Kong fu self-training CDs effective?

Question

Kong fu self-training CDs effective?

Answer 1

find a real teacher

Answer 2

Yes, that's why most of the kung fu masters have learned this way.

wait.......

Answer 3

They won't be as effective as a real teacher. I have seen my instructor do a move and I thought I did it just like them, but I forgot some small detail, like not bending my wrist on a shoulder throw, even though you can bend it and still complete the throw, it isn't as strong. So with an actual instructor, they can catch errors like this. I have never learned from one, I suppose it is better than nothing.

Answer 4

For goodness sakes, let's think about this logically.

Martial arts: the art of fighting/self-defense. Hmmm...can you learn to defend your self physically without a real teacher?

It's much more effective and authentic to get a real, LIVE teacher to help you learn kung fu. Plus, many self-training CDs aren't that great.

You may want to consider training at a special school, or getting private lessons with a certified instructor. Trust me: it's worth it.

Answer 5

There is an old saying that a wise teacher once said: "There are no good teachers; only varying degrees of poor ones."  Teachers know their material, but can they impart what they know to you in such a way that you actually learn what they know?  That is the first question.  Thus, how effective a training dvd of their knowledge is first rests on how well they have learned the art of communicating.  Secondly, there are many good teachers out there, and there are even more frauds, or those who are self-taught and merely want their egos fed.  What happens if you get a dvd from a teacher who is not qualified?  Is learning their ineffectual material effective?

   So, the bottom line is trying to find a properly qualified teacher with a dvd, or book, that delivers that quality material in a way that you can understand and actually absorb.  When you find such material, then the answer is, yes, Kung Fu self-training materials can be effective.

  For many years, I had requests from all over the world to teach people my style of Kung Fu, but I am only one person, and as the head of Shao Lin San Kung Fu Temple, there was no way that I could go to all of these different countries and teach all of these people.  Therefore, I took our curriculum and put it on dvd.  If you are interested in training with this material, it is put together with people in mind who are trying to learn without the benefit of having a teacher personally there with them.  In these dvds, I personally teach all of the material.

I hope this has been of some help to you.  Grandmaster Brian Gray, www.briangray.com .