Chu Shong Tin

My master Yip Man first started teaching Ving Tsun in Hong Kong at the Restaurant Worker’s Union Association. At the time I was the secretary of the association, so Master Yip and I had many opportunities to be together. Before I became interested in Ving Tsun, I often overheard Master Yip explaining his Ving Tsun theories in his classes. Gradually he sparked my interest in the art. It so happened that I had great interest in physics and mechanics; I enjoyed his theories on body structure and power development methods very much. Through my careful analysis, I was convinced that Master Yip’s art was flawless and very advanced. Finally, I decided to follow Master Yip and became his student.

Like every beginner in class, I started my journey with Siu Nim Tau , even though I had already familiarized myself with the form as an observer. It took me little effort to completely learn the basic movements. I then began to wonder about the essence of the form, besides the hand movements. I went to Master Yip and inquired about the meaning of Siu Nim Tau, especially the non-combative tone in the name. Master Yip replied: “This is about Lop Nim — to establish an idea in the mind”. I am sure most of my peers have also heard about this term. Master Yip also added that it required prolonged practice of this form to truly master the essence of lop nim.

This hidden meaning of lop nim really caught my interest. I spent much time analyzing its nature, but could still not grasp the concept. Therefore I decided to drop all my thoughts and simply practiced Siu Nim Tau whenever I could, day and night. After a long time, I began to see the connection between lop nim and the form. I suddenly felt great joy in my Ving Tsun training, which fueled my interest in the art further. I became obsessed with the art. Gradually I discovered some powerful but hidden forces within each Siu Nim Tau movement. All the movements are indeed able to deliver indestructible power, yet they look very soft and graceful. At that moment, the concept of lop nim became extremely enlightening and inspiring to me. I finally understood the reason behind it.

I summarize this hidden power as a kind of nim lik (the force of an idea; or mind/intent force, where nim is the same idea/intent as in nim tau ). In essence, Siu Nim Tau has two major points: nim lik and “structure”.

1. Nim Lik (force of idea/intent): it stabilizes all Ving Tsun movements to form a springy and dynamic combination of body structures. It makes Ving Tsun body structure able to sustain great pressure and produce rebound energy. Although there are common terms such as nim lik, qigong, noigong or supernatural abilities that are being perceived as some kind of unusual power, here I would only illustrate the concept behind nim lik (force of idea/intent). Nim lik is the power of a highly focused mind. It helps one bring forth chi flow into every part of the body. Everyone should have this kind of power. However, without training, it is very difficult to focus thoughts. Siu Nim Tau is a great tool to invoke mind focus power. If properly practiced, one can deliver this kind of power at will in every instance. The mind can stay focused even when the structure is adjusting or moving at high speed. So to achieve nim lik is the goal of Siu Nim Tau.

Let’s look at a simple example: if a healthy person falls down from a 6 - 7 feet tall platform unprepared, although he/she lands with both feet, he/she is still likely to injury him/herself. However, if the person is mentally prepared for the fall, his/her feet will automatically recoil and absorb the impact. Also, he/she can only have this reflex if his/her feet are relax. This is an unique attribute of human muscle in its relax state. The springy force on the feet that help the person land safely is a direct result of relax muscles and nim lik.

note: according to contemporary scientific findings; when human muscles are in relax state and are moving at steady speed, they can sustain greater pressure than when they are tensed up (using force). It is so amazing that our Ving Tsun ancestor Ng Mui was able to make use of this scientific method to design our Siu Nim Tau hundreds of years ago

2. Structure: Yee Gee Kim Yang Ma allows one to project all energy forward towards the target. Tei Gong (pulling up of the muscle around the anus area) helps unite body and stance. It also helps relax the leg muscles while being in the stance; thus the whole body reaches a highly alert and ready state. These are the necessary conditions to produce nim lik and must be maintained firmly. The core techniques of Siu Nim Tau — Tan / Bong / Fook — are indeed subtle uses of body mechanics. These three techniques take the shape of arcs or bows. As we extend the arc shape further, Tan / Bong / Fook become hemispheres. As we all know, an arc or spherical-shaped object can sustain strong impact. It can also transfer or deflect energy dynamically when spinning. A wheel can accelerate faster than objects of other shapes (e.g. square, triangle). Each movement in Siu Nim Tau, inspired by this efficient arc-like structure, and when combined with nim lik, becomes extremely powerful defensive and offensive techniques. In addition, practitioners must not employ brute muscle strength. Siu Nim Tau training should never be tiring. To be proficient in this foundation, all movements should be done with the mind rather than strength.

Many Ving Tsun practitioners like to impose their techniques into frozen and static postures. Many believe that Bong Sau should be done at certain height or angle, or criticize others for not complying to their artificial standards. Some may call this style traditionalist; that style reformist; and on and on. In fact, movements in Siu Nim Tau are not named as if they were static postures. For example, when rolling up Tan Sau into Bong Sau, it is the course of this rolling movement that makes up the Bong Sau technique; the function of Bong Sau exists in its circular motion. Similarly, all other techniques in Siu Nim Tau employ circular movements in various directions.

It is a popular belief that Bong Sau is a passive technique: practitioners only use Bong Sau to deflect incoming forces. This would apply to the scenario where a statically posted Bong Sau is being used to block attacks. However, this explanation lacks an understanding of Bong Sau. In my experience, Bong Sau can deliver enormous offensive power. Indeed, it is a very aggressive and penetrating technique due to its circular nature.

Finally, I suggest that all fellow Ving Tsun practitioners look carefully into each technique of Siu Nim Tau. Discover the subtle circular movements in each of them. Practice with mind focus and steady speed. Use the mind to command each technique rather than using muscle tension. I am sure you will gradually find great joy and satisfaction in your Siu Nim Tau training!

