Chang Wu ChiLin of Maryland

06/02/2026

I have made references to Jack Dempsey's book several times while teaching. And although I have read excerpts and footnotes, I must admit, I have never truly read the book proper. But this audio book presented by Ramsey Dewey is a remarkable listen. And those who have been students of mine should see that, even unbeknownst to me, my teaching method closely follows Jack's philosophy. Thank you Ramsey for putting this on. I hope to find more of your readings and now must go find a copy of this book to read myself.

A recording of Jack Dempsey's excellent book "Championship Fighting...

05/23/2026

Martial Arts Rant:
Your style is not just the Sum of your Techniques

People get way too hung up on techniques as if a martial art is just a shopping cart full of moves. "Oh look, they do a hip throw, that's judo." "Oh they worked a double leg, now they're MMA." That's not how martial arts systems work. A style is defined by the strategy, structure, timing, training methods, and tactical philosophy behind those techniques.

A hip throw inside a kung fu system is not automatically judo because the context is completely different. How is the throw entered? What posture is being used? What ranges does the system prefer? Is the goal to clinch and dominate, or is the throw just a quick interruption before disengaging? Two arts can use nearly identical movements while pursuing completely different tactical objectives. The move itself is only one piece of the puzzle.

Once while sparring with my Taekwondo and Arnis instructor in TKD class, I saw him shift between different modalities of combat. He still was hitting me with round kicks, front kicks, and back knuckles. Nothing visibly changed in terms of the techniques themselves. But something changed midway through the spar and then shifted back again. I noticed it immediately but I couldn't quite identify what I was seeing. Afterwards I asked him about it. He told me he had started employing the Tasulad and the first five strikes of the Doce Teros. He was basically applying stick fighting concepts without the stick because we were doing TKD sparring. Mostly the same techniques. Completely different strategic framework underneath it all.

Martial arts have borrowed from each other for centuries. They always have. What makes an art distinct is not whether it contains a certain punch, throw, lock, or takedown. Human bodies only move so many ways. What matters is how the system organizes those tools into a coherent method of fighting. That's the actual identity of a martial art, not the surface level appearance of individual techniques.

No single style owns a kick or a motion.

Train Diligently
Train Patiently
Train Honorably

05/18/2026

Martial Arts Rant:
Identifying as a Martial Artist

As an instructor I often get people requesting lessons. And with every potential student, before we start we sit down and discuss their goals.
No matter what their end goal is; getting into shape, competition, or just learning the art, I let them know it is going to be hard work.

At that moment without fail everyone assures me that they are up for the task. But after the first class is when I find out how much they really want it.

It's easy to tell yourself you're ready. The hard part is being ready. But I have a trick for you. All you have to do is Identify as a martial artist.

You see, when your alarm goes off at 5am because the night before you convinced yourself you'd wake up early and get in a morning exercise. At that moment when you're about to hit the snooze for the third time, ask yourself, what would a martial artist do right now?
Or when you're in class and you're working on a certain exercise (horse stance, heavy bag, wrestling drills) and you're gasping for air and your muscles are screaming at you. Ask yourself, what would a martial artist do right now?
After class when you're tired and just want a shower, a burger, and the bed, but you know you should stretch or record notes from class, ask yourself what would a martial artist do right now?

Identifying as a martial artist isn't trying to convince people around you that you are what you want to be. Identifying as a martial artist is convincing yourself you are what you want to be.

And that image of what a martial artist is, that is personal to you. That is your image of what you want to become. Identify as that. Not by telling others what you are. But by telling yourself what you are.

Over time, after much hard work and repeatedly reminding yourself of what you expect from you. You won't have to convince anyone else. It will be apparent to all who you are.

Train Diligently
Train Patiently
Train Honorably

05/04/2026

Martial Arts Rant:
Crafting your Sword

As a martial arts instructor, I often receive requests for training from individuals who are currently living in fear of personal attack.
And I understand the urgency, but unfortunately this is often the worst time to begin training.

There’s an old saying: “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is today.”

And while I fully agree you should not delay your training, there’s an important distinction that needs to be made.
If you are currently in an active or perceived threat situation, a week or two of martial arts training will not make you safer. At best, it may distract you from the more immediate and practical steps that actually reduce riskawareness, reporting threats, adjusting routines, staying with trusted friends, and using available support systems. At worst, it will give you a false sense of readiness.

That’s why martial arts is not a shield you pick up in an emergency, it is a sword you forge over time.

Self-defense is not a panic solution. It is a long-term time craft.

So, start now. Even if you feel safe. Especially if you feel safe.
Because the truth is simple: right now is the “20 years ago” of your future self.
Do not wait until you are afraid to wish you had trained earlier.
Don’t be caught without a blade just because you didn’t think you needed to sharpen it yet.
And above all train before you think you must.

Train diligently.
Train patiently.
Train honorably.

04/24/2026

Sparring is a very important part of learning martial arts. But don't Spar to fight, Spar to play.

Something weird is happening in martial arts... The world's greatest fighters have stopped sparring. In this video I explain why, what they're doing instead,...

04/19/2026

Martial Arts Rant:
What is Qi 氣!

