5 Funky Shaolin Kung Fu Training Tricks That Will Make You A Better Fighter

Besides mastering punching, kicking, and a variety of weapons, the training of the Shaolin monks also granted them incredible mastery over their body, with such feats as…

… balancing their entire body weight on just one finger

… breaking boards and tiles with just the touch of the palm…

… and don’t get me started on their dreaded “Iron Crotch” skills!

Of course, practically their entire “work day” was spent practicing martial arts – so naturally they’ve become very skilled in these “warrior arts”.

And while you and I may not have hours to spend balancing on a pencil while holding a full water bucket in each hand, there are some pretty interesting “training tricks” you can do that will help you gain a tactical advantage in a real fight.

Try these on for size…

Maitreya (aka “Ringing Round A Tree”)

Skill-Set: Grappling Dominance

Can you imagine the looks on your neighbors’ faces when they look out their kitchen window to see you “humping a tree” in your back yard?

Well, let ’em talk because, this strange “Ringing Round A Tree” exercise trains your arms, chest, and “core” stomach muscles and develops what Shaolins call ‘the flows of the inner force’.

And in combat, it was said that Shaolin warriors could clasp their opponents body with both arms and inflict heavy (and even fatal!) injuries… no matter how big they were.

Here’s how to do it…

1. Select a large tree in your back yard, local park, or other (preferably more private) wooded area that’s just big enough to wrap your arms around.
2. Bend slightly at the knees and “hug” the tree with both arms just below your armpit level.
3. Squeeze the tree’s trunk tightly, and try to pull it out of the ground.
4. Pull for about 10 seconds, rest for 10 seconds, then repeat.
5. Aim for about 5 “sets” of these cycles and challenge yourself to do it every day for a week to get started.

Once your arms, chest, and stomach muscles strengthen, the force increases and your first results start to show in no time.

Upon mastery, Shaolin students had the force to uproot fully grown trees and lift their entire weight rounding it with both arms.

For you, that force is what you need in a close-quarters lock-up with a larger attacker and imagine the shock they’ll feel when you lift them right off their feet and slam them to the pavement in a loud thud!

T-Shui Guang & Monk Pillar Skill

Skill-Set: Balance

This technique combines physical endurance, core strength, and, crucially, immense mental discipline (Chan or Zen) to optimize your balance, focus, and composure while under physical strain.

In the Shaolin monastery, monks would stand on two pillars – one foot on each pillar – then sit in a squatting position with a sharp bamboo stick under them.

They held bowls filled with water, one in each hand (and often even one on top of their heads!) and with their arms extended to each side, had to balance and not spill a single drop of water.

Masters of this skill can remain in full balance and completely motionless for at least two hours at a time.

While you don’t need to be that ambitious, here’s how you can adapt a version of this exercise for your own training…

1. Start by standing with one foot on a small, stable object like a thick book, low step, or yoga block, while keeping your other foot on the floor.
2. Lower yourself into a slight “squat” and hold that position while keeping your chest up and your body still.
3. Now add a “balance challenge” by holding a completely full cup of water in each hand.Your goal is simple: Stay steady, stay controlled, and don’t spill.
4. Hold for 20 to 30 seconds, then switch sides.

As you improve, squat a little lower, hold longer, or use larger, heavier cups filled to the brim.

This builds the kind of leg strength, core stability, and balance control that helps you stay grounded, strike more powerfully, and harder to knock off position.

Yi Zhi Chan Gong (aka. “One Finger Of Chan Meditation”) 

Skill-Set: Precision Targeting

Most people think speed wins fights.

But speed without accuracy is just panic flailing that won’t do you a damn bit of good.

Just ask Shaolin Master Xi Hei Zi…

Master Zi of the Southern Shaolin school hung a small weight from a tree he often walked by on his daily travels.

Each time he passed the tree, he would shoot his hand out to jab the weight with his index finger.

Besides developing laser-like accuracy with his “finger strikes”, Zi was also able to focus his mind and body to turn a single finger jab into a debilitating deep-penetration body strike.

(Eventually he was able to make the weight move from as far away as 11 feet away, using only his “internal chi” – but let’s not push your skills too far too soon there, Grasshopper. 😉)

Here’s how you can use this Shaolin training trick yourself…

1. Tie a tennis ball to a string and hang it from a ceiling or beam at about eye level in a location you pass by regularly.This can be just on the other side of a doorway, in a closet, or near your vehicle’s driver-side door in your garage.
2. Every time you pass it, fire a quick, precise jab with your index finger.Your goal isn’t to smack the ball across the room.Your goal is to touch it – clean, fast, and controlled – moving the ball in the exact direction your brain “intends” it to travel.No wind-up…
   No hesitation…
   Just snap → strike → move on.(If it swings wildly, you used too much force. Back it up, slow it down, and focus on your accuracy before adding power.)
3. Once you start consistently hitting with accuracy, downgrade your target to use:
   • A ping pong ball
   • A golf ball
   • A large washer from your tool chest
4. Level up your skills as the drill becomes easier, such as:
   • Strike while looking in a slightly different direction
   • Strike from different positions and body angles
   • Strike after turning your head toward it at the last second

This better simulates a real fight by forcing you to react quickly to a “target of opportunity” instead of anticipating where the target is.

Bonus Training Tip: Being able to strike any target – with your finger, your fist, or even with a weapon like a knife or other object – means your brain has to “map” the exact location of all your fingers, your hand, wrist, your arm, and where all are at any given moment in the space around you (called “proprioception”).

This is one of the reasons why Shaolin monks trained with “baoding balls” – to literally program this level of “body intelligence” into every move.

These small metal balls, rotated in various ways in your hand, train your “brain-body connection” to make all your movements – strikes, blocks, jabs, joint manipulations, even weapon disarms – incredibly accurate and powerful.

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What Other Simple, Effective Ways Can You Train “Self-Defense Skills” Throughout Your Day?

Please Share Your Own “Shaolin-Like Secrets” With Your Fellow Warriors In The Comments Below Now…