rooted in the first principles of human movement, emphasizes understanding and internalizing the optimal mechanics dictated by our morphology and the Newtonian physics of the known universe.

Understanding The Dao: Morphology & Physics in Martial Arts:

• Morphology: This refers to the structure and form of the human body. Understanding how our body moves and operates is crucial in mastering martial arts techniques. It involves studying biomechanics, joint alignments, and the natural range of motion.
• Physics: The laws of physics, such as inertia, momentum, leverage, and gravity, play a fundamental role in martial arts. By aligning movements with these principles, martial artists can achieve maximum efficiency and effectiveness.

Advantages of Technique-Oriented Training:

• Adaptability: By focusing on first principles, trainees develop a deep understanding of the mechanics of movement. This allows them to adapt to a wide range of situations and opponents, as they are not confined to pre-set responses.
• Efficiency: Mastering the optimal movement patterns ensures that every action is performed with maximum efficiency, reducing wasted effort and energy.
• Higher Skill Ceiling: The technique-oriented approach allows for continuous improvement and refinement. As trainees gain a deeper understanding of the principles, their skills can evolve and reach higher levels of mastery.

Training the Cause, Not the Effect:

In I Liq Chuan, the focus is on training the “cause” rather than the “effect.” This means that instead of learning specific techniques (effects), trainees work on developing the underlying principles (causes, i.e., lik hok 力学) that make those techniques effective. Grandmaster Sam Chin often uses the analogy of eating (the cause) to be full (the effect) to illustrate this concept. Eating is the fundamental action that leads to the desired result of fullness, just as mastering movement principles leads to effective martial arts techniques.

This approach is both the superpower and the kryptonite of training in I Liq Chuan. The superpower lies in the depth and adaptability it provides. By understanding and internalizing the fundamental principles of movement, practitioners can respond effectively to a wide range of situations. They are not limited to pre-set techniques and can adapt fluidly to the dynamics of a real combat scenario.

However, the kryptonite of this approach is that training the cause doesn’t look like training the effect. This can be confusing and counterintuitive for beginners who are used to seeing immediate, tangible results from learning specific techniques. As GM Sam Chin says, “Eating doesn’t look like fullness, but you have to eat to be full.” In other words, the process of mastering the principles (eating) may not resemble the final, polished techniques (fullness) that students aspire to perform. This can make the training process seem obscure or frustrating for those who are accustomed to the immediate gratification of learning and practicing distinct techniques.

For instance, when training in I Liq Chuan, students might spend considerable time working on seemingly simple exercises to refine their understanding of balance, alignment, and sensitivity. These exercises might not look like traditional martial arts techniques, but they are essential for developing the core skills that will later manifest in effective techniques. This foundational work ensures that when a practitioner applies a technique, it is executed with precision, efficiency, and adaptability that would not be possible without this deep, principle-based training.

Ultimately, this approach cultivates a deeper, more intuitive understanding of martial arts. It enables practitioners to move beyond rote memorization of techniques and towards mastery of the principles that underlie all effective martial arts movements. While the path may seem longer and less direct, the end result is a more profound and versatile skill set that allows martial artists to adapt to any situation with confidence and efficacy. (In truth, this approach is the most direct path to mastery; it only seems less direct. You have to reach the inflection point in your training when “the penny drops.”)

Limitations of Technique-Oriented Training:

Despite its many benefits, the technique-oriented approach also has its challenges.

• Individual Attention: This method requires much more personal attention from instructors. Each trainee’s progress must be monitored and guided to ensure they internalize the principles correctly. (In I Liq Chuan, we say, “The art must be fed through touch.)
• Obscurity of Training Methods: The training methods can seem obscure and difficult to grasp for beginners. Without the immediate gratification of learning specific techniques, staying motivated may be challenging for some trainees.

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Techniques Are Just Keys; Technique Is the Master Key:

Techniques can be likened to individual keys, each designed to open a specific lock. In contrast, technique is the master key that can be applied universally, capable of adapting to any situation.

