Xingyiquan – Twelve Animals Kung Fu and Applications
Okay, I’ll admit that one of the first things I noticed when reading the back of the DVD cover was that the DVD was 45 minutes long. The reason this stood out is because I’m so used to YMAA DVDs containing two and three hour programs. Even with the shorter length, “Xingyiquan: Twelve Animals Kung Fu and Applications” with Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming and Master Liang, Shou-Yu is an informative and well produced DVD reference on this Chinese internal martial art that can be translated to “Shape-Mind Fist.”
The program begins with an introduction explaining what Xingyiquan is and some basics regarding the history and art. This is taught with a voice over and subtitles and you see demonstrations of movements without instruction and some charts to illustrate points. This brief introduction also points out that this DVD accompanies the book Xingyiquan by Master Liang, Shou-Yi and Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming. While the DVD provides good information, using it with the text will provide a much more complete understanding of this art.
The program progresses in the same way, with a voice over explaining certain movements and concepts and on the screen mainly students demonstrating. While the program and book were written by Dr. Yang and Master Liang, Dr. Yang does not appear in the DVD except for some still photographs near the end. Master Liang is shown in some scenes demonstrating certain movements, but he doesn’t “teach” to the camera. The only speaking is done through the voice over, and the program is demonstration, not instruction.
A person is not going to learn Xingyiquan from this DVD. It is however, a good demonstration of the art. Fundamental postures, explanations of the postures and their relationship to the Five Elements, two -person Five Phases Matching exercise and Linking sequences are demonstrated. Movements based on the twelve animals; Dragon, Tiger, Monkey, Horse, Water Lizard, Chicken, Harrier, Swallow, Snake, Chinese Ostrich, Eagle, and Bear are demonstrated along with martial applications of the movements.
I see two groups of people who will find value in this DVD. The first group are those who are learning this art and want an additional resource for home. The book accompanied by this DVD would be good to review if you are already learning the art. Again, you won’t learn it from this DVD, but it will assist you if you are learning from a qualified instructor. The second group would be people like myself. I enjoyed learning a bit about the art and seeing the movements demonstrated for a better understanding of the art for my global perspective on martial arts as a whole. I like to learn about all arts, and once in a while borrow things to include in my training which has the Korean art of Hapkido as its core. I don’t anticipate trying to learn how to perform these animal forms, but I enjoyed learning about them. The video is a little slow to watch repeatedly, but I liked watching it to just find out more about this art.
It’s a well produced DVD, but I think it has a limited audience. You must enjoy learning about all martial arts like I do, or be a practitioner of Xingyiquan to gain value, and for deeper instruction and information you need the book that this DVD accompanies. And to learn the art, you will need a qualified instructor.…
There are many reasons why cats can experience problems with hair loss. A relatively rare reason for this to occur is because of feline endocrine alopecia. Vets don’t exactly know why this rare skin condition occurs. 
Using chlorine dioxide for cat urine odor removal allows you to eliminate the odor and any odor-causing ions that may have been absorbed into other surfaces in the room.
These day it is not at all unusual to see folks out walking their feline companion using a cat harness and leash.
We all want to pamper our loyal companions, and that’s why the dog bed has become such a popular piece of “furniture” in so many households around the world. Once upon a time, the dog bed may have been nothing more than an old blanket thrown over in the corner of a room or perhaps an old rug. Now, the dog bed has evolved and taken on shapes, sizes and styles that none of us would have imagined 20 years ago!
There are a number of facts about the origins, ancestry and character of dogs that can be very useful to those who are training dogs. As with all other species, dogs have developed their behavior and character through centuries of adaptation to an ever changing world. However, there are some innate characteristics that will forever be a part of the dog regardless of what adaptations it has taken up.
The raging debate during the use of plastic for pet bowls and pet fountains has centered almost exclusively at the direct adverse reactions of plastic around the animals using those bowls, particularly pet fountains in your dog fountain arena, particularly cat fountains.There are long been recognized that plastic water bowls can offer cats chin acne, which will manifest symptoms from blackheads to large draining pustules as well as a complete swelling in the lips, but whether it’s the plastic itself or use the reality plastic acts being a magnet for bacteria which accumulate inside the scratches that invariably happen in plastic is absolutely not clear. In conclusion however vets is, “stay from plastic water bowls”, and not just only due to its prospects for chin acne.