Is it too Late to Learn Kung Fu?

Kung Fu is a collective term used to describe the Chinese Martial Arts, as such it does not describe just one way of fighting but many different techniques and styles. The true origins and history of Kung Fu is unlikely to be fully determined and much of what we hear as history is actually only legend and myth.

It’s generally accepted that many Asian arts such as Karate and Jujitsu have links back to China and to the famous Shaolin Temple. Whether this is fact or not we probably will never know, but it does capture the imagination and adds to the mystique of the arts.

In general we can separate the Chinese Martial Arts into Internal (Soft) and External (Hard), but as many systems incorporate a mixture of both, this type of classification should be seen as arbitrary rather than definitive.

Shaolin styles start with the External or Hard and proceeds to the Soft or Internal in the advanced stages. Not many people have the patience or the opportunity to reach these advanced stages, so even many Shaolin students mistakenly think that their Kung Fu is not Soft and Internal. Conversely many do not realize that some styles of Tai Chi Quan were and still trained fast and hard for real fighting since much of the marketing and exposure tends to relate to the slower health side of its training.

What we can expect from an External style is more vigorous and intense training when compared to their Internal counterpart. When we look at a style like San Shou or Chinese Kick Boxing we would certainly expect a lot more cardiovascular and external conditioning. Because of this when choosing a Kung Fu style to learn, we must take into considerations our own physical capabilities and what we expect to gain.

To be proficient in self - defense we do not need to be able to kick above our head or fit enough to run a marathon. Those with an average level of health and fitness can reach a high level with proper supervision even without any rigorous cardiovascular type of training.

It’s not too late for people to start training even into their 50’s but for those I would recommend an Internal style of Kung Fu. Apart from the obvious health benefits, training internally allows us to achieve a level of power that would normally be associated with someone 20 years our junior. We are able to effectively execute techniques that we would not otherwise be able to due to lack of External Power.

Muscular degeneration is not a process we can reverse as we get older, however by training Internally we are able to maintain a higher level of power and because of that I recommend students who are over 40 and those who wish to prolong their martial prowess to take up or include Internal training.

The Author Siukee Wan is an instructor of the Shaolin Ancestors Kung Fu and currently teaches Kung Fu Classes in Guildford Surrey. To view more articles or to find further detail on the Guildford Kung Fu Classes please visit kung fu guildford