By Josh Rosenblatt Amazon link. When Josh Robenblatt got to the age of 32 and realised he wanted to fight in an MMA match, he had to confront a lot of physical problems as well as inner demons before he set foot inside the cage. While the physicality of fighting is explored, this book is … Continue reading REVIEW: Why We Fight: One Man’s Search for Meaning Inside the Ring
Review
REVIEW: Dragon Body, Tiger Spirit: A translation and explanation of the classic texts of Xingyi Quan, by Byron Jacobs
Xing Yi is one of the oldest Chinese martial arts that is still practised today, and so naturally it has attracted a large variety of writings over the hundreds of years of its existence. These various writings can be found scattered about in different lineages and books, but now Byron Jacobs has collected them together … Continue reading REVIEW: Dragon Body, Tiger Spirit: A translation and explanation of the classic texts of Xingyi Quan, by Byron Jacobs
REVIEW Martial Art Essays from Beijing, 1760
By Michael A. DeMarco, MA Amazon link (UK) Amazon link (US) Martial Art Essays from Beijing, 1760, presents 64 essays written by Yang Mingbin, a painter in the Royal court of the Ching dynasty. Or does it? As well as being a painter, Yang was also a martial artist and the papers are his thoughts … Continue reading REVIEW Martial Art Essays from Beijing, 1760
REVIEW: Yang Short form: A beginners guide to Taiji Chuan by Leo Ming and Caroline Addenbrooke
Yang Short Form: A beginners guide to Taiji Chuan, is a beautifully made, hardback coffee-table Tai Chi book, containing a brief section on history and principles of the art, over 200 colour photos mainly for showing you the form, a few verses from the Tao Te Ching to act as inspirational quotes and more. There's … Continue reading REVIEW: Yang Short form: A beginners guide to Taiji Chuan by Leo Ming and Caroline Addenbrooke
Priit Mihkelson seminar review – Sideways Open Guard, Day 1, 21st Jan 2023
Photo: Roger Karel, Blue Dog Jiu-Jitsu (c) 2023 This is the second Priit Mihkelson seminar I’ve attended, the first being on back defence up at Chris Paines’ gym in Stafford. This latest one was on guard playing at Blue Dog Jiujitsu in Yeovil a really nice gym in deepest darkest Somerset. Like last time, this … Continue reading Priit Mihkelson seminar review – Sideways Open Guard, Day 1, 21st Jan 2023
Review: Introduction to Baguazhang by Kent Howard
$18.95, North Atlantic Books. Get it here. Introduction to Baguazhang by Kent Howard Baguazhang has always been the most curious of the three big internal arts, but while its origins are shrouded in mystery, it’s applications non-trivial and its purpose often obscure, it’s actual practice has always been something that is accessible to anybody who … Continue reading Review: Introduction to Baguazhang by Kent Howard
Review: Heal Yourself and the World with Tai-Chi by Bob Klein
Heal Yourself and the World with Tai-Chi Bob Klein Bob Klein first studied Tai Chi Chuan fifty years ago with Grandmaster William C. C. Chen, and also owned an animal importing business, which gave him a ready supply of exotic animals to test his martial skills against. In a method that sounds similar to the … Continue reading Review: Heal Yourself and the World with Tai-Chi by Bob Klein
Review: “Nonstop Jiu-Jitsu” by Brandon Mullins and Stephan Kesting
A rare and welcome return to dead tree media for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fans everywhere. Since the advent of DVD, and easily downloadable video tutorials from the likes of Kesting’s own Grapple Arts website and sites like BJJ Fanatics, new books that teach you BJJ techniques in a step-by-step manner have dwindled to the point of … Continue reading Review: “Nonstop Jiu-Jitsu” by Brandon Mullins and Stephan Kesting
A reply to Mark Chen
Photo by mana5280 on Unsplash I recently reviewed Mark Chen’s book “Chen Syle Taijiquan Collected Masterworks” which is a really good translation of Chen Zhaopi’s 1935 book on Taijiquan with additional translation notes from the author and appendices on Tai Chi matters. It’s a good book and he did a great job. That should be … Continue reading A reply to Mark Chen
Review: Chen Style Taijiquan Collected Masterworks, by Mark Chen
An important addition to the writings on Taijiquan, and Chen style in particular, that ultimately raises more questions than it answers. I first heard about this translation of Chen Zhaopi’s 1935 book on Taijiquan by Mark Chen in an interview he did with Ken Gullette on his Internal Fighting Arts podcast. It’s well worth listening … Continue reading Review: Chen Style Taijiquan Collected Masterworks, by Mark Chen
The Tai Chi Notebook 