Blog Article/Post Caveat (Read First Please: Click the Link)
On My Notes/Note: I like to mull over things before, during and especially after I write so as you read this article the notes added will be thoughts and concepts that come to me during the progression of my writings. Thanks!
First, today’s exercise was attempted for the first time ever.
Second, there are some dynamics that are different and changed to achieve my objective.
Third, the standard way it is performed was changed and adjusted for the following reasons:
- the arm positions could not be tested due to rotator issues.
- Carpet was used because the plastics slide to easily on hardwood floors. In addition, the current demo’s were done on two surfaces that naturally reduce the slippery sliding the bars material would do. Grass and a rough surface brick as example.
- A position of 90 degrees was not possible on the fist attempt so the angle’s ended up at about 80 - 85 degrees.
- The original bars had no grip material and mine does simply because the bars were made with it as modified to what you see in the snapshot provided.
- Another dynamic changed is the grip area of the bar was manufactured at a slant as can be seen.
- The original foot placement of the original bars is shoulder width apart and mine were feet with one fist width separation on the floor.
- The original demonstration karate-ka all held their hands forward on the handle allowing additional stability by the hand pushing against the forward vertical leg along with the finger while I had the material you see in my modified bars dead center with no cheating by placing my grip forward so the fore knuckle and finger can add any extra stability.
There may be other differences in the bars and other physical dynamics that have a definite effect on the performance but in essence the difficulty factor is one of those +/- by 5 research issues and regardless the test will sufficiently address any disparities.
My conclusions at this time, with knowledge I will continue practice and testing, are as follows.
- With no practice or preparation and not being active in the dojo along with a physical condition lower than the level of those original performers I was able to do 10 full deep pushups.
- I found that my wrist strength/stability had, so far, had little to do with any success.
- My grip strength did have a lot because when I didn’t keep my grip strong then the bars would start to wiggle so I merely tightened my grip.
- As long as I kept my skeletal alignment and structure true I had no issues doing the pushups. (principles applied properly that tested my mental focus)
- This test was successful enough that I will, when I can, go to Home Depot, I will make a pair with a single centered leg, no dual legs, similar to the pair in my article made by Marc MacYoung, to test it out and then make, when I can, a pair like the home made version I showed in my article on this subject (see all snapshots below).
In closing, I can see that there is a challenge in doing these kinds of pushups and I also see clearly that they have little to do with chinkuchi as I know and understand and little to do with power and force applied in a fight. It does speak to one aspect of importance and that is the stability issue of muscular strength of hands, wrists and forearms. Stability is one principle of applying any methodology toward a physical resolution to either a competition or to an aggressive violent attack requiring self-protection methodologies past avoidance and deescalation.
Note: There are differences in each pushup bar/challenge bar/X-treme versions. Mine being the weirdest and by far the easiest. The challenge pushup bars, single bar in center, is about 5” long or high vs. my 2-3 inch height with slant on handle. Both the length of the bars from handle to floor along with the slant in my challenge/X-treme bars will have an effect on its ease or difficulty and that will be determined once I create a set to match up with the challenge single leg pushup bar and the proverbial chinkuchi bars. The length from horizontal bar to floor where the legs touch will change the stability but as to how much may or may not be significant overall.
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Note: As time passes and I perform more of the pushups in question one factor comes to mind often, even when in healthy fit condition, the muscles talk to me and this one says that holding stable the bars of this kind work toward strengthening the stabilizing function of our muscular system and that is a good thing. Stabilization of the muscles say for a strike/punch helps us hold and maintain structure, alignment and stability when the fist/hand meets the target putting a good deal of stress/stressors on you and changing or supporting the energy transfer/power transfer to the target. After all, optimal-principled based multiple methodologies are the true objective regardless of all the other ancillary actions and skills you train to reach that level.
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Note: As I have advocated in previous articles we have one muscular system in our bodies and to achieve personal results to fit personal objectives and goals of our training and practice we have to develop this one system so it may optimally perform in several ways, i.e., strength ‘vs’ stabilizing ‘vs’ fast-twitch ‘vs’ slow-twitch muscle functions for all of these noted are necessary and serve a purpose especially in both sport competition and survival in self-protection.
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Note: Another theory of practicality is that this type of pushup does result in a dynamic tensioning that may be beneficial and may be not, it depends. I can feel the need to remain tense from the shoulders, arms, wrists and especially hands when doing them full body, feet together and extending chest down below the hands allowed due to the bars height, etc.
