I've seen on the internet these martial artist who claim to be able to be stronger, faster than normal limits. Is this possible? can some1 move faster than a normal man can? Is it even heard of? or is it a bunch of bull? Just curious....Reply back, any1 who has some input to give

well merc, what kinds of things to these internet martial artists claim they can do?

I have heard that the great Moreihi Ueshiba (founder of aikido) could dodge bullets.

Shaolin monks can lean onto a spear with their necks. Many things are possible.

What's normal? If we are talking about a 'couch potatoe' versus someone who trains, he will be quicker and may be able to do things that seem unbelievable. Truth of the matter is, what is it that we do, that is the question. Can we leap over a car coming at us at 5 miles and hour, I can't, but Mas Oyama certainly did. Yabu sensei in Okinawa used to jump from barges in the river to the bridge above. Can't do that either, but he sure did. so what are these normal limits, and who is this normal man. I can sure move quicker that a 300 pound, out of shape, short winded, frito munching 50 year old, but I can't dodge bullets>

[QUOTE]Tatsuo Shimabuku the founder of the isshinryu system.Said no 2 people are exactly the same,No matter how hard a student trained, you never wld ba able to perform like his/her instuctor.Everyone's strengths & are different,But it is important to work on whtever weaknesess each person has.& it's because of these different strengths that makes us human & not super human. PS To All of my martial arts brothers I wish you a merry christmas.

this is to the first 2 replies....

yes ive heard some1 claim they can dodge bullets, and run faster than a car can...ive heard someone can be shot but not be harmed...is it possible?!?!?!?

and a normal man, i mean a healthy, athlete...you know, someone who pushes untrained abilities. and how far is it from the barges to the bridge above? and how tall is he?

Dude, use some discretion here. "Jumping from a barge to the bridge above" didn't mean he did a Six-Million-Dollar-Man type 20-foot vertical leap and land on his feet! He probably used to jump up, grab the bridge and pull himself up. An excellent physical workout (dynamic, full body weight exercise) and admirable (he probably had one shot at the jump, and it was likely a fair distance) but be reasonable.

No, nobody can dodge bullets or take spears to the throat. At least, not the way you're thinking. Hell, my seniors do the spear-to-the-neck demonstration...and they never "train" it. (Which sometimes leads to bruising, but that's about it.) As with most demonstrations, they are more about "tricks" and are highly controlled, than they are about real application. I mean really, if "Iron Vest" existed and was even semi-reproducible, wouldn't everyone be doing it?

This is not to say that there aren't certain cool things that can be done, I'm just saying to use some intelligence when you look at/think about something you see/hear. Don't let mysticism and "tradition/respect" blind you to reality.

Regards,
CrimsonTiger