Can you learn martial arts from books and videos? (please watch before commenting)
2,670This question has been asked and debated quite often, and this is my opinion on the matter.
In short: No, you cannot learn fighting by just reading instructional material and practicing it on your own. But you can learn a martial art by studying manuals and videos, trying to figure out how the techniques work together with other people, and finally testing your interpretation of these techniques against a fully resisting training partner.
Instruction from an experienced practitioner is of course always going to be more efficient and give you faster results (provided that the instructor is competent). But it's not necessarily the only way.
If you want to learn more about Chinese swordsmanship in particular:
https://www.youtube.com/user/Swordsage
His reply to this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lqi92RkSB1s
********************************************************************************
My favorite online store for buying swords (worldwide shipping):
http://ww4.aitsafe.com/go.htm?go=kultofathena.com&afid=28632&tm=14&im=1
Want to help fund future videos?
http://www.patreon.com/skallagrim
My Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/SkallagrimYT