Wing Chun Physical Conditioning
In this issue we take a look at the Wing Chun system as taught by Paul Elston, who is recognised as Grand Master Cheung's favourite pupil and represents the World Wing Chun Kung-Fu Association, as its UK Director.
Paul feels that as an instructor he is obliged to offer the best instruction he is capable of, to his own students. In this article we will examine just a few of this instructors ideas and thoughts and see how they compare to other Winq Chun schools and svstems.
Physical Conditioning
Paul has often expressed the opinion, that physical fitness is a vital component of martial arts training, as a person who is fit can put much more into their training, than someone who is not and l am sure everyone would agree, that what you get out of martial arts training, depends very much, on what you put in. Fitness is also very important for actual fighting, whether in a competition or a self-defence situation. Reaction times and speed of techniques are better in someone who is fit and of course they have more stamina, which is very important if fighting several rounds in a ring or faced with a number of opponents on the street.
To help his students develop their fitness, Paul would normally, according to the individual, set out a training programme to build up the potential of the student. A typical programme would involve, ten minutes loosening of the joints followed by the more strenuous exercises consisting of, say, 100 star jumps; 100 push ups, some on the knuckles of finger tips and some with a clap etc, as well as ordinary ones; 100 sit ups, again of various types such as touching the toes or with the feet kept off the floor; 100 squat thrusts; 2 minutes of bunny hops to be repeated 3 more times; followed by relay races of 100 yard sprints. Out of Club time students are encouraged to jog 3 miles per day, 6 days a week.
Towards the end of this warm-up session the students compete against the clock, in a race to see who can do the most push ups, sit ups etc in one minute. Paul does this because he believes it is important for the students to see how well they are progressing and the competitive element can encourage them to push themselves that little bit harder. He encourages them to improve on their previous personal best and to beat his own record of 143 push ups, in one minute. The idea is, of course, to do as many as possible of the particular exercise, properly and not to improve on quantity by sacrificing quality. By training hard in this way, the student has more scope to improve and extend his own martial arts potential.
In many schools of martial arts, weight training is frowned upon because the instructor believes that one can become muscle bound, slowing down movement and impairing flexibility. While the aim of the Wing Chun system is not to fight force with force, in order to obtain the most from themselves the students are encouraged, by Paul, to work out with weights, every other day to build up strength, followed by a good stretching session to prevent the muscles becoming tight.
Contact Area Conditioning
Paul Elston's training system also includes methods for conditioning the contact areas of the body. In their own time students are encouraged to work out on wall bags filled with either pebble dash, for beginners or steel ball bearings for advanced students, to condition the contact areas of the hand and to kick bags filled with sand for conditioning of the shins and feet.
There is also iron palm training which involves the use of Chinese herbal medicines to promote rapid healing and toughening of the contact areas. These can also be used for iron elbow and leg and this type of training would take up to 1 1/2 hours per day for 100 days, to complete a course.
The phoenix fist and its training methods are kept for advanced students but a basic conditioning exercise which Master Elston demonstrated is to do 50 push ups, on the tips of the phoenix knuckle. In the Wing Chun system the index finger is used and while doing the exercise no other part of the hand should touch the floor. It would be necessary to start with a smaller number of push ups and gradually build up to 50 as the strength of the knuckles improves. The phoenix strike is used to the eyes and pressure points of the opponent for best results and advanced students can use Bi Jee (thrusting fingers) to strike the eyes, throat and even the body of the opponent.
Basics
Within the Wing Chun system a given situation is looked at logically using the ideas of the system, its principles and training methods but, as with other styles, the basics are the foundation upon which the system is built and they are covered in depth.
A number of exercises are used to promote speed and power in punching and these consist of 5 x 3 minute rounds against an 80lb hanging bag and sets of 2 x 3 minute rounds against air shield, focus mitts and speed ball, and with weighted gloves or wrist weights. These are supplemented by punching exercises against the air, working on various combinations and concentrating on focussing energy, correct breathing and technique. The tricep is the area of concentration with the punch, as it is the source of power. It is this muscle which pushes the arm out, the bicep is used to draw back. Effective concentrating of energy and muscle, greatly improve the punch and also protect the elbow joint.
