MOMENTUM FORCE VS. INTERNAL ENERGY
If one pushes back with the forward foot as an opponent is pushing you does it not stand to reason that you are aiding them? As much as we would like to believe it not true when a Karate punch or kick reaches its endpoint, the momentum of the movement has to be absorbed by the shoulder or hip joint to stop the movement. This could cause hyperextension of the tendon in that joint. This to some degree also takes place in some Tai Chi particularly where there is much emphasis on sparring and to a lesser degree, it shows in their "forms". Not readily seen by untrained observers but a finer analysis shows "stops" and "starts" instead of conclusively continuous movement.
Master Stephen Hwa told me when I first met him that the "stops/starts" of Yang Style, Wu Style forms I learned were "square form" and used some considerable "momentum force" as their source of energy. I had no idea. External martial arts such as Karate use even more momentum force. Here's that square form in operation: You decide to drive down the highway alternately and indiscriminately pressing on the accelerator and the brake You would be using your engine to give the vehicle kinetic energy/momentum then throw the energy away by hitting the brake, over and over. You would consume much less fuel if you only drove steadily.
Master Stephen Hwa, a Ph.D. Engineer, talks a great deal about varieties of momentum force, aka pushing forward with the back foot, pushing back with the front foot. As much as one may not wish to admit, Wu, Yang, Chen all are Square form, etc. All of these contribute to a movement that has "stops and starts" in it, one way or the other. When it comes to ClassicalTai Chi "round form" using a "pulling" coupled with internal energy and a considerable minimum of momentum that difference is a really big deal. One might say that Tai Chi relying on "pushing with a foot" is extravagant of energy, whereas "pulling" truly stores it and releases only when needed.
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