Over time, martial artists come to realize that quality trumps quantity. As Bruce Lee famously said, “Fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.”

From Techniques To Technique: The Evolution of Martial Arts Practice

In practice, the journey from learning “techniques” to mastering “technique” is a natural progression for most long-term martial arts practitioners. Beginners often focus on accumulating techniques, driven by the desire to know “what’s next?” This approach helps them build a repertoire of responses and gain an immediate sense of practical skills. However, as they advance, most practitioners gradually focus on understanding the “why” and “how” behind their movements. Understanding from the outset that focusing on the principles is the ultimate goal can save beginners a lot of wasted time constantly chasing after “what’s next” and instead shift focus to “what’s happening right now.”

What Is The Best Approach To Training Martial Arts?

The suitability of focusing on techniques versus technique depends on the context. On a short timeline, especially for beginners or situations demanding quick readiness, focusing on techniques is generally most appropriate. Teaching a beginner a handful of techniques provides a simple matrix to establish context and build a foundation. Even without a specific deadline, this initial focus can help new practitioners gain confidence and competence.

Ultimately, a technique-oriented approach is the final destination of all masters. Masters continuously refine their understanding and execution of principles, striving for perfection in every movement. This deep, intuitive grasp of technique enables them to adapt fluidly and effectively to any challenge.

Advanced Techniques are Just the Basics Done Better:

In his book on Aikido, Roy Suenaka wrote, “Advanced techniques are just the basics done better.” This sentiment underscores the philosophy of continuous refinement that characterizes a technique-oriented approach to training. In Chinese martial arts, this focus on the continuous refinement of basics is referred to as jibengong (基本功).

Grandmaster Sam Chin often compares the training process of I Liq Chuan to peeling an onion. The goal is not to accumulate more and more techniques or forms, but to peel away the excess until we reach the very core, or essence, of the principles. He emphasizes, “You must keep on looking at it until the nature (Dao 道) itself speaks to you.” This process of refinement and deepening understanding is what ultimately transforms a practitioner from a beginner focused on quantity to a master dedicated to quality.

Conclusion

In summary, both the techniques-oriented and technique-oriented approaches have their merits and limitations. Techniques-oriented training is highly efficient and scalable, making it ideal for large groups and time-constrained scenarios, such as military training. However, it is limited by the rigidity of conditioned responses and the risk of predictability being exploited by observant opponents.

On the other hand, the technique-oriented approach, grounded in first principles, offers adaptability and a higher skill ceiling but requires more individual attention and can be challenging for beginners to understand.

For practitioners of I Liq Chuan, the important takeaway is that whenever I refer to “technique,” I am talking about mastering optimum movement patterns rather than pre-set responses. By focusing on the causes of effective movement, we can achieve a deeper, more adaptable skill set that transcends specific techniques and allows for continuous growth and improvement in the martial arts.

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I Liq Chuan (ee lee chwen) means “mental-physical martial art”. We often refer to it as “The Martial Art of Awareness”. As a system of martial arts training, the curriculum has three main sections:

• Philosophy, Concepts & Principles
• Solo drills
• Partner Training

Philosophy, Concepts & Principles

I Liq Chuan is not just about self-defense techniques. We say that “we are not training to be the best, but to bring out the best in ourselves.” You could say that self-improvement is our most important objective.

In other words, we are using martial arts as a tool, not as a goal.

Training martial arts “as a goal” means that self-defense is your primary endpoint. You only care about what works in the ring or on the street. While this has the benefit of ensuring that you’ll be the most effective fighter that you can be, it doesn’t mean you’ll be the most effective person you can be. The application of what you develop in training narrows down to just a very narrow slice of possible experiences.

If you’re a professional fighter, law enforcement, or security professional, this approach makes perfect sense, especially in the short term, where maximum usable self-defense skills in the shortest amount of time is imperative. However, for the majority of people, with no urgent need to defend themselves, we can go a bit slower and a bit deeper to understand the principles.