In over 34 years of operation in Australia, Grand Master Jim Fung’s International Wing Chun Academy has established a reputation for maintaining very high standards in both instruction and the technical ability of the students who attend this renowned school. There are a number of factors that go into producing the quality that is apparent here.

When asked Grand Master Fung always refers first to his Grand Master, Tsui Seung Tin as the primary reason for his own teaching success. Any person with a serious interest in wing chun will be aware of Tsui Seung Tin as one of the four closed door students of Yip Man (the late Bruce Lee’s teacher). During the time that Yip man ran his now legendary school in Hong Kong, Tsui Seung Tin was one of the instructors there and a senior to Bruce Lee. Grand Master Fung began training under Tsui at an early age and has continued his studies for almost forty years. He is the longest training student of Sigung Tsui and can train his lineage back nine generations to Ng Mei (the founder of Wing Chun).

Another reason for the high standard is the fact that the school has been going for so long and there are many instructors with a wealth of experience behind them. Grand Master Fung has made a point of teaching his instructors personally. he teaches unreservedly and demands a high level of commitment in return. Instructors at his academy are required to teach at least two times per week and must attend Grand Master Fung’s classes to retain their ranking. As well as this they also pay more than the general students. The fact that there is still so much competition to reach instructor level and receive personal instruction from Grand Master Fung testifies to the reputation that Fung holds among serious wing chun practitioners.

When Yip Man began teaching in Hong Kong he caused a revolution in the kung fu world by teaching in a straightforward scientific manner explaining the technical principles of Wing Chun in terms of western physics and biomechanics rather than traditional Chinese analogies. Grand Master Fung has continued in this way of teaching deliberately demystifying martial arts and unlocking the secrets of ‘chi’ or as it is known in wing chun circles, ‘thought force’.

Because Grand Master Fung’s wing chun is a style that works, his students possess a genuine confidence in their abilities and the macho posturing and aggression which is so often found in martial arts schools does not seem to exist here. Brute strength is not an advantage in the wing chun style when it is done properly so bullies quickly lose interest and never seem to make it past the early grades. Wing Chun is style that appeals to people on an intellectual level consequently nearly all the senior instructors at International Wing Chun are professional people such as doctors, lawyers, journalists, artists and others who enjoy using their minds. The atmosphere in the school is professional and friendly.

Yet another factor in the success of Grand Master Jim Fung’s International Wing Chun Academy is the fact that it was the first martial arts school in Australia to be recognised by the government as a learning institution. This means that full time students who train at the academy receive Austudy allowances and many students travel from all over the world to train there on study visa. Most schools in Australia have maybe half a dozen students who are serious about their training to the point that they may train fifteen to twenty hours per week. Over the last ten years International Wing Chun has had hundreds of students training twenty five hours per week. Grand Master Fung considers these full time pupils his closed door students and plans to continue the meteoric expansion of this facet of his school so that the International Wing Chun Academy will one day be like a modern day Shaolin Temple, full of serious students studying Wing Chun as a life time commitment.

One of the main distinguishing features of Wing Chun is its emphasis on practicality. When Yip Man started teaching in Hong Kong in 1949, he began a revolution in the kung fu world. Students of his who had been training for only a few years at the time were challenging and defeating masters from more traditional styles. In a phenomenon that Bruce Lee dubbed as ‘the classical mess’, many forms of kung fu had become bogged down in tradition and lost sight of one of the fundamental purposes of martial arts; realistic self-defence. My Sifu, Tsui Seung Tin, was a closed-door student of Yip Man. He established himself as one of the top fighters of the time by taking part in many challenge matches without ever being defeated. The longest time it took Sifu Tsui to defeat any of these challengers was seven seconds. These fights had virtually no rules, just as in a real self-defence situation. The fact that Sifu Tsui and other renowned fighters from Yip Man’s clan had such resounding successes bears testimony to the eminently practical nature of Wing Chun.

Whereas in a tournament the rules are such that one may move in and out of range scoring points to slowly wear down the opponent, a real fight will almost always come to close-range. The simple fact is that it is very hard to keep a determined and aggressive opponent at bay if there are no rules to limit the nature of his attack. A long-range style generally requires exceptional flexibility and a certain amount of strength. Any attacker is likely to be larger than their intended victim. To rely on having a longer range against an opponent is to ignore this fact. If we take the likely size advantage that almost all attackers will have it seems logical to make use of that factor by employing close combat techniques where the advantage may actually be with the smaller person.

Short range striking has very definite advantages in terms of leverage, balance, commitment and power. Why is an elbow strike generally much more powerful than a punch? The main reason is leverage; the striking point is closer to the main body mass. There are also less moving joints involved (no elbow or wrist), so the movement is simpler. There are not as many outlets where energy may be lost. Consider this, to hold a weight at arm length from ones body is much harder than holding it close. The reason for this is that when held close the weight is supported by the structure of one’s body. To take this to a more obvious degree, imagine putting the weight across your shoulder. At arm length one must rely on the strength of the arm. This idea of using the body structure to transfer weight and generate power is one of the precepts of the Wing Chun system. The same principle of leverage can be applied when executing a deflection or block.

Perhaps the best example of close-range striking in Wing Chun is the one-inch punch. After training for more than forty years I am able to send a person larger than myself flying backwards for a distance of two metres or more with a punch to their chest delivered from one inch away. There is no secret to this technique it is simply a demonstration of the close-range power that one can develop through correct training in Wing Chun. It is easy to see the usefulness of this power when used in close combat.