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Note: “Push-ups are the best exercise you can do because it uses your arms, your core, your shoulders, your legs to some extent,” Wood said, https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2019/02/20/doing-more-push-ups-associated-with-lower-risk-cardiovascular-disease-harvard-study-says/QfuKkoMbEsWnOUmK5y3C7I/story.html
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Note: Challenge Pushups, using my challenge pushup bars I challenged myself to do hand-stand pushups, with the bars. Hmmm… so far, as of 3-11-19, I have not been able to do more than start the hand-stand. Hmmmm…
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Note: It is apparent through the process that I can feel that the stability muscles being triggered using the challenge bars tends to work the entire chest, shoulders, arms, etc., ‘vs’ the less coverage of normal pushups. Liken this to the differences between weight machines that provide a more direct effect ‘vs’ free weights that require both muscle strength and stabilizing effects. As you already know free weights move triggering the stabilization effects muscles need to perform for structure integrity while machine weights work almost exclusively on muscular strength.
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Note: here is one for you, I use a piece of carpet on top of hardwood when doing the challenge pushups and I do notice a bit more stability from that use and it would appear doing chinkuchi pushups in the grass takes away a good deal more of the challenge because sinking into the grass reduces, possibly eliminates, the instability of the rounded ends that touch the ground making the effort less, dynamic and strenuous. In that light, when one of those folks doing the chinkuchi demo uses say, rough surfaced bricks, to do the pushups they are exposing themselves to the true nature of the challenge pushups, i.e., relying on the body to provide the stability and strength and not relying on external things like grass and feet spread out and etc. to actually do a good deal of the stabilization.
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Note: it just occurred to me when doing some challenge pushups, it is not that the pushup bars are indicative of something as complex as chinkuchi, it is about how the pushups demonstrate certain traits that manifest into chinkuchi. In short, the chinkuchi pushups do NOT indicate one has chinkuchi, it indicates certain traits that are necessary to achieve chinkuchi when interconnected with the totality of traits that do indicate one is achieving chinkuchi. This is why I prefer to call them challenge (X-treme) pushups and pushup bars because to perform them one must achieve certain principles that are also part and parcel to the chinkuchi trait, concept or principles.
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Note: in order to know one has chinkuchi or has applied it is when you apply it under duress and all its factors that affect us and achieve success in applying the principle of chinkuchi. In my view, that means you have applied all your fundamental principles, especially physiokinetic’s, efficiently in the mix of the preservation of life and limb.
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Note: Ask yourself, if chinkuchi is real then why can’t it be explained and why can’t we put it in a wheelbarrow? Chi and Ki are something we use to explain things but in today’s modern world of both philosophy and science such mystical terms to explain things is not really necessary. Principles are principles regardless of the name and concept and mysticism put to them, in short the use of such inaccurate ways to explain things is misdirection, a set of influence compliance efforts to sell a product to the masses.
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Note: it may be that using the challenge bars exclusively will only condition certain aspects of its benefits so I started to use both standard and challenge pushup bars. I have noticed that doing them does change the results so felt it best to diversify my efforts by doing pushups of a variety to benefit in as many areas as possible so that the conditioning can both strengthen and stabilize while promoting a dynamic tension toward stabilization while also allowing a flexible changing strength similar to training for both fast-twitch and slow-twitch strengthening benefits.
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Note: As you already know and imagine the more you do the challenge pushups the easier, relatively, they are to perform. So far, other than a dynamic tensing of the hands and wrists and forearms to keep the balance on the bars the only real benefit is how you learn and adhere to the stabilizing effect this has. In the karate world that means, it seems, a better ability to strike with the fist but is that the most effective method? Not really, stabilization to achieve chinkuchi is about principles that cover the entire body. Doing the challenge pushups contribute to the totality but more important is how you use the hands, open hands is far superior to the closed fist for self-protection, to apply methods and principles to stop an attack if all else fails.
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Note: It would seem that one of the benefits of the challenge pushup bars is a type of focus that if trained properly, appropriately, that it may move into a triggered auto-concept whereby, possibly, under adrenal stressors of violence when using the hands, one strikes if need be with the fist the wrist, forearm and fist-clench will remain stable.
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Note I: take into consideration the length of the legs of either chinkuchi bars or the challenge bars, does the length make any real difference and what is the optimal length one must have in their bars to equate proper length to validate the pushup bars and pushups as either a challenge or chinkuchi based pushups? Is two inches enough, not enough or just right? How about three inches? How about five inches? How about eight inches?
