Friday, 5/2/97 Kicking and screaming Huy Hoang’s Martial Arts
Club is a resounding success in the dorms, encouraging a
strengthening of the mind, body and spirit through strenuous
exercise.
By Susan Lee Daily Bruin Contributor Sweating profusely, a group
of exhausted students clad in T-shirts and sweats share the ups and
downs of heavy breathing. Held two nights a week, the fast-growing
Martial Arts Club is unique from other health and martial
arts-related classes available to UCLA students because it is the
only class held in the dorms. Although class sizes fluctuate each
week, positive word of mouth from dorm residents, as well as flyers
around the residence halls, has helped the recreational class grow
from its initial 10 members. As an alternative exercise to the
workout equipment available in residential halls, the student-run
martial arts class throws students more than a few punches and
kicks; they also undergo a string of conditioning exercises. The
Golden Gate Bridge. Tigers and Dragons. And of course, the infamous
Dying Turtle. Although these conditioning techniques sound straight
out of a fairy tale, they are actually some of the most difficult
tasks Huy Hoang’s students are asked to do. "The difficulty ranges
throughout the whole class," said Hoang, a second-year earth and
space science student and class instructor. "I like throwing in
different exercises, but the difficulty doesn’t increase, only
fluctuates. Some things will be harder and some will be easier,
depending on how students react." A black-belt in Bao Truyen, a
form in which he has had 11 years of experience, Hoang decided to
offer a martial arts club for anyone on campus. He missed teaching
and attending his Bao Truyen Martial Arts Academy class in San
Jose. His plan sounded simple enough: go to Wooden and then ask for
a room. However, he found that renting a room was expensive, and
claims he was "practically turned away because they had enough
classes and didn’t need something else to compete with other
classes for participants." Next, Hoang turned to the Center for
Student Programming, and officially on Jan. 27, the club found a
home for a short while on the third floor of Sunset Commons. "My
goal was really simple for anyone participating in the club, which
was just to have physical fitness, have fun, gain confidence and to
feel great," Hoang said. Because it is a recreational class versus
a class training for tournaments, Hoang said he tries to balance
conditioning exercises with martial arts, although Bao Truyen
focuses more on the learning of internal force, or energy that
exists in the body. The exercises start off easy, with the regular
25 jumping jacks during warm-ups. "Sit," Hoang shouts, as the class
chimes back a chorus of "down"s, followed by a few conditioning
exercises to get the cardiovascular system pumping. "Get,"
encourages Hoang, which is followed by another chorus of "up"s as
the class prepares to practice punching and kicking. Following the
warm-ups are conditioning exercises designed to emphasize
technique. Thirty minutes later, students are busy catching their
breaths while loudly screaming "Kiya!" during the last exercise of
a set. The purpose of the cry, Hoang said, is to help increase
confidence while kicking or striking, as well as to intimidate
opponents. Near the end of the hour, Hoang proclaims
enthusiastically, "Let’s all do the Dying Turtle!" A chorus of
groans follows, as 12 students lie down with their legs and hands
pulled up away from the ground, like upside-down turtles struggling
to stay up. A gasp of disbelief circulates about the room as Hoang
adds, "Now count to 60!" Similar conditioning exercises have
enabled students to practice getting their bodies in shape. "I’ve
always wanted to tone myself up, and the class does wonders for
that," said Toan Nguyen, a second-year English student. "However, I
personally hate the Dying Turtle because it not only works on your
stomach but on all parts of your body – the back, legs and arms,"
Nguyen jokes. "You know I try to be a workhorse and exercise every
day in order to maintain my Atlas body to impress the girls."