The punch is delivered with a vertical fist, the striking area being the bottom three knuckles. The wrist is locked so that the bones from the elbow through to the knuckles are in a straight line. This prevents the wrist buckling on impact, avoiding injury or loss of power. The entire body is relaxed. When a blow connects there is a certain amount of force that bounces back through the body of the person striking. If that energy meets resistance in the upper body, the person striking is thrown back to some degree. This bouncing off will limit the amount of power that a fighter can produce to his or her weight and strength. If a strike is thrown incorrectly, i.e. relying on strength, a person will feel as if they have been pushed directly backwards. They will be unbalanced and because they are essentially made lighter by this process, the power in their strike is greatly diminished. By eliminating unnecessary tension, particularly in the chest and shoulders, a Wing Chun exponent is able to transfer weight through his skeletal structure down to the ground. On impact a Wing Chun person will feel the weight of their strike pushing them down rather than back. This does not unbalance them; instead they are made heavier as they absorb the energy recoiling from the strike. Proof of this can be found in a demonstration that Tsui Seung Tin performed recently at the 25th anniversary of Master Jim Fung’s International Wing Chun Academy. This slight man weighing only 62 kg and in his late sixties, had two larger men try to push him backwards while he stood on a set of scales. He effortlessly stood his ground as both men tried to push him backwards. The harder they pushed the higher the weight on the scales, evidence that the force was being transferred through Tsui’s body down to the ground.

This quality of absorbing weight or energy can be seen throughout Wing Chun A large part of doing ‘chi sau’ (sticking hands) is learning to transfer weight in this manner. At very close range the forearms will be in contact with the opponent as strikes are blocked by your opponent or visa versa. This skill in absorbing energy enables a Wing Chun practitioner to keep his opponent continually off balance, opening him up for strikes and nullifying the power of incoming strikes. Rather than thinking of sticking hands as a set of possible moves in a fight, one should look at it as an exercise to develop the above qualities of weight transference while maintaining structural integrity as one moves seamlessly through the basic Wing Chun positions of tan sau, bong sau and fook sau.

To perform the hand trapping techniques that Wing Chun is famous for it is necessary to have developed this skill. If one has not done so, the trapping moves would require strength and may not work in a real situation. At close-range a fighter can take advantage of another quality that is developed through sticking hands, two-handedness. As one concentrates on maintaining forward force through both arms one becomes more ambidextrous. A Wing Chun person does not think in terms of leading strikes and follow-ups. The style uses simultaneous defence and counter attack. An example can be seen with the chit sau and counter punch shown here. An uppercut punch thrown from below my guard is deflected with a chit sau movement while I simultaneously counter with a palm strike. The chi sau is delivered with a fixed angle on the elbow. On contact with the opponent’s arm this angle enables me to deflect the incoming force and if I wish, continue through with a strike from the same arm. In Wing Chun it is not necessary to differentiate between strikes and blocks. Each movement can be used for either purpose. This simplifies the process of fighting. Wing Chun defends by attacking.

Another important principle in Wing Chun is economy of movement. If two opponents strike towards each other starting at the same time and travelling at the same speed, a person taking the most direct path; generally a straight line, will get to his target before the other person simply because his strike has less distance to cover. A simple example would be the straight punch of Wing Chun where the strike is delivered with a vertical fist along the centre line (i.e. the shortest distance) between oneself and one’s opponent, as compared to a wide roundhouse swing. Long-range striking by its very nature gives the person defending more time and space to react.

If when throwing a strike, a person leans forward to extend their range, problems may arise in terms of balance. An example of this may be found in the sequence depicted here (bong sau/palm strike versus roundhouse swing) where the attacker commits while striking to the extent that I am easily able to deflect his force, unbalancing him and opening him up for a counter strike. The opposite situation may be seen in the next sequence where after my kick is blocked I am able to maintain balance and flow into another strike. Because of the leverage factor this is much easier to do with a close-range technique.

Wing Chun is structured in such a way that during a fight the practitioner is able to hit an opponent with full power at any time with a direct and economical movement. The point of impact will ideally be where the maximum leverage can be applied. The Wing Chun fighter will always remain balanced. If a strike is countered the Wing Chun person requires a minimum amount of recovery time before flowing into the next move. Each technique is uncommitted.

Another factor that favours close range techniques is that most self-defence situations occur in confined spaces such as alleyways, bars, crowded public functions etc. While a long-range technique can only be applied where there is enough space, short-range techniques can be applied in any situation.

Wing Chun is popular with people who work in the public eye as the economical movements do not look nearly as aggressive as the large roundhouse strikes of some long range styles. With a short sharp movement a security guard can control an attacker effectively without appearing to use unnecessary force. Imagine the visual difference between a low heel kick to the knee (as done in Wing Chun), when compared to a roundhouse kick to the head. My State Manager has worked for many years as a bouncer in various bars and attests to the suitability of Wing Chun’s close-range techniques in that type of situation. Many of the students participating in our full time study, government accredited certificate courses are planning on careers relating to security and do Wing Chun for the same reasons.

I do not wish to present this as a criticism of all long range styles. I believe that all styles of martial art have their individual merit and qualities that involve more than just self-defence. In this article I have only looked at Wing Chun in terms of real fighting, of course Wing Chun offers much more than this. Fitness, stress control and personal development are major attributes of this style and to many practitioners this may be of more interest.

Many of my kung fu brothers from around the world have expressed surprise when they hear of the Government accredited courses (Certificate I -course code 90370NSW, Certificate II -course code 90370NSW, Certificate III -course code 90370NSW & Certificate IV -course code 90370NSW in Wing Chun Instruction), that now occupy much of my time at The International Wing Chun Academy. The idea of students travelling from all over the world on study visa and Australian students receiving Austudy allowances to train in kung fu must seem strange to them.