To put it another way, a technique is like knowing how to use a fire extinguisher as the quickest, easiest way to put out a fire. Understanding the principle is knowing that a fire needs oxygen to burn; take away the oxygen, and you put out the fire, and there are many ways to cut off the oxygen to a fire, for example. The fire extinguisher is quick and easy, but understanding the principle is adaptable to more situations. The principles, once mastered, will make the same person a better fighter than they would be if they only knew techniques.

The Martial Art of Awareness As A Tool

Coming back to the idea of martial arts as a tool, as opposed to a goal: when you train martial arts as a tool, rather than developing skills that have a very narrow application, we develop skills that have very broad applications. We use the body (physical) to train the mind (mental). In other words, through the practice of martial arts, we cultivate wisdom.

The philosophy, concepts, and principles are like a compass guiding all of our training. They teach us to look closely at ourselves. Through careful observation, we learn to see things more clearly, and we learn how to remain calm (i.e., “still and clear”) under high-pressure situations (like a fight).

Stillness and clarity are skills that can be applied in any situation. In short, I Liq Chuan emphasizes an approach based on mindfulness.

Solo Drills

The Basic Exercises of I Liq Chuan

The second section of The Martial Art of Awareness is all the solo or individual training (basic exercises). We describe this section of our training as “unification of mental and physical”; you could say it’s the process of “uniting mind and body as one.”

Basic exercises help us get our body organized and integrated; they develop fundamental motor skills around three essential qualities: power, balance, and relaxation. At their core, basic exercises are a process of exploring how your body moves in three dimensions and its relationship with gravity.

All martial arts make use of some kind of basic exercises practiced by one’s self or under the watchful eye of a coach. Western martial arts like boxing will make use of solo drills like shadowboxing, hitting the heavy bag, or working the slip bag. The purpose of basic exercises is to take complex motor skills and break them down into their core components and drill them repeatedly over time to improve neuromuscular efficiency. To put that more simply, we learn to move better and with less effort.

Although kung fu, or Asian martial arts in general, are often more well known for their forms or kata, basic exercises are actually considered to be more important. Basic exercises are referred to in Chinese as jibengong (基本功). The term jiben has the Chinese word for “root,” and altogether means “fundamentals” or “basic skills”. Forms should just be demonstrations of motor skills developed through basic exercises the way the performance of a complete song is the result of the practice of more fundamental musical skills like scales.

Balance To Change

Tai Chi principles teach us that change is the most basic quality of our experience. The highest goal of Tai Chi then is to “change with change”.

In a self-defense scenario, we’re looking for the ability to easily change directions.

Although we need a certain amount of tension to exert force, it’s tough to change direction when we’re stiff, or rigid, therefore it is important to learn how to maintain relaxation during movement. Relaxation also helps us to conserve energy.

Find Your Center

Self-defense situations are dynamic and unpredictable. An attacker will not simply strike once, and then pause mid-motion for you to launch your counter-assault as we see in so many bad martial arts demonstrations. They will change level, change direction and use multiple attacks from different angles. We must have balance to change with change.

Although when children are young, we often teach them they are not the center of the universe, from a practical point of view, we are the center of our own experience.

Balance comes from the center. However there is not one center; the mind has a center, the body has a center, and true balance is not just “50/50” of two different things. There is a synergy in true balance that comes from the partnership of opposites, like “one long and one short”, or “one heavy and one light”, or “form and formlessness”.

The Martial Art of Awareness: Mind & Body As one

The mind is formless, the body is form.

When mind and body are one, people are capable of amazing things. In modern terms, we often refer to this as a “state of flow” or “being in the zone.” Synergy is an outcome above and beyond the sum of the whole. Conversely, 0.8 x 0.2 = 0.16. If you’re like me and not very good at math, let me emphasize the obvious here: 0.16 is less than either 0.8 or 0.2.

Practically, what this means for our lives is that when we operate at a fraction, outcomes are less than the whole.

