danfaggella

Though I'm mostly a grappling man, and generally I beleive in a non-hypothetical, modern base in martial arts for the maximum in functionalization, I dabble in he traditional and I have learned a good amount of interesting stuff from it that I never got from my sportive training.
One of the many different styles that my Kung Fu teacher teaches is Mantis, among other styles that he partiularly likes to teach. Soon I will start getting into Mantis and I think I will enjoy every second of it. From what I know it is a style emphisizing agressive gap-closing and quick explosive striking and clinching. Does anyone know anything about Mantis or study it?

bbbb

We learn 3-step theory. It goes with the first philosophy of ,"using Attack as your indestructible spiritual strength." It mean's that if you stand still (or go backward's) then you will be crushed by the opponent's momentum. Another view on this: There are three thing's 1) You 2) The opponent, and 3)The distance in between. If you can control 1)yourself and 3)the distance in between, then you can control your opponent.

The three step theory say's that you meet your opponent on their (and your's) second step. ie You must know exactly what 3 step's is for different opponent's and condition's. This give's you time to prepare an attack.

We use parallel feet pointing straight at the opponent to be able to run straight at them.

re: clinching...The palm strike's and then grab's to act as reinforcement for the next strike, for example.

re: explosive striking...Hitting the iron bar's for palm strike's was cool; it give's you confidence in your strike's.

__________________
Use attack as your indestructable spiritual strength.
Awareness is the spirit.
Attack is the foundation of thought.
Attack like thunder from the heaven's.
Retreat like dust of the earth.

danfaggella

Yeah I think Mantis guys like to get in close and barrage thier enemies. Thats great for someone who wants to grapple like myself, I really wanna learn about Mantis.

TheUglyEye

The best kung fu style to learn if you a grappelor in my opinion

BoarSpear

On what techniques do you base this? What other CMA styles have you been exposed to that makes you advise this one over the rest?

TheUglyEye

I did kenpo for along time, i have a friend thats been doing hung guar for three years we always compare. I find mantis to be a very close ranged style, using many locks and breaks, the theory is to stick to your oponent wherever he goes. Once a mantis fighter gains control of his opponents limbs he seems to gain control of the whole opponent. The style uses more shuffling the any style ive ever seen, for a mantis fighter standing still and moving backwords will get you hurt, you must always be moving around or forward toward you opponent. It also seems to be the only kung fu style that is formable on the ground, my sifus sifu use to feed people into the canadian jiujitsu academy(I think thats what it is called). The style was created on the hand movements of the praying mantis and the feet work of the monkey, then combined with the other sixteen styles that existed at the time.

BoarSpear

So you did kenpo and a friend has 3 Years hung gar and from that you say?

Knowing someone who practices a style hardly counts as CMA experience

Many CMA styles are formidable on the ground

danfaggella

^eeeeh, I don't know about ANY style.

Many people only know the triking and blocking and there is no takedown/takedown defence or groundwork. If only they went into Chin Na and San Shou Kuai Jiao. However, I beleive that not ALL styles include such things, and that even when hey do, they are rarely practiced.

TheUglyEye

I was wrong to say it is the only cma style that works on the ground, i just get a little to pro mantis some times.
Ive tried a little wing chung before, and what ive seen from a few other styles mantis seems to transist a lot more fluidly for stand up to ground fighting. because your sticking to your opponent the same techniques work in both a stand up situation and ground. My friend who does hung guar even though he is better then me as soon as i pull him into a grapple he gets kind of kung fu tunnel vision and he dosent know what to do. Ive also seen some monkey and that seems like it would work wonderfully on the ground. When i did kenpo i found the attacks were formabile on the ground but the blocks just didnt work the same, this is the big diffrence i find in mantis fighting on the ground compared to other styles. If practiced in ground situations it seems to transist very well.(In kenpo we also used a bit of monkey that seemed to work well on the ground, but it is very diffrent from cma monkey style, srry i can't think of the name for it right now its a really long chinese name)

7r14ngL3Ch0k3

.................:d

Mephariel

It also seems to be the only kung fu style that is formable on the ground

LOL. That is not even remotely true. Chinese Wrestling teaches groundfighting also.