There is a lot of misunderstanding around the term qi 氣. Most of it comes from poor translations—Taiji instructors who barely spoke English teaching students who barely spoke Chinese. Somewhere along the way, things got… mystical.

Qi 氣 is made up of two parts: 米 (mi), meaning rice, and 气 (qi), meaning steam, air, or v***r. The character 氣 describes steam rising off cooked rice. That visible, almost magical v***r coming off the most important staple food in East Asia.
People saw that steam and understood it as the essential expression of the rice—its warmth, its life, its usefulness. That’s why you eat rice while it’s hot. Once the steam is gone, something important is lost.
Today, 氣 is simplified to 气, and you still see that meaning in everyday words.
汽油 (qi you) — gasoline
气球 (qi qiu) — balloon
In both cases, the idea of air, v***r, or gas is still there.

Even in traditional martial arts, qi points back to something physical. QiGong 气功 literally means breath work. When you’re told to sink your qi to your dantian, what are you actually doing? You’re breathing lower—using your diaphragm instead of your chest. You’re regulating pressure, structure, and movement in the body.
So don’t get it twisted. Qi isn’t some magical elixir or invisible force field.
It’s the body in motion. It’s breath. It’s pressure. It’s function.

Let’s get our heads out of the clouds and our feet back on the ground.

Train Diligently
Train Patiently
Train Honorably

04/06/2026

Random Thought:
A dojo is a success due to the effort of the students.
A dojo is a failure due to the lack of the instructor.

04/03/2026

Martial Arts Rant:
Development Triangle

Many have argued that if you want to develop martial skill, you must spar. And spar regularly. While I agree with that, I object to the idea that other forms of training are useless.
Walk into any reputable boxing gym and long before they put you in a ring with a partner, they will condition you and have you shadow box. This shadow boxing is not just meant to wear you out and improve your cardio, though it will. It is meant to teach the fundamentals of boxing.

Keep your hands up.
Connect your punches through your body and legs.
Keep your wrist straight.
Do not hyperextend your elbow.
Do not over-throw your shoulder.
Time your punches with your footwork.

Once your connection is decent, you will be progressed to the heavy bag and target pads. When the instructor feels you can strike and defend, only then will you be promoted to sparring. This should not be a long journey, about 1 to 3 months. You are not expected to be proficient your first time sparring, just capable of following instructions.

These steps are not unique to boxing, or at least they should not be. When I was first starting out in Taekwondo in the 90s, this same progression was standard.

First is Form:
Whether you call it forms, kata, taolu, or shadow boxing, this is the most pure and clean kind of practice you can perform. It is here you learn and refine your shape and structure.
From keeping your elbows down,
to staying rooted instead of rising when you move or strike,
to timing your breath with your movement.
Form allows you to focus on these things without distraction.
When you are hitting a bag, drilling with a partner, or worrying about being punched in the face, your attention is divided. Forms remove that division. They give you space to build and refine the fundamentals cleanly.

Next is Drills:
Where forms teach you to unify movement with intention, drills teach you timing and distance.
Drills show you how techniques should work, or at least a rough approximation. They teach you where you need to be in relation to your opponent to succeed. They also begin to show you what can go wrong, and how to respond when it does.
There are lessons in partner drills that remain hidden in solo practice. Once you begin to see them, your form starts to change. Not drastically, but enough that your form begins to support your drills, and your drills begin to inform your form.

Then Sparring:
This is where the rubber meets the road.
As far as raw mechanics go, most things can be taught through forms and drilling. But sparring develops something far more difficult to cultivate. Temperament.
You can know exactly what to do and when to do it. You can watch a fight and break down what each person should do to win.
But if you have not been tempered under pressure, you will falter when it matters.
Sparring is not combat, nor should it be. But it is the closest safe approximation we have. It forces you to remain composed while someone is actively trying to disrupt you.
Only here do the pieces begin to connect. Only here can you apply what was built in forms and drills.

The Problem:
Too often I see martial artists practice clean, well-structured forms with a multitude of applications, only to spar and abandon it all. What follows is not their art, but a rough, unrefined version of kickboxing.
This is disjointed at best and counterproductive at worst.
You are not integrating your training. You are dividing it.
Practicing two things, and neither of them are complete.

Instead there is another path that many overlook. Work the skills from your forms into your sparring. Let your drills become the bridge between the two.
When this happens, everything changes. Your forms take on new meaning. Your drills become something to study, not just repeat. Your sparring begins to reflect your actual art.

Final Thought:
It is only when these three are working together that you are truly practicing your system. Karate, Taekwondo, Kung Fu, Silat, whatever it may be. Do not discard parts of your training simply because you do not yet see their value. Unify them, and the value reveals itself.
Follow the Development Triangle. Build real skill.

Train Diligently
Train Patiently
Train Honorably

03/28/2026

03/25/2026

Sorry all who were going to attend tonight's live Kung-fu Kardio. A mix of bad knees and bad internet connection has limited my ability to broadcast today. Please stay tuned for future updates and you can visit my YouTube channel "Chang Wu ChiLin of Maryland" to view the edited versions of these sessions.

Thank you again
谢谢大家