How Observing A Tigers Strength, Courage, And Power Gave Birth To The Tiger Style Of Kung Fu.

So I'm watching this nature channel special on television, right? This one in particular is all about tigers and their hunting habits. It seems these guys are super aggressive when it comes to hunting their prey. First off, this animal is the biggest feline in the world. I was surprised when I heard that fact. I always thought that lions were the biggest cat out there, you know? Boy was I wrong! These tigers are huge. The Siberian variety can be up to twelve feet long and up to seven hundred pounds of pure muscle. Scary. And so is tiger style Kung fu.

So how does a tiger kill its victim? By going straight for the throat, my friend. That is right. A tiger will stalk its prey until the time to pounce has come and then it will jump right on its back if it can, latching onto its throat from behind. Once it has it locked on, the tiger will use its powerful forearms to bring the victim down to the ground and begin squeezing with its jaws. I saw some of these take downs on this show about them and I can tell you it was quite impressive the way the tiger operates. They have no fear and take no chances. They go out there and get what they want. I want to be that way when I do kung fu, don't you?

And believe it or not, you can be that way. This style of fighting is called tiger style. Of course it is. What better way to illustrate an aggressive, hunter style fighting than to name it after this great cat? In the early days of its training and use in the martial arts, the tiger style was developed to imitate the fearlessness and aggression of the animal. The tiger is one of the five animals so named in Chinese martial arts. The tiger's claw" has to do with the position of the fingers when attempting to strike an opponent. It is really cool to see it done right.

In the practice of the style, I have found it to be very similar to the attacking nature of the cat in the wild. The tiger strikes straight ahead and almost never, ever retreats or backs up. You see, you can't do that in a fight. You have to go forward, over and over again attacking and pushing until you win. Think of the movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The characters in that movie rarely back up. They pounce on their enemies, jumping around all over the place until they can strike. When they do strike, they take the enemy down.

I think that tiger style Kung Fu is the most excited to watch and to practice. It is so natural and instinctual. Once you start practicing, it comes very easy. Real fighting is all about being aggressive and keeping your opponent off balance. That is exactly how a tiger fights.