To me these courses are a welcome echo from the days of The Shaolin Temple in China and evidence that Wing Chun is truly a vibrant, living art. My reasons for undertaking this demanding exercise in teaching students to become teachers themselves are thus:

In addition to teaching Wing Chun to as many people as possible, one of my strongest desires is to uphold its standards. I feel one of the most efficient ways of doing this is to teach students who are willing to dedicate their lives to learning Wing Chun full time.

This is following in the footsteps of my Sifu, Tsui Seung Tin who learnt full time and was what we term a ‘closed door’ student of the late Yip Man.

Only through full-time students can the original and pure traditions of the Wing Chun system be perpetuated in an unadulterated form. The teaching of full-time students strengthens our school and the Wing Chun System as a whole.

By enrolling in our courses, students prove their dedication and commitment and this makes me even more willing to give them a higher standard of training. There is no doubt that the future of the Wing Chun system, its success and effectiveness, is dependent on these modern day closed door full-time students.

Jim Fung

The Uniqueness of Chi Sau

Chi Sau is unique because the practitioner’s arms are trained to respond automatically, that is without prior thought. Unlike sparring in some other martial arts disciplines, which is more choreographed and predetermined, Chi Sau is a reflexive action. When practising Chi Sau you learn to deflect fast punches without the use of brute force and with no hard blocking. In most cases a skilled Wing Chun practitioner can trap their attacker with one hand leaving their second hand free to strike through. These movements are all done in a split second. A well-trained practitioner is usually able to hit through any opening in practice or in combat. Skilled Wing Chun practitioners can develop power throughout their arms. This power is generated not through using sheer physical strength but through using thought force. This capability is acquired through proper training in the Sil Lum Tao form. Wing Chun students seek to defeat their opponents by applying the strongest force along their arms onto the weakest point of their attackers.

Unless a student is very skilled in Chi Sau they will have a weakness somewhere along their arm area, whether their punch is stable, attacking or defending. The training of Wing Chun arms trains you to have a circle in front of your body. This circle is achieved through the Tan Fook Sao Bong training once two hand forms are connected together. When rotated, this circle generates a sphere and can then act as a really superior self-defence mechanism. Whenever the attacker engages your circle his force is instantly deflected, absorbed or neutralised. The attacker is neutralised as he tries to hit through the circle’s rotating structure. The circle fulfills the role of an impenetrable shield.

The Importance of Chi Sau for Self Defence Purposes

The reason why Grand Masters from all generations focuses on Chi Sau is because it is one of the most important aspects of Wing Chun training. Chi Sau displays the need for the use of reflex action, speed, and awareness in real life situations in order to gain the upper hand. It trains your arms to have a mind of their own. This is important for the following reasons:

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Awareness allows you to search for an opening
o During any type of combat unless the opponent can be immediately knocked out with one blow you will be involved in combat that engages you in arm contact. When your arms engage you can either hit straight through with one arm or with both arms acting together. Or you may find an opening that results from the way the attacker is holding his arm.

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Arms like guided missiles put you in a winning position
o One of most important points to note about Sil Lum Tao training is to always focus your force towards your attacker’s centre line, which is also where your own equilibrium point lies. So like guided missiles your arms should launch toward your attacker’s most vulnerable area, forcing him into the more submissive role of defender.

*
Reflex actions allow for split second reactions
o Part of the basis of Wing Chun training is to cultivate forward force (see Dan Chi Sau chapter), which is directed to the vulnerable points of your attacker’s body. Whenever the other person disengages his arms this forward force enables you to strike through without using premeditated movements. The whole action is akin to a spring coil. One is able to perform this kind of reflex action only through Chi Sau training and the sensitivity in the arms that is gained.

When the Wing Chun arms are formed into a circle shape and force is fairly evenly distributed around its circumference, there are no weak points along the arms and you have created a very strong structure. This means any brute force directed against a Wing Chun student can be absorbed and any blows neutralised. For the attacker it is like trying to hit through a constantly rotating, big leather basketball. This strategy makes it very difficult for their blows to reach their mark and their brute force may even be redirected against them.

So to summarise, as a result of using Chi Sau the student is equipped to either hit through, redirect, absorb, or neutralise the attacker’s force and overcome those who are bigger and stronger than themselves.

Grand Master Jim Fung is the Head Instructor for ‘Grand Master Jim Fung’s International Wing Chun Academy’, which he established in Australia in 1973. He is a Life Director for the Hong Kong Ving Tsun Athletic Association.

His school offers Government accredited courses in Wing Chun Instruction. Students travel from all over the world to participate in these courses on part-time work and study visas. More information may be found on the web site www.wingchun.com.au . For further information on sticking hands, please refer to Grand Master Fung’s book; ‘Wing Chun Kung Fu’ or his DVD ‘Wing Chun’.

Wing Chun’s chi sau or ’sticking hands’ is not really a fighting technique but rather an exercise to train the skills used in Wing Chun. It is a means to an end rather than an end in itself. Correct training in chi sau will give many benefits including:

* Improved hand speed.
* Quicker reaction time.
* Heightened sensitivity enabling one to find a gap in an opponent’s guard instantly.
* More power.
* Better balance.
* The ability to control an opponent’s arms at all times.

