Originally Posted by TenTigers  My Sifu(a 70 something yr old man from guangzhao) started teaching me iron palm. One day, he introduced me to a friend. He said,"This my friend,he tiet sa jong,very strong!" Tiet Sa Jong is iron palm, but this guy's whole body was iron! His father, my Sifu's friend, teaches Tai-Chi, but the son does Muay Thai.He's fifty-something. I felt his hands-skin like leather,palms hard and stiff,dry and almost powdery.His shins were like pipes,we clashed shins, and I went home with a baseball sized lump on mine-big mistake. We did sam-sing, and I let up-I felt I could "beat him," but I knew his ego wouldn't stand for it, and it would get ugly-you know the type. Very hard, very aggressive.
Cool, right? NO. Not cool. His hands shook. He had conciderable nerve damage from all the pounding.
Later, when we were alone, I asked my Sifu,
"Why did you want me to meet your friend? He's crazy!"
My Sifu told me that he introduced me to him to show me what NOT to do. Funny guy, my Sifu.
Iron body-palm,shin, etc is a long process. There are no shortcuts. If you try to cut corners, or rush things, you will end up crippled.
Shin conditioning-you might ask,"It's just the bones in my shins. There aren't any joints involved-what could happen?"
plenty-nerve damage-(nerves also run all the way down your legs to your feet. Blood clots, damaged blood vessels,you could break down the walls of the blood vessels, depending on the resiliency of the vessels, they could rupture, or plaque could break off and travel, etc.
These skills are NEVER taken up by people under the age of twenty-three. The joints need to be completely developed, otherwise calcification will form in between the bones.
This isn't something to be taken lightly by some young over zealous neophyte. Just because you read a book, saw a movie, bought a dvd, or sent away for the iron palm deluxe master's kit, doesn't mean you are qualified to train. Juast because som guy in a chinese outfit sells you a bottle of jow and a dvd, doesn't qualify him as a substitute for a Sifu watching your progress, who is able to heal any injuries you might incur from improper practice.(My Sifu is a doctor) Why do you think there is a disclaimer? |