Key Foundations

[ntc]

I am starting this thread for people to share their thoughts on what they consider as the most important things to develop and to master in their Wing Chun training. It will be very interesting to see what people's perspectives are.

[Shuul Vis]

OK SOME QUICK ONES:


1. agile, strongly rooted footwork to maintain the proper wing chun fighting distance.

2. ability to relax while in-fighting and not panic and "chase the hands"

3. understand the power generation methods of the SLT


Those are some of the most important in my opinion, although not in particular order.

[sel]

structure
relaxation
focus

[yuanfen]

Discovering something new in the siu lim tau every day.

[black and blue]

You have many more years experience performing SNT/SLT than I have. If you don't mind me asking, what have you 'discovered' in it over the years?

What do I have to look forward to?

[yuanfen]

B & B- over the years-- so many-would be quite a long long list-
much of it "internalized" by now.But some examples-

1. the body has so many bones and bone joints- slowly understanding their relationships and alignments and their most efficient motions..

2.Coordination of the above in motion with conservation of energy
minimising tension.

3. Being aware of the main vertical axis and the best gravitational alignment of the whole body.

4. Controlling the central plane in front of you at all times no matter the angle with the cooperation of the elbows and the knees.

5. you controlling the horse rather than the bucking horse controlling you.

6. Not bringing your butt up when you open the ygkym-- important
for later footwork without being bowled over.

7Being aware of your dan tien and its relationship to the vertical axis
8. Understanding the relationships between vertical and horizontal lines.

And many others. Hope that helps.

[black and blue]

Many thanks, indeed.

[Jim Roselando]

Hello,


I always say this to myself and to the guys I work out with!

IMO the three keys to WC are;


Stance/Body-your root and structure

Positioning-no need for explanation

Relaxation-physically & mentally


The rest is frosting on the cake!


Regards,

[Ernie]

he most important thing to me ?
well I'm not big into specific structure as imo every form of combat has a functional structure to express there power position and reception of power .
don't get me wrong I do believe wing chun has a very strong understanding of maximizing human potential but structures are interchangable based on physical ability and range .
to me functionalizing the theories in a combative situation against resisting opponents from different disciplines has given me a much deeper understanding into the '' why'' wing chun works like it does .
had I not gone out and tested it I would have never really appreciated ,understood, or had a direct feeling pain or pleasure ''depending on the out come '' of the application of the theories .
this more then any shape or angle has given meaning to me .

[ntc]

Great replies, y'all..... it is so neat to hear everyone's perspective.

Yuan:
It was pretty cool to see your response, cause I tell my students the same thing myself regarding Siu Lim Tau. The more I understand and grow in Wing Chun, the more questions I am getting answered via Siu Lim Tau. The form literally gives you a different viewpoint each time you progress to a newer level of skill. To this day, I still go back to the Siu Lim Tau for my roots and tune-ups. So, I love your comment.

[yuanfen]

NTC-Thanks much.

B$B- you are welcome.

[WCis4me]

Things I think are most important to develop and master in my Wing Chun training are:

1. Finding and remaining rooted to my center.
2. SLT
3. Chi Sao
4. Balance, coordination, speed, stamina
5. Breathing
6. Wooden dummy
7. Managing my Chi
8. Overall personal Character including: patience, determination, humbleness,tolerance, anger management and respectfulness.
9. Overall good health/physical fitness, internally/externally
10. All the forms/applications/theories
and sparring.

I imagine this list will evolve over time.
Vicky

[kj]

There are a lot of good lists here.

My current list of most important, most fundamental things to develop and master:

Technically
[list=1][*]Position (in all its implications)[*]Sensitivity[*]Power
(in that order, with speed and timing resulting implicitly from the first two)[/list=1]

Physically, Emotionally, Philosophically

• "Don't be greedy; don't be afraid."
• "Balance" (in all things)

Essence

• The "small" idea.

Regards,
- Kathy Jo

[kj]

If you don't mind the asking, what do you consider as the most important things to develop and to master in your Wing Chun training?

Regards,
- Kathy Jo

[ntc]

K.J.:

Well, over the years, my teacher has always preached three key things to us that are critical above all the other important aspects in WC training:

1. Structure
If one's structure were not correct (proper relaxation, elbow positioning, elbow walking, horse, footwork, posture, etc.), then one would not be develop the sensitivity needed to execute the techniques or power effectively.

2. Distance
The distance between yourself and the opponent is important. If you are too close, you will be jammed. If you are too far, you will be over-reaching. Being able to constantly position yourself in the right distance between yourself and the opponent, whether part of sticky hands or sparring, is important for you to be able to optimize the execution of your techniques.

3. Timing
If one has good timing, then the techniques will always be executed to the optimal, especially when combined with a high level of sensitivity. I recall reading somewhere that Ken Chung was able to subdue someone in sticky hands before the person was even able to start a move. This is a good illustration.... sensitivity allows the person to sense where the turn of the force/energy is, whether it is incoming/outgoing/sidewards/upwards/downwards/etc., and also allows for the sensing of any stiffness in the joints occuring because of an impending move along with any resulting openings. A good practitioner once detecting this and with the right timing will be able to subdue the opponent before a move can be made. If there is not the right timinig, the sensitivity may be there, but the opponent may already have made the move and closed the doors before the subdue could be made.

In addition, emotional stability is important for me. Half the battle is already won before it begins. If you go into an encounter all roused up, angry, petrified, etc., then it is likely you will not be able to execute your best. Control of the emotions goes a long way to good technique execution, a good personality, the ability to learn with an open mind, accepting of others, and improving oneself.

Last but not least, and definitely extremely important.... all the Wing Chun sayings and proverbs. For these describe, in a poetic way, the hidden mechanics behind WC, be it moves, techniques, stances, forms, emotion control, etc. WC is a system, and a system is efficient only when all the parts work well together. From what I have learned, these sayings and proverbs present an integral part of the system.

An example is a proverb that totally describes what you quoted in your post "don't be greedy; don't be afraid". These are the sayings with the direct translations:

"Mok tarm da" - don't greed hit
"Mok par da" - don't fear hit

Hope that answers your question, and thanks for the interest.