"The exercising of weapons putteth away aches, griefs, and diseases, it increaseth strength and sharpeneth the wits, it giveth a perfect judgment, it expelleth melancholy, choleric, and evil conceits, it keepeth a man in breath, in perfect healthe, and long life." – George Silver (1599)

mantis



We really like Sifu Rudy around here. I’ve personally been into the Crushing Fist in Xinyi recently, working on the step as done by Akuzawa here. But check this out, which expands the scope of the step. Like a Wing Chun chain punch while advancing like a train. See the words around 244-300 about the relation between the hips and hands and the explanation of the “chicken step” at 430-500, which I found fascinating.

Here is some more that lets the 5 element fists be well seen.

0. Choose encumbered/funneled terrain. 1. Shock and halt. 2. Scare/Destroy command/Turn fight to flight 3. Decimate disorganized forces.

Hsing-I Crushing Fist, aka Beng Chuan:

Minoru Akuzawa unpacks it for you around 0:50. Watch that step he does from 1:00-1:20. Gold. See how it adds power to the strike and then better sets a second blow (around 1:45).

So this is a traditional fencing balestra which is really just a hopping advance and then a lunge in quick succession. (& http://sworddueling.com/2009/08/12/the-balestra-quartata/). So what I’ve been calling a balestra isn’t one – ah, terminology.
What I’ve been doing is when leaping forward powering out with the leading leg, with a rising hip & the quad kicking, like skipping on air, out forward, gaining extra distance. It works best with backhand & rising cuts.