Note II: how about the length of the grip bar where one grasps the bar with the hands? Should the hands be centered? Should the hands be a bit forward with one finger against the corner/leg at the front which is how many do the chinkuchi pushups? Should the bar be stainless steel? Should it have some grip material like tape to help with sweaty palms and sliding of slick steel?
Note III: how about how the bars are place on what material ground, i.e., grass and dirt where the bars sink down providing a lot of additional stability? On a hard surface like wood or cement of brick where the rounded ends of the legs easily slide on said material? Does that contribute of take away from the challenge and/or chinkuchi manifestation thought to occur doing the pushups?
Note IV: does anyone really know, besides me as to my theory and physics, etc., explaining chinkuchi principles, what the challenge pushups manifests as to its belief it signifies chinkuchi ability and how is that possible in such a narrow presentation and physical performance since pushups are a limited physical manifestation of human ability?
Note V: does anyone who uses and performs on the chinkuchi pushup bars even consider such things or do they simply accept the compliance influence of a perceived expert as to what demonstrates and proves the concept of chinkuchi in karate from Okinawa? Has anyone other than me done any type of analysis and from said analysis come up with possible theories and concepts and explanations as to what chinkuchi is and how to test for it if a test is even possible outside actual encounters where the concept of chinkuchi is actually used, observed, analyzed, tests and proved to be that principle called, “chinkuchi?” I believe it is a challenge and that since no one to date has provided a comprehensive and provable definition and expression of chinkuchi in reality that most, if not all, simply accept whatever feasible explanation is provided as long as it comes from a perceived expert with expert status accepted by the whole that is the martial arts communities.
Addendum dtd, 3-20-2019 at 13:30 hours:
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Note: just a side note if you will to say that I am, using my current challenge pushup bars, up to fifteen pushups. I do four sets of fifteen while concentrating on the process and performance and in comparison to normal pushup bars pushups that get deeper than the standard hand pushups only. Initially it appears that there is no significant benefit from the standard v. the challenge except in how the hands, wrists and forearms use a dynamic tension to grip and stabilize the balance while doing the challenge pushups. I am continuing until I can gleam some significant facts of this non-scientific research into the chinkuchi pushup challenge issue of my mind while sharing the effort and results with the martial karate communities.
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Note: The greatest challenge to these challenge/chinkuchi pushups is not falling prey to either cognizant dissonance or confirmation biases because that would make the effort singularly one-sided slated to support and defend one-side. To be wholehearted one must be able to test such things beyond the efforts and effects of dissonance and biases. It is possible that this may be the true benefit of the effort in the end…
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Note: In my research of the challenge/chinkuchi push ups I discovered an interesting item. I use a carpet “pad” that is 1/8” to 1/4” thick on top of hardwood flooring to, first, provide a non-slip surface for the slick round ends of the legs to my challenge push-up bars, and, second, is provide a surface with slight give to prevent my knuckles from tearing when the bars slip and my hands hit the floor.
Now that a bit of background has been laid, here is the tidbit I discovered. When I laid down the pad at each session it had no indents, etc., and then I discovered if I did successive sets of pushups with the leg ends placed in the first set indents I could “Feel” more stability that led to another insight.
When the bars are set in a grassy area they will sink down quiet a bit making the bars way more stable and removing a good bit of the difficulty and Chinkuchi factor.
Addendum dtd, 3-31-2019 at 16:30 hours:
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Note: It is apparent, you can see this already, that to use challenge bars has one side that could, emphasize could, be an obstacle to true chinkuchi and power. It requires tension in the shoulders, arms and hands at all times BECAUSE that is the state of the muscles in those area’s through the entire cycle of the pushup. When striking using the hands and arms to truly generate and use energy conservatively through the principle of relaxing to tension to relaxation, i.e., “sequential locking and sequential relaxation,” the constant tensioning necessary to do the pushups correctly with the challenge bars is counter intuitive to that principle along with things like, “relaxation, wave energy, etc.,” It is a great strength builder and it helps the stabilization of the muscular system and skeletal system but as to chinkuchi, it is not a true test of that capability in at least this sense.
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VISIT THIS PAGE AS NOTES ARE ADDED AS I COMPLETE MORE STAGES OF TESTING AND ASSESSMENTS ABOUT CHALLENGE PUSHUPS/BARS AND THE CONCEPT OF THE PRINCIPLE OF CHINKUCHI!!!!!
For reference and sources and professionals go here: Bibliography (Click the link)
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