Guest guest Posted January 3, 2001 Report Share Posted January 3, 2001 >>I think the difference here is his 'face pulling' was a conscious part of his style that maybe helped him to focus. If I can lay my hands on his book (its in the house somewhere) it will be worth seeing what he said about the face.<< The closest thing to this I find in Tao of Jeet Kun Do contradicts the idea of the face thing as a positive aspect... " To conserve energy by using the least possible amount of energy to achieve a given result, eliminate the unnecessary motions and muscle contractions which fatigue without accomplishing any usefule purpose. " and... " The education of neuromuscular skill: The first step is to acquire the feeling of relaxation. " I would be very surprised if the " face pulling " was any more than something he did for stage presence. You don't focus on anything by wasting energy on superfluous movement(tension). Granted my experience in MA is largely limited to Tum Pai Kajukenbo, Shaolin Chin Na and Tae Kwon Do, but the above quotes mirror the vast majority of teachings I have received in any style. Sifu Lee said similar things throughout Tao of Jeet Kun Do - the basic tenet that to move one must first be relaxed, and if starting out tensed one only slows down. From a more advanced (sic) point of view, tensing of the face would tend to place one's Chi in Dan Tien, drawing you up from Prana. Not a particularly useful state, considering what one is capable of when fighting in Prana. Lee, B. 1975. Tao of Jeet Kun Do. Burbank: Ohara Publications, Inc. pg.51 Zillah, Washington Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted January 4, 2001 Report Share Posted January 4, 2001 " and Terri " <windsorets@e...> wrote: <The closest thing to this I find in Tao of Jeet Kun Do contradicts the idea of the face thing as a positive aspect... " To conserve energy by using the least possible amount of energy to achieve a given result, eliminate the unnecessary motions and muscle contractions which fatigue without accomplishing any usefule purpose. " and... " The education of neuromuscular skill: The first step is to acquire the feeling of relaxation. " > , I agree with the statement of reducing unnecessary motions and muscular contractions but I frequently find " relaxation " to be interrupted as an overall relaxation rather than a selective reduction of muscle tonus. This is a skill that takes some time to acquire. Most athletes greatly over estimate their skill in this area. This can be readily demonstrated through sophisticated biofeedback testing. One point that has not been mentioned in the " pulling face " discussion is the fact that the musculature that keeps the jaw closed is a connected to the the " righting reflex " or more generally, the skeletalmuscular coordination for upright posture. High levels of of stimulation in the TMJ organization will relate to an excessive tonus somewhere else in the anti-gravity muscular patterns. Neuromuscular training is much more involved than merely recruiting more muscles to be involved in a movement. It requires a completely different approach to learning, than is our " normal " approach in the fitness and conditioning field. Ken Largent La Grande, Oregon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.