| "Kung fu" has been practised in China for over | | | | building and producing "chi" which means air, or life |
| two millennia. It is thought to go back as far as | | | | force energy. Iron short was a method of |
| 1000BC. According to "Mantak Chia", in his book, | | | | protecting the internal organs from external |
| Iron Shirt Chi-Kung, (Healing Tao Books,1995, New | | | | damage by surrounding them with a shield of this |
| York), "...one tenth the population of China was | | | | chi energy. This in effect meant enemy blows |
| involved in some sort of Kung fu". | | | | merely bounced off the chi-kung practitioner. |
| Traditionally in Kung fu, training began when one | | | | Mastering internal power was demanding and time |
| was a small child in order to truly develop the | | | | consuming. This power had to be practised |
| awesome power and potential of the fighting arts. | | | | regularly, until it could be felt throughout the entire |
| Internal power generation was the primary focus | | | | body. Chi would flow evenly through every limb. |
| in training and this was something that could take | | | | Practices may have included such things as |
| up to ten years or more. It was thought | | | | throwing straight punches for up to one thousand |
| necessary to first strengthen the internal organs | | | | times a day for several years or leaping up steps |
| for later rigorous physical development and | | | | whilst carrying different weights. Upon removing |
| protection from enemy attacks. | | | | the weights the student could then leap much |
| The foundations of the art that became known | | | | higher after this training. |
| as "Iron shirt chi kung", lay in the process of | | | | |