The Necessity of a Solid Foundation

Martial artists from other styles sometimes miss the point with sticking hands when they try to add it to their style. In order to work properly sticking hands needs a solid structure (ie. the Wing Chun stance), so that incoming force can be transferred through the body structure to the ground. Wing Chun students usually spend a considerable amount of time developing their stance and practicing sil lum tao form before they even begin to learn sticking hands. To start earlier would be like trying to run before one has learnt to walk. For the same reason single sticking hands are taught for some months before the student moves on to double sticking hands. One must be able to perform the correct movements instinctively before trying to do separate movements with both hands at the same time. The forming of the shapes is very precise and subtle. The feel can only really be passed on through hands on contact with someone who has been taught properly. Students who are taught badly will get tired arms and shoulders when rolling. Students taught incorrectly will also find that while their sticking hands may work during training they will not be able to absorb and deflect heavy striking should they try to employ chi sau in a real situation.

Bio-Mechanics

Chi sau training makes the muscle groups work more efficiently. This is not done by building larger muscles through strenuous exercise; instead chi sau develops power through relaxation. By keeping all the muscles as relaxed as possible a Wing Chun practitioner stops opposing groups from working against each other. For example the biceps serves the purpose of closing the angle on the elbow, (as in a biceps curl), this is working directly against what happens during a punch, when the angle is extended. Logically any tension in the biceps will inhibit the speed and therefore the power of the punch.

Jim Fung

Many people are of the opinion that the Wing Chun System comprises primarily of arm movements with a few kicks. They do not realize that the Wing Chun system contains a greater variety of kicks than a large number of popular martial arts systems known for their kicking. There are two reasons for this misunderstanding. Firstly, because the hand techniques of the Wing Chun system are so efficient for self-defense, the kicks are not seen as often as the arms. Secondly, most Hong Kong Wing Chun masters do not normally teach students kicking until they have been learning for a good number of years. Students are in fact being prepared to do kicking from the day they start Wing Chun when they learn the Wing Chun stance. Mastery of the stance is an important prerequisite for kicking as it gives both balance and power

The Importance of the Stance

While practicing kicking without first developing a solid stance will increase force in the kicking to a degree (through repetition training) full potential will not be realised. Wing Chun works on the premise that force is maximised through full use of body mass and acceleration. To achieve this Wing Chun locks the body in as one unit at the waist. If during a kick the body becomes unlocked then the full mass won’t be utilised and full potential will not be achieved. There are no short cuts: Full potential cannot be achieved without the proper stance. Using the Wing Chun hook kick as an example, a student with a poor stance will find that they lack balance and are unable to transfer their full body weight to the kick as the upper and lower halves of the body will be working out of sinc. This is due to lack of coordination and muscle control. The result will be poor balance making it difficult to kick with speed as too much energy is used to keep balance, making the movement slow and clumsy and places them in a vulnerable position.

Wing Chun Kicking Characteristics

Wing Chun kicking techniques adhere to the Wing Chun principles of directness, simplicity, practicality, minimum use of brute strength and economy of movement. As with all techniques in Wing Chun, kicking keeps to the same principles as arms, kicks are fast and direct, stable and non-telegraphic, uncomplicated, practical, controlled and uncommitted, low risk and done in the most powerful way through the most efficient utilization of body weight.

Fast and Direct

All kicks are executed directly to the target with one quick movement taking the shortest time and distance. An example of this is the thrust kick to the groin area. This kick is executed by driving the knee towards the target whilst maintaining the angle in the leg from the stance. As the leg is making contact with the target it extends, the knee drives force through the heel; thus utilising the full mass and momentum of the body. Compare this kick to one involving two movements where the body is rotated and the leg is cocked first, before extending to strike. Not only does the kick take more time and distance to reach the target, but as it has been cocked the momentum of the body has also stopped; therefore the amount of force generated becomes limited to the strength of the muscles in the leg.

Stable and Non-Telegraphic

In delivering the Wing Chun kick the body is always kept upright, it does not lean forward, backward or sideways. If your stance is not stable and you lean back for example, your force is being directed away from the target; your bodyweight is travelling in a backward direction, which negates the force of the strike. If weight needs to be transferred to the supporting leg prior to the kick, then this shift will precede the kick telegraphing your intentions. As the body moves much slower than limbs do, the more body movement involved in the kick the slower the kick will be and the more telegraphic. Kicking from an upright position not only maintains balance, but also makes it very difficult for the attacker to detect your incoming kick; due to the lack of body movement. It is of utmost importance not to telegraph your intention to attack in a real fight.

Uncomplicated

As the entire Wing Chun system is geared towards realistic self-defense, any techniques that require complicated movements are excluded from the system. It is believed that the more complicated a technique, the more difficult it is to apply in a real fighting situation. This is simply because complicated techniques require several movements to complete which makes it harder and more time consuming to apply and gives the opponent a better chance of retaliating by intercepting or countering the movement.

Practical and Low Risk

Kicks requiring a lot of room to apply such as turning, flying and jumping kicks are risky and impractical to apply in real situations; as clothing or environment may restrict the application of such a kick. These kicks shorten ones reach and also expose parts of your body unnecessarily i.e., high kicks to the head, which leave your groin and midsection open to attack or take you off the ground are considered very risky. They make you vulnerable to having your legs grabbed or losing your balance. The higher the kick the more power is diminished in the kick so that even if the kick was to land it probably wouldn’t have the power to knock a person out as the body mass is utilised less effectively the higher you kick. Wing Chun would not execute kicks to the head. Instead, Wing Chun makes use of hand striking to attack an opponent’s upper body, while legs are used to attack an opponent’s lower body. This is because the body is designed with the arms nearer to the attacker’s head and legs nearer attacker’s legs therefore making it more logical and practical to attack those areas with those limbs. For this reason kicks above waist height have been removed from the Wing Chun system as they put the practitioner to unnecessary effort and risk. Low kicks executed to the attackers waist and below are harder to intercept and more powerful. The legendary Grandmaster Yip Man once said: ‘Why jump up and try to kick someone in the head when it is much quicker and safer to execute a fast direct punch to the attackers face’.

