Choy Lay Fut Kung Fu: Complete Combat Theory: Volume 1 Paperback – March 20, 2020

This book is more of an experience than a how-two. It unfolds like a story as the author tells readers how he got started as a martial artist, his introduction to the Choy Lay Fut method, and how it changed his life forever. The pictures are in black and white but are clear enough to grasp examples of highlighted stances and techniques. Originally, I wasn't looking forward to the history section in this book which showcases five generations of Choy Lay Fut masters handing down skills to their students until their instruction reaches the author. However, when I got to this section, I found myself captivated by the rich history surrounding this amazing traditional Chinese martial art.While the book will be far more interesting to readers with before-hand exposure to Choy Lay Fut Kung Fu, even readers with first-time exposure will find a ton of things to learn as far as theory or technique. I recommend this for any practicing or aspiring martial artist or enthusiast of traditional Chinese martial arts, and I look forward to reading Volume 2 in the future.

This book is very thorough in it's explanations of Choy Li Fut fighting theories and training methods. Sifu Chris Childs has long contributed to the spread Traditional Chinese Martial Arts by writing articles and uploading videos to YouTube, giving many access to details, concepts, and theories that they might not receive in their own training. There is another review mentioning the book containing many stories of the Ng Family association, and I will confirm that there are stories about various students and instructors but they are dispersed throughout the book, between the educational parts which again, are very thorough. There is much to be learned from this book, and much that you can supplement it from Sifu Childs' YouTube Channel if you really want to up your level of training.On an extra note, there was a very thorough Forward written by Philip Ng, which already sets the stage for the book itself. If you are a student of CLF, no matter your lineage or relation to the Ng Family association, I really suggest adding this book to your library.

In this book, Sifu Chris Childs presents an extremely comprehensive, systematic, and accessible view of Choy Lay Fut Kung Fu. Interleaved with interesting stories from the author's childhood, anecdotes, and testimonials of the system's effectiveness you will find a treasure trove of martial knowledge. This book presents a highly systematic breakdown of the system ranging from the basic - stances, 10 elements, etc. - to the advanced - tactical and strategic themes, gate theory, lines of force, etc. - as well as a progressive training method for building these skills.

I am a JKD practitioner of 18 years and have recently added CLF to my style rotation under the tutelage of a well qualified instructor. I was really excited to discover this, as there aren’t many books on the style. Even more so, because it is concept based rather than just being a technique index. It does indeed have some good principle explanations, and some basics. Unfortunately, it is very heavily weighed down by constant lavish praise for the author’s instructors and their organization. I totally understand the desire and responsibility to thank ones teachers, and give credit where credit is due. But this is taken to the extreme here. The first 80 (!) pages are for the most part dedicated to stories about the Ng family style of CLF, and why it is unique. After that the first actual technical material is introduced, only to be constantly derailed by endless further sections about the contributions of the Ng family association. It becomes extremely distracting from the core material and comes off almost as an advertisement at times. The actual principles are sound, but many feel like they could be explained in a more in depth way. For instance, it’s made clear that proper stance is a key fundamental for success, and that copious training time is dedicated to perfecting structure. Yet the four major stances get roughy two sentences of information each. And while the asterisk footwork drill is a great training tool (found in multiple arts), there is little help when it comes to actually transitioning from one stance to the next, which I find to be one of the most challenging aspects of the art. I do like that the focus is on practical efficacy, and somebody coming from a very traditional background may find the material on progressive sparring useful. But if you already have experience in practical combatives, it actually comes off as a bit dated. The heavy focus on competitive sport fighting seems to have instilled a sparring mentality here, where you spend time “feeling out” the opponent. This will get you killed on the street where overwhelm and exit is the key. Finally, I would have loved to have seen some discussion of multiple attacker drills and applications, given that the style is known for its utility in that situation. The author states early on that the original intent was more of a textbook type manual, and I think he should have followed that route. Easily half the book could have been edited down, and technical concepts elaborated upon to produce a more punchy and useful volume. Overall, I feel it was a good effort and I appreciate what the author was trying to do, but can’t help but feel slightly disappointed, especially given that this is not a cheap book. It just feels a bit underdeveloped on the technical side and overstuffed with fawning over his alma mater.

The breakdown of fundamentals in volume 1 is scientific and precise, giving you as a reader the sense of why each technique is important in proper execution. Anyone who has trained in any martial art has inevitably had an experience where an instructor can't give you a solid reason for why a technique is done a certain way, or at least tries to swindle their way through it with a bunch of bull crap. You will not see any of that with Sifu Chris Childs. This isn't your normal martial arts book with step by step, picture after picture, poorly put together way to try and learn something. The well thought out dialogue paints a solid picture in your mind to aid you in your training.This essential handbook of Choy Lay Fut is a must have for any serious practitioner or enthusiast. Be prepared to scuff up the pages by thumbing through them many times as you glean every little detail in your journey. As a matter of fact, you might as well buy a second copy. I am very much looking forward to the next volume in this series.

Libro muy bueno de Choy Lay Fut Kung Fu , que no te debe faltar si te interesan las artes marciales.Lo unico malo es que esta en ingles.espero que pronto saquen el volumen 2