Acknowledging that there are other classes offered which are more
intense, Hoang added that his job is to offer students various
exercises of varying degrees of difficulty to test them to do their
best. "I don’t think he goes too easy. He pushes everyone, but no
one’s expected to do everything. The cards are kind of just laid
out, and if you want to play the hand you can. And if you don’t
want to you don’t have to," said Sandy Ong, a third-year
biochemistry student. Others simply enjoy the combination of
individual techniques with group exercises. This structure allows
participants to push themselves while interacting with the class as
a whole, Hoang said. Some of the innovative techniques have
included jumping over a partner and a kangaroo-type hop around a
circle of people. Encouraging a group effort, members link arms
together, bodies side-by-side, to complete a set of 10 group sit
ups. "The class itself fulfills, maybe not so much a need for the
class but perhaps more of a desire by other people to attend a
class where they can learn and just have fun," Hoang said. However,
next to the conditioning and exercise involved, most students cited
location as the most motivating draw. "Convenience is a big factor
because even though I could walk down to Wooden, I probably
wouldn’t go as much because it’s just an hour-long class," Ong
said. "But definitely the most rewarding thing about going is the
physical exercise … once I get totally involved I see how far I
can push myself, and everything else gets zoned out." Another
factor is the time of night the class is held. "It’s a good time
because it’s long enough after dinner that you can rest up and it’s
also at a time when students are done with class and meetings and
most people are home," said Julie Dimashkieh, a first-year
political science student. However, the accessibility of the class
to dorm residents has not come without problems. Trying to go
through the proper channels has meant last minute room changes for
Hoang’s class as well as meetings with facilities coordinators in
Sunset Village. During the Winter Quarter, the class was held
fairly consistently in Sunset Commons. But early this quarter,
Hoang was informed by the Sunset Village Resident’s Association
(SVRA) that the facility was not designed for that kind of
exercise. "Basically the floors have a certain degree of tolerance
and the building just wasn’t constructed for that purpose," said
Dimashkieh, a member of the SVRA Tabling Committee. "I know for
aerobics programs they have to bring in these huge expensive mats,
and if anyone got hurt, then SVRA would be responsible for that."
Hopeful that things will soon be resolved and that the class will
have a permanent room, Hoang will soon meet with Canyon Point
resident director Russell Davis and Dimashkieh to discuss his
options. "The only time I get frustrated is when I can’t get a
room," Hoang said. "It doesn’t even matter how many people show up.
I love teaching either one or many." Hoang emphasized the
importance of keeping the class near the residential halls. "The
whole point is to have it in Sunset Commons or any other
residential place on campus … so everyone has easy access to it."
Although there are some members who attend that live in the
apartments, most of the participants live in the dorms. "I like the
fact that it is in the dorm area because it’s really convenient and
quick to get there," said Emily Duncall, a first-year chemical
engineering student. "I probably wouldn’t walk down to Wooden and
wouldn’t be as likely to attend a class there." However, many
students did not think it was a necessity to offer more
recreational exercise classes up near the residence halls; many
believed similar classes, such as aerobics classes, would generate
an equally large turnout. "It depends what other classes would be
offered, but I do believe that basic self-defense classes should be
at least offered because the dorms are safe, but not the safest
places in the world," Nguyen said. Hoang agreed that though martial
arts is generally thought of as a defense sport, the ratio of men
to women in his class indicates that anyone of any gender is
interested in just "getting in shape and learning self-defense."
Because of the fluctuation between new participants and older
members, Hoang strongly encouraged anyone interested to come out
just to see what the class was all about "just because nothing
builds on each other since most focus on conditioning, so it’s for
everyone." As for feedback from participants, Hoang remembered the
end of the first day of class, when he was surprised to see his
students applaud at the end of class. "I was like ‘wow, where did
that come from?!’ It’s a good feeling because sometimes don’t know
if your friends will give you honest feedback if they didn’t like
the class. But it’s the strangers who come and keep on coming that
help make it worthwhile." PATRICK LAM/Daily Bruin Second-year earth
and space student Huy Hoang (right) is the instructor of the
martial arts class. Here he demonstrates kicking techniques for the
students.