Most of us spend the majority of our time operating by fractions, particularly in today’s distracted, digital world. When we’re eating and scrolling on social media, for example, we neither truly notice and enjoy our food nor actually process what we’re seeing on our phones or how what we’re seeing makes us feel, which can, in turn, affect how much we eat. It becomes a vicious, negative feedback loop.

However, when we bring the mind and body together, a state of stillness and clarity arises. We can see more and do more, perhaps even much more than we ever thought ourselves capable of.

Partner Training Drills of I Liq Chuan

“Everybody has a plan till they get punched in the mouth.”

Mike Tyson

Basic exercises improve balance and coordination, but by themselves are not enough to learn how to fight. In the words of Bruce Lee, “You cannot learn how to swim on dry land.” Throwing a ball, carrying a bag of groceries in from the car, or lifting a child off the ground are all applications of force, and likewise, hand-to-hand combat between two (or more) people simply boils down to the application of force, which we perceive as pressure.

So then martial arts, at its core, is simply the study of force, or pressure: how to apply force (offense), how to deal with a force being applied to us (defense), and how to create the most force possible (power).

In Chinese kung fu, we use the term san da, or san shou, to describe “free fighting”. The Chinese word san means “scattered” and has the sense of “chaos”; it’s a recognition by the old masters that real fights tend to be messy and chaotic. Only choreographed, cinematic fights look pretty. Real violence is ugly and messy, but within chaos, we can find order (principles).

Any good martial arts system takes the chaos, scales it down into simple drills that focus on principles, and then progresses the drills back to more and more free, real-time applications that more closely resemble the chaotic messiness of a real fight.

The Martial Art of Awareness uses two different types of partner training to study pressure: spinning hands and sticky hands. Both spinning and sticky hand training have multiple stages and almost endless possible variations.

Spinning Hands

Although in combination, our arms are capable of an amazing variety of movements across multiple planes, if we look closely, the arm is only capable of five basic movements.

• flexion (open)
• extension (close)
• adduction (close)
• abduction (open)
• rotation

We can move the arm above our heads, which is technically referred to as flexion; we can move the arm downward and eventually behind the body. This is referred to as extension. Flexion and extension happen on the verticle axis.

We can move the arm in, across the body, which is referred to as adduction, and if we move the arm out, away from our body, this is referred to as abduction. Adduction and abduction happen on the horizontal axis. As we can see from the diagram above, with the shoulder joint as the fixed center, we get a kind of cross; we can move up and down and side to side (or you could say in and out), and we can rotate from the center of the cross.

Only Two Circles

Subsequently, if we look at a complete cycle (i.e., full range of motion, in sequence), we can reach

1. up
2. in
3. down
4. out

Or we can go in the opposite direction and go down, in, up, and out. This gives us two basic circles of movement, one from out-to-in and one in-to-out. All upper body movements come from just these two circles.

When we look at some different types of punches, a hook, a cross, and a haymaker are all examples of “out-to-in,” whereas a straight punch, a jab, and a back fist are “in-to-out.”

With this in mind, we’re just training these two circles and how to maintain the right pressure throughout the entire circumference or range of motion. We call it spinning because we’re turning the circles over and over again. It’s a process of repeatedly looking at the change.

It’s All About Pressure (& Space)

Spinning hands helps you to develop the right pressure; right pressure has the effect of a virtual sphere, a quality of roundness. It’s the pressure that keeps your opponent from being able to hit you while at the same time creating the space for you to hit your opponent. We refer to right pressure as “fullness.”

In meditation, we look at the continuous rise and fall of the breath, which we know by the change in pressure in the body. Likewise, in spinning hands, we are repeatedly observing the “rise and fall” of pressure on the point of contact with our partner as we move continuously from in-to-out or out-to-in. In this way, spinning hands becomes a dynamic, moving meditation.

Sticky Hand

Learning how to maintain the quality of a ball or sphere is necessary, but by itself is not sufficient for self-defense. The final, objective outcome of effective self-defense training is the ability to finish a fight. Just as in sports, defense alone will not win the game. You must score points (and more points than your opponent) to win.