Similar exercises are used to develop the various kicks which are used in the Wing Chun system, again working in rounds against a bag or air sheild, against the air and with ankle weights.
The punching and kicking exercises which are performed against the air can also be done in water, preferably in the sea against the tide, although a swimming pool can substitute. The water should come to shoulder height so that the kicks and punches are executed against the extra resistance of the water.
Basic defend and counter techniques are practised both to I the air, and with a partner, using large numbers of repetitions so that the correct techniques become an automatic reflex. When a student first learns a new technique it is practised fairly slowly so that the student can concentrate on executing it correctly, but gradually the speed is built up as the student becomes more confident and proficient in the technique, until he can practise it at full speed against a full speed and full power attack from a partner.
Street Sense & Strategy
The Wing Chun system has been recognised by many as a good system for dealing with street encounters and so discussionsand demonstrations are often given on this subject by Paul Elston, the UK Chief Instructor.
The students are taught what he calls 'street sense' so that many basic mistakes can be eliminated. A good example is that one should never argue with arms crossed or hands in pockets but rather keep them where they can be used easily, in the event of a sudden attack from the other person.
Aspects such as dealing with multiple opponents and how to avoid being head-butted during an argument are also covered, along with the issue of whether it is better to hit first and ask questions later or to try to leave before trouble starts. With this type of question no instructor can really make the students decisions for them or cover every set of circumstances which could arise but can only give an indication of the pros and cons from the practical, moral and legal viewpoints and to go into these subjects in depth would be beyond the scope of this article.
The practicality of the Wing Chun system, and no doubt any other system, depends very much on the instructor and what he teaches to his students. If a master holds back information for any reason, his students are not going to progress as well as if he is willing to pass on all of his knowledge. Paul believes in giving his students the full benefit of what he has learned from his instructor, William Cheung, and also what he has learnt from experience and is always willing to answer questions.
The way an instructor interprets the style is also important and Paul expects his students to master the system, making it work for them, rather than the system being the master and the student, like a robot who must do exactly as the instructor does. A clear example of this would be, if an instructor was 14 stone, powerful and aggressive and a student 9 stone and passive. The student could not expect his punching and kicking power to match his instructor's and may be advised to avoid confrontations, whenever possible and if it does become necessary to fight, to attack the opponents eyes, throat, groin and other vulnerable areas, perhaps using Bil Jee or phoenix knuckle techniques, which when properly executed do not need a great deal of power to be effective.
Each person is an individual, and some techniques will not work as well for some as they do with others and so Paul encourages his students to find the ways in which the various techniques work best, for them. The students are also taught to analyse their techniques and general fighting strategy to discover, for example, if they are telegraphing their moves and so making it easy for an opponent to read what is coming, or whether they have any habits which could be picked up on and used against them, such as always fighting with the same leg leading, keeping a low guard or dropping the guard when kicking. Once a student becomes aware of the errors he is making, he can then work on eliminating them.
During a training session students are encouraged to ask questions and a typical one which arises is, how to deal with particular types of knife attack. As the use of knives is becoming a more and more regular feature of street fights, this topic is frequently covered by Paul Elston, for reasons of realism, both from the aspect of the best general strategy to adopt and specific techniques to deal with various types of attack.
Paul feels that when a student learns a particular system, he should be encouraged to understand all the pros and cons of that system and its various training methods, such as forms and chi sau and their applications, sparring and strategy. He should become confident but learn never to underestimate an opponent, this having been the downfall of many in the past and no doubt it will continue to be in the future.
Sifu Elston, has travelled around the world and although he fully understands his Traditional Wing Chun system he strives to expand his knowledge by meeting masters of other styles and by constantly asking himself and his own master questions. It is through this desire to learn that he has become UK Director for Traditional Wing Chun, under William Cheung and has been asked to teach in various countries. It is hoped that one day all systems will be willing to learn from one another and in this way expand their system, but unfortunately, open-minded people such as Dan lnosanto and the late Bruce Lee, are still few and far between.
