How do you practice WC? Hard or soft?

[Happeh]

I seen lots of different WC. Some of them are soft like Tai Chi maybe. Some of them were hard with that dynamic tension stuff.

Which way is your WC? Do you know the reason why the head guy chose that particular way?

[couch]

Soft and Hard (enter big booming voice:) At T h e S a m e T i m e...

Relaxed energy...in a way, from the 'hard' attack to a relaxed state immediately after or if the attack was intercepted...let the energy go and find another way around.

If you have no tension, then you can react the fastest. Have confidence, face the centre and believe in the techniques...

It's too early to be posting. I sound like a ....yah.

Peace,
Kenton

[Gangsterfist]

How do you practice WC? Hard or soft?

Neither, we practice it neutral.

[anerlich]

couch and gangsterfist are correct.

Do you know the reason why the head guy chose that particular way?

Yes I do.

But you'll have to Bai Si to a Yik Kam Sifu to find out

[Happeh]

I need a new martial arts forums. Anyone know of one with a very very large membership?

None of those are answers. They are mystical crapola.

With a larger membership base, there is usually at least one honest person who does not mind being honest.These answers sound like people hiding because they do not want someone to say "Hey! You are wrong!".

Neutral. What the heck does that mean? Jump and and do the whoopdedoo on the Yik Bai Bo. Huh?

No one got the confidence to stand tall and say "This is what we do, right or wrong"?

I seen two Wing Chun. One was doing it soft like Tai Chi. I had real doubts about this style. People who were strong did OK in this style because they were already strong. People who were weak? I never believed they learned anything. They could do the moves sure. But the minute anyone put power on them, they folded up like a chair.

The other style utilized dynamic tension to train strength in people. Real kung fu strength, not weightlifting strength. These guys were dangerous. Close to real chinese kung fu people dangerous.

If you were going to war or the police or you wanted to be a bouncer, you would want to train the dynamic tension style. If you were learning to learn principles or for relaxation or exercise, then the soft Tai Chi style was what people need.

I am not saying the Chi Sau was hard. I am talking about the Sil Lum Tau form. To learn sensitivity people do Chi Sau soft and if you are super skilled you do Chi Sau soft. If you were working with someone who might hurt you, and you were only middling skill, there is strength in the arms when you Chi Sau. Otherwise a person could punch right thru a soft Bong Sau or Tan Sau.

There. I stood up tall and said what I think whether it opens me up to ridicule or not. Anyone else encouraged enough by my example to open up and be honest about what they think?

[jonp]

relaxation is paramount in wck, you wont find me using dynamic tension.

it is possible to be soft and yet not collapse. this is what correct wck teaches.

people gave you the correct answer straight away, hence no more discussion.

later

[Gangsterfist]

what do you mean honest answer?

I gave you one, its nuetral, neither hard nor soft, its somewhere inbetween. that is the simple short answer. If you really want to see the wing chun I do, unfortunately you would have to train with me in person. When you watch someone chi sao you get the idea that its some sort of sparring exercise, but its not. When you "feel" the roll in chi sao you can better understand what people are explaining to you.


I can describe it to you all day but you would never really know how I train until you actually trained with me.

[unkokusai]

I need a new martial arts forums. Anyone know of one with a very very large membership?

You need an anime forum or something. You may find geeks of your ilk to associate with.

[mortal]

Happeh

The question you asked was very open ended ans can be interpreted many different ways.

Maybe you should be more specific.

Oh and try to show some intitial respect. If you act like a punk, you'll get treated like one.

So lets start over.

What is it you want to know?
Detailed this time please.

[cobra]

it should be so soft that your opponent blows through and you're not there, but he's already had the crap knocked out of him. if you are attacking, it should be soft enough that you can feel what is going on and respond without fighting force against force, yet when the punch lands it should land with considerable force that is developed from speed and relaxation. I know this is bound to get lots of criticism and I didn't cover every possible scenario, but this is hard to explain in text as opposed to an actual demonstration.

[PaulH]

"There. I stood up tall and said what I think whether it opens me up to ridicule or not. Anyone else encouraged enough by my example to open up and be honest about what they think? - Happy"

Until I figure out the deep root of your cyber restlessness, it's too early to recommend a more therapeutic forum in your current "crapola" condition. - Dr. Paul =D

P.S. Joking aside, WC is neither soft nor hard in my opinion. It is about being natural. Ask yourself this. Do you work to acquire or to become? =)

[anerlich]

None of those are answers. They are mystical crapola.

What, you mean like all the stuff about pyramids on the triangles thread?

You act like you expect people to think your posts are brilliant and treat you accordingly, then get pugnacious and upset when not everyone agrees.

Taiji is not soft. Taiji is hard AND soft. I only spent five years doing it, but that's my understanding.

Efficient and effective physical movement requires the effective coordination of tension and relaxation. It isn't physically possible to move the body without some muscular tension, and hitting hard and moving fast require explosive muscular contractions - "hard", if you insist on making this distinction. Sensitivity and economy of movement also require relaxation of the antagonists (soft). Both are necessary for success in WC.

My academy practices a style of WC which probably has a larger structure, and more emphasis on footwork and athletic conditioning than many. We're proably toward the harder end of the continuum - my teacher has experience both in the ring and in defense situations, and feels this focus is most effective.

I need a new martial arts forums. Anyone know of one with a very very large membership?

www.mma.tv
www.sherdog.com

Are very good sites, but they are not KF sites.

www.bullshido.com sounds like your kind of site.

[Wingman]

When you attack, you should attack hard. You can't knock out your opponent with a "soft" punch!

When you defend, use "soft" energy. By "soft", I mean absorbing and/or redirecting the opponent's attack. Don't use force against force to defend.

[SAAMAG]

When you attack, you should attack hard. You can't knock out your opponent with a "soft" punch!

When you defend, use "soft" energy. By "soft", I mean absorbing and/or redirecting the opponent's attack. Don't use force against force to defend.

And to add on, one cannot punch quickly or effectively without staying loose. It wouldn't do you any good to punch with a tensed arm. You lose power and speed that way. I simply tell people to stay relaxed and to punch "naturally".
And as the saying goes, to tense at the moment of impact, and nowhere else.

[Gangsterfist]

IMHO, you can practice it both hard and soft, for various training reasons. Try it for yourself.

However


When in chi sao, or sparring, or even real fighting, you should be nuetral, firm with intent, but not using tension (expect the tension used, ie if you make a fist there is dynamic tension in your arm because of you making a fist), relaxed but not a soggy noodle.

Maybe that will make more sense to you.