Controlled

Wing Chun kicks are designed in such a way to be used in close range and in conjunction with the arms. Therefore a properly trained Wing Chun student would not generally execute a kick without first controlling the opponent’s arms, unless the kick is used for the purpose of engaging the opponent ie bridging the gap. By controlling the attacker’s arms the Wing Chun exponent is able to control the attackers balance, latch them into the kick and increase the force of impact. Having this control of the attackers weight will reduce the chance of the opponent countering or avoiding the kick, ensuring that the kick will land.

Uncommitted

A wide swinging type of kick is like an all or nothing type of attack. If you miss your target and do not knock out your assailant you may be vulnerable in the moment before you regain balance and execute the follow up attack. Committed kicks are like wide swinging punches, once the movement is started and the target is missed the body momentum carries you through and the upswing of the whole movement must be completed before the next is initiated. You are then committed to following that course of action making it difficult to change to another movement if the strike misses the mark or is countered. In contrast all Wing Chun kicks are short and sharp, landing with a fast powerful impact. A well a well trained Wing Chun student is able to deliver a series of very powerful close range uncommitted kicks that can easily be executed one after another in rapid succession. For example: chain kicking, where a low heel kick continues into a hook kick in an efficient and economical manner. There is no room in the system for movements that cannot be part of a multiple series of kicks executed in a matter of seconds.

Utilize Body Momentum in the Most Powerful Way

Through a combination of determination force, body coordination and speed, Wing Chun students attain a high level of explosive force on impact from in their kicks, even at very close quarters. Determination force relies on total mind/body coordination and augments the power given to the explosive impact of a kick. Mental power draws force potential from all parts of the body and focuses it with great concentration and momentum to the striking area. Kicks are executed without having to rely on back swings to get momentum up. With an untrained kick for example, the top of the body swings in the opposite direction to the kicking movement which means the directional force of the kick is negated. The Wing Chun student is taught that arms and legs must be coordinated to travel in the same direction to the target. All available force is directed from the upright stance along the centerline thus maximizing body momentum. Newton’s laws of physics states that the impulse of a force is a combination of both the mass of the striking body and the change of the speed that it undergoes. That is, force is a product of mass and its acceleration. Wing Chun applies this physical principle by teaching that the whole body mass must go onto the target, accelerating from the static stance to maximum speed upon impact and beyond. In this way the greatest possible momentum is transferred into the force of the strike. Wing Chun utilises its kicks in the most economical, efficient and practical way possible by keeping the movements compact and direct at the target with full body mass behind the kick to achieve maximum result with the least effort.

School Background

I began training in Wing Chun Kung Fu in Hong Kong nearly forty years ago. Twenty five years ago I established a martial arts centre in Adelaide, Australia. As demand grew my school has expanded throughout Australia and the rest of the world. Since 1988 my school (International Wing Chun) has been accredited by the Australian Government to run full time courses. Students who study at this school are paid study allowances by the Government. Hundreds of students travel from all over the world to Australia to train in my school on work and study visas. Enrolment dates are at the start of the year and also mid-way through.

To date International Wing Chun Academy is the only martial arts organisation in Australia to be recognised in this way. One of the main reasons why I began training full time professional students is that through these dedicated pupils I am able to pass on the traditional and genuine Wing Chun system, also this offers an ideal opportunity for those who want a lifetime commitment to the art and be able to make a living out of ‘preaching’ this incredible art. I consider these students to be my ‘closed door’ pupils and hope that my school will continue to expand and become something of a modern day Shaolin Temple preserving and spreading the genuine art of Wing Chun.

Practicality over Visual Appeal

In over 30 years I have been exposed to nearly all styles of martial art, and have met and exchanged views with many top martial artists. I have come to the conclusion that Wing Chun differs from most styles in it’s primary emphasis on practicality. All movements that are not completely useful have been eliminated, and this is one reason why Wing Chun does not look flashy. People who are accustomed to seeing or doing the spectacular movements of other styles find that Wing Chun does not look impressive. To them it looks too simple, the movements are too small, too direct and relaxed to make a visual impression. The Wing Chun movements can not be judged by looking at them - the best way is to be on the receiving end of these deceptively innocent movements, and to feel and imagine the enormous impact the Wing Chun strikes and deflections can have.

Among all the Chinese Kung Fu, Wing Chun is spoken of as the least “beautiful” but the most effective. Contrary to popular opinion, not all styles of martial art are related to self defence. Some styles are designed and practised with an emphasis on artistic or sporting, rather than fighting aspects. Several styles and schools gear their training towards tournaments or Olympic performances, which involves completely different training than for self defence. All genuine styles that are learnt under a qualified master have benefits to offer. The martial art student should discover what they seek in a martial art by clearly analysing the movements.

Wing Chun’s Effectiveness

Wing Chun has many diverse aspects and benefits, however these do not detract from its essential emphasis on effectiveness. In general most fights start and end with hand contact, usually punching and grappling. With proper training, kicking can be very useful, for example, when dealing with someone who can easily match you with their hands. Wing Chun trains you to use the legs in combination with your arms, adding more possibility of striking and controlling the opponent. Wing Chun emphasises low kicks because we believe them to be faster, easier to apply and less risky than high kicks. It is most important to keep your balance when kicking, otherwise the opponent may be able to grab your leg, or move in and push you over.