I Liq Chuan sticky hand training develops four fundamental qualities for self-defense:

1. flow
2. fend
3. control
4. freeze

Flow

Flowing means “to be with.” It comes very much from the quality of mindfulness and being present. In the context of The Martial Art of Awareness, it’s neither anticipating nor catching up to your training partner. With regard to pressure, when we touch our training partner, we neither resist nor allow any gaps to happen. The pressure should neither increase nor decrease. However, there is a “minimum viable pressure” that must be maintained at all times. Contact is not enough; there must be connection. There is much more that could be written technically about flowing, but we’ll save that for our members-only area.

Fend

After we develop some flowing, we must bring the quality of the ball back into our training. When we fend, we learn always to keep the quality of the ball between us and our training partner as they move freely and try to tap our bodies. It’s a dynamic, spontaneous application of maintaining the sphere of fullness; it’s a more actively defensive level of training.

Control

As we develop more skills, we can make the application of the ball more precise and further restrain our training partner’s movements by controlling both their hands and their balance. When someone is fighting for their balance, it’s hard for them to fight you. The central nervous system shuts down the ability to generate power when it thinks we’re falling and acts reflexively to try and regain balance as a first priority. By continuously manipulating our partner’s balance, we’re essentially putting our training partner into a perpetual state of falling. This is control.

Freeze

Freezing could also be referred to as “jamming.” If we compare it to firearms, when a weapon misfires, it’s temporarily unable to function until we “clear the jam.” Freezing your training partner is similar in the sense that our application of pressure is so precise that they are temporarily “unable to function” with regard to effective attack and defense.

Another way of thinking about freezing is that you are put into such a perfect state of balance that any movement away from that position puts you into a state of imbalance. You could think of it like someone holding you in place on a tightrope. As long as they’re holding on to you, you’ll be fine, but if they let go, or you struggle to get free of their control or try to attack them, you’ll only succeed in making yourself fall off the rope.

In real-time self-defense applications, “freezing” might only last for a split second, but it represents a brief moment of time when you are completely free to attack your opponent “at will” while they are briefly “immobilized”, which translates into a tremendous advantage for anyone who has that level of skill.

Conclusion

Let’s review; all martial arts train three things:

• Power
• Offense
• Defense

I Liq Chuan’s two-pronged approach to developing these qualities is unique, focusing on “cause” rather than “effect” and deliberate, mindful action.

Our basic exercises bring mind and body together; they teach you to look within, to know yourself. They help develop coordination, balance, and, most importantly, mindfulness. When you know yourself and understand both your strength/power and its limitations, you can use yourself skillfully.

At their most basic, the skills of both offense and defense just come down to pressure.

Defense is based on “fullness” or maintaining the qualities of a sphere. Offense comes from recognizing the “empty” (gaps) or penetrating the opponent’s sphere.

I Liq Chuan uses partner work called spinning hands and sticky hands to learn how to recognize, maintain and use the right pressure, distance, and angles.

The Martial Art of Awareness is a good tool for developing mindfulness because a gap in your awareness is a gap in your defense. When you get hit or lose your balance, you know right away. You get instant feedback on your progress. Fullness is “yes” or “no.” You can’t fake it.

In the end, everything circles back to that first component of the system, the philosophy, concepts, and principles. It’s about “knowing.” When we move, we know. We are aware. We are not simply reacting reflexively.

Knowing from the present moment is not just a sterile, intellectual grasp of things; it’s understanding. Understanding is wisdom. Overall, that’s our primary goal for training I Liq Chuan; to use martial art as a tool to cultivate this kind of stillness and clarity.

So, in other words, we’re using martial arts to train the mind.

Read More!

• Bruce Lee’s Real Fights: The True Stories Behind the Legend
• 
  The Ultimate Guide To Focus Mitts & Thai Pads For Martial Arts
• 
  Technique vs. Techniques in Martial Arts
• 
  Is Strength Training Good For Martial Arts?