The Wing Chun Stance in a Fight

The Wing Chun stance teaches you how to keep your balance. In training, always practise your stance, and do all kicking from the stance. In a real situation, bend the knees slightly to lower the centre of gravity and allow ease of leg movement, always apply your internal contraction to hold the upper and lower body together as one unit, and keep the back up straight. Of course, your guard must be up. If you are arguing with someone, and you feel that a fight might break out, always keep your hands up near the front of the body for speed of movement. Don’t have your hands behind your back, in pockets, or down at your sides - it takes too long to guard and strike.

Wing Chun’s Kicks

Wing Chun basic kicks include the low heel kick, stamping kick, low side kick, snap kick, medium thrusting kick and hook kick. At an advanced level students are taught leg deflection and trapping, involving sweeping, leg locking and attacks such as “Chain Kicking” - a rapid barrage of three or more powerful low kicks, delivered in under a second to targets such as the knee, groin and midsection. In many of the Wing Chun kicks, the heel is used for striking, because this will result in maximum impact to the opponent, with the minimum risk of injury to your foot.

The Wing Chun Stance and Defence Against Kicks

The stance teaches you how to kicks without telegraphing, and this makes your low kicking even harder for the opponent to stop. Most people find it hard to stop a fast, powerful low kick. When your stance develops you are taught in Wing Chun how to use your legs to guard the lower half of the body. Because the kicking movements of Wing Chun are simple, they are easy to learn and apply. This is most important in a real situation. Low kicking is practical in any type of clothing and regardless of the physical surroundings, because it is compact and direct. From the front on stance with the weight evenly distributed over both feet, either leg can be easily used for kicking.

The Effectiveness of Wing Chun Kicks

The Wing Chun kicks save time and conserve energy, and can be very powerful. They can be used to bridge the gap between you and the opponent. If someone shapes up, and is outside your striking range, a kick can be used, usually followed by striking and hand trapping. Wing Chun also trains you to use your legs at very close range. Because you learn to kick and punch at the same time, while using the other arm for deflection or trapping, you must be able to deliver a kick at punching range.
All the Wing Chun kicks are simple, direct and practical, and therefore could be used in many real self-defence situations.

Bruce Lee’s Hollywood Kicking

Through training in the same Wing Chun school in Hong Kong, I was acquainted with the late Bruce Lee. On a trip to Hong Kong in the early 1970’s I ran into him, and the conversation turned to his spectacular kicking. He re-iterated the point that it was for the movies only, and in a real fight he would always use the Wing Chun low kicks.

Stance is one of the rudiments of the Wing Chun system. Often a student may spend many hours refining the fine points of a technique, only to find that this time has been wasted because their stance is incorrect. This is a little like spending hours working on the engine of a car and then discovering that your vehicle is not fitted with four wheels. When one has managed to develop a correct stance it is much easier to learn new techniques as a student is able to feel what is, or is not, working. Without a correct stance, nothing really works, and the student is operating by guesswork. In this article I will outline the fundamentals of the Wing Chun stance.

It is important that students develop a reasonable stance before learning bad habits that may take some time to correct. Often a student with a weak stance will fall into the trap of using brute strength to make a technique work. The more time they spend doing this, the harder it becomes for them to learn the movement correctly.

Too High or Too Low

The knees should be slightly bent to lower the center of balance and maintain stability. As with all Wing Chun this is a question of degree. It is not enough to simply bend the knees as much as possible. If one is too low in the stance this will cause the thighs to become tense. This means that the student will lack balance. The legs should work like shock absorbers absorbing force and transferring it to the ground. This is not possible if the thighs are tense. As well as being unbalanced a stance that is too low will lack mobility. If the stance is too high a student may also lack balance and therefore power. They may be pushed over, as they will find it difficult to absorb the incoming force. It is not realistic to give a certain angle as correct for the degree of bend at the knees. Body shape, flexibility and muscularity will vary between different people. By experimenting with raising and lowering the stance slightly students must find the correct height for their stance.

The most important thing is to keep one’s thighs as relaxed as possible. Sometimes students are under the illusion that the knees must be kept close together in order to guard against groin kicks. While holding the knees tightly together may defend against a snap kick delivered between the legs, the resulting lack of mobility will make the practitioner open to almost any other attack. Also you will find that you can be pushed over easily. It is important that the feet are facing slightly inwards. This helps to ensure that kicks are delivered through ones centerline, thereby protecting against groin attacks by striking rather than just blocking.

The Back

The back should be straight in order to transfer weight to the ground efficiently. If it is bent, force exerted on the practitioner may cause his/her stance to buckle. This principle may be illustrated with a plastic ruler. When a ruler is stood on end held straight, it can support a heavy weight. When the same amount of weight is placed on a slightly bent ruler, the structural integrity has been lost and it will collapse. Through correct training in Wing Chun a student will develop the muscles required for good posture.

People with back injuries will benefit from this as those muscles that protect the back are strengthened by the stance. Further health benefits may be found in the relaxation factor of the stance. People often carry tension in their shoulders. In the Wing Chun stance the chest is spread open and the shoulders are as relaxed as possible. This is not easy to achieve, but as students develop, they will attain deeper levels of relaxation. This physical skill of relaxing is a very useful tool for controlling stress. A student should feel relaxed and energised after training. If you find that you leave training sessions feeling uptight, chances are that you have been using strength rather than skill.

The Arms

The hands should be on the centre-line when in the guard position of the stance. The elbows should be forward from the body and the angle at the elbow should be the ultimate angle that is found in the basic Wing Chun positions. The hands must be relaxed with the fingers pointing forward. Thumbs should not stick up.

Thought Force

So far we have only spoken about the stance in terms of physical structure. This is only part of the picture. The skill of directing ones energy or ‘thought force’ forward through one’s centre-line is an integral part of the stance. It is not easy to teach. A student must learn to concentrate while remaining relaxed. Over years as one’s skill develops, a student will sense more energy flowing through their body as restrictions are eliminated and the channels for directing this energy open up. Perhaps the greatest benefit to be found in the training of the stance, is improved mental concentration. Learning to use one’s mind more efficiently is of even greater value than the ability to defend one’s self.

The Wooden Dummy is recognised as the highest skill in Wing Chun. Hence, the majority of Wing Chun learners consider that learning the moves of the Wooden Dummy will automatically become a good Wing Chun fighter. Some even feel very happy with themselves and boast about their own achievements to the junior learners.

The moves of the Wooden Dummy are all good for fighting. However, those moves are actually formed by the basic moves of Siu Nim Tau, Chum Kiu and Bill Gee. They are not uniquely owned by the Wooden Dummy only.

In fact, the practice of the Wooden Dummy is taken as an auxiliary measure for the training of the Wing Chun forms. If your purpose is to practise the skill of the three forms then you should treat the Wooden Dummy as a piece of equipment and try your best to practise the moves and the skill of the three forms on it. You should also try to feel if your goal has been achieved, e.g. trying to concentrate the force of the whole body to a particular point and induce the opponent’s force for your own use (N.B. to induce the opponent’s force for your own use is one of the basic structure of Bill Gee, which is the combined effect of rotation of the body and the formation of the whirlpool effect). On the other hand, if you treat the Wooden Dummy as your opponent, you should try to concentrate your own force, as well as the skill of inducing the opponent’s force, to attack the Wooden Dummy so as to attain the state that your hands can reach any part of the opponent as your mind wishes to do.

As I said before, if I describe every move of the Wooden Dummy in writing, one will find it difficult to follow and it may even lead him away from the principal goal in practising the Wooden Dummy. For this reason, I have made up my mind to show you the skill of the forms as well as the Wooden Dummy myself so that you can feel the mysterious and profound skill of the Wing Chun Kung Fu.

(3) Practising defencing and attacking techniques (Double sticking hands): During the training of the double sticking hands, one can use the defencing and attacking techniques freely. The defencing and attacking techniques are divided into three learning stages: (A) Siu Nim Tau; (B) Chum Kiu; (C) Bill Gee. As for the Wooden Dummy techniques, the movements are derived from the combination of the three forms and uses the dummy as a partner to practise on.

(A) Siu Nim Tau stage: Each side will practise the defencing and attacking techniques in a nearly stabilised position (a slight forward or backward movement is allowed). Both sides will use the Tau, Bong and Fook Sau to sense the attack and respond with a proper defencing and attacking movement, e.g. “Tan Da” - rotates from Bong Sau to Tau Sau together with a strike; “Jut Da” - a quick strike-in movement; “Pak Da“- one hand controls the opponent’s contact hand and removes his remaining hand by using the Pak Sau to allow the free hand to strike in; “On Da” - affects one of the opponent’s contact hands with one hand and strikes in with the other hand; “Yat Fook Yee” - controlling both hands of the opponent by using Lap Sau and uses the free hand to strike; etc.

(B) Chum Kiu stage: When practising sticking hands with the Chum Kiu movements, firstly, one should understand the purpose of the Chum Kiu form. The purpose of Chum Kiuis to transfer the power generated from the movement of the body mass to the techniques. Although the techniques used are nearly the same as in the Siu Nim Tau, the application of each movement, no matter defencing and attacking, will be supported by the body mass, e.g. moving forward or backward, pivoting, etc., in order to increase the power of the techniques.

(C) Bill Gee stage: Bill Gee is the form which concentrates an enormous destructive power in attacking. For training purposes, in order to prevent the chance of hurting each other, Bill Gee is seldom used in sticking hands because the techniques of this form can accelerate the power of the body mass to the striking point. Even a slight contact between the hands can produce damage to the opponent. Therefore, explanation and demonstration under proper control will be used to show the way of practising Bill Gee techniques in sticking hands.

(4) Application of force: When practising sticking hands, the direction of a force from the opponent wil be changing constantly then one should alter his force to counter the changes by using techniques such as facing one’s shadow, chasing one’s shadow, rotations, forward and backward movements, etc. and develops the feeling of how to use the right technique at the right time to upset the balance of the opponent and then stores the most effective ways in his mind to thus become subconscious reflexes and enable people to apply the best technique from these natural responses.

(5) Establish and utilise the natural reflexes of “Loy Lau Hoi Shun, Lut Sau Ja Chung“: It is not easy to develop the skill from this mottto of Wing Chun. “Loy Lau Hoi Shun, Lut Sau Ja Chung“. If one uses the sense of sight to feel the direction of the force of the opponent and then responding by neutralising the incoming force or attacking the withdrawing force then this has not being perceived as the true skill of “Loy Lau Hoi Shun, Lut Sau Ja Chung” because the responses to the sense of sight are very slow and most of them could not achieve the desired result. By not using the sense of sight but the subconscious reflexes to response then one should concentrate on the training of the sense of brain which is the same “Mind Force ” (Nim Tau) as used in the Siu Nim Tau to maintain the elasticity of the joints of the arms. By coordinating the springy arms and the mind force together in focusing at the weakest point of the opponent’s structure then one will develop the direct reflexes of the subconscious mind and reaches the original aims of “Loy Lau Hoi Shun, Lut Sau Ja Chung“.

(6) Seek the profound techniques of facing one’s shadow, chasing one’s shadow and pointing towards the centre line: The purposes of facing one’s shadow, chasing one’s shadow and pointing towards the centre line have already been explained (see previous notes). Therefore, in practising sticking hands, one should concentrate on its feeling and try to comprehend its practical value and skill in order to understand its real purpose and worth.