The martial art, Wing Chun, comes from ancient China and is an efficient form of self-defense. In your professional or everyday life, there can always be situations that can be dangerous for your physical or psychological well-being.
With Wing Chun, you will learn how to recognize these dangerous situations and how to avoid them. It is a comprehensive type of self-defense in which physical strength plays a subordinate role and is balanced out with sophisticated technology.
Wing Chun shows you how to use your body wisely and improve your coordination skills. It helps you get to know a completely new kind of freedom of movement. But the main question remains: is Wing Chun hard to learn?
Well, Wing Chun is easy to learn. By dedicating yourself to some months of consistent and diligent practice, the martial art will even become a fun activity as you will be able to easily make ChiSao, the two-person drill.
However, Wing Chun can be relatively hard to master. This is why many practitioners always pick trainings in other martial arts to make their skills more complete.
In this article, we will discuss the first theoretical notions that are important to know when starting Wing Chun and then the practical and technical aspects.
What actually is Wing Chun?
First of all, you should know that Wing Chun is a traditional Chinese martial art. It is part of the big family of Kung Fu. Kung Fu (Gong Fu) or Wu Shu in Mandarin has hundreds of different styles of barehanded and weaponized Kung Fu. They are classified into two categories, the southern and northern styles.
They are distinguished according to two important criteria that are specific to them, the styles of the South rely a lot on the techniques of hands and makes use of the combat in a restricted space. As for the styles of the North, they bet on more elaborate leg techniques and opt for more acrobatic choreographies.
Wing Chun is a Chinese KungFu style and is probably the most effective way to defend yourself. Wing Chun was invented by a woman and for women so that they could successfully defend themselves against physically superior opponents.
Wing Chun is versatile like hardly any other martial art. The focus is not only on learning different fighting techniques. Rather, it is a holistic training that ultimately also involves self-awareness.
Wing Chun was invented by the Chinese nun Mg Nui, who lived more than 250 years ago. Wing Chun was supposed to represent a form of defense that could be used by women.
It was named after Mg Nui’s first student and Wing Chun is still an efficient martial art for realistic self-defense. Wing Chun is part of the so-called “inner styles”, which also include TaiChi, Bakua or Hsing-I.
In the 1970s, Wing Chun was introduced by Grand Master Prof. Dr. Keith R. Kernspecht to Europe. Kernspecht is the founder of the EWTO (European Wing Chun Organization) and has put together a concept that combines Wing Chun with modern scientific knowledge.
How to learn Wing Chun
To learn any martial art, you have to work hard and have a good teacher. There is no other secret.
In Wing Chun, the master-concept is very intense because even with the new technologies, it cannot be emulated. A good teacher is someone who accompanies you on your journey and teaches what you need at all times to facilitate your development.
Imparting too much knowledge at once is usually not helpful as it will not be assimilable. And helping yourself too much will reduce independence. A good teacher must be able to help you discover your style, the one that works for you, for your character and your physique.
Everything needs to be studied theoretically and practiced in its real application to be assimilated. In Wing Chun, an evolution is impossible without the continuous supervision of a teacher, especially at the beginning.
It would be easy to learn and practice something wrong for months. However, having to correct this can take even longer. Getting rid of bad habits can be more difficult. The techniques must be practiced with the correct form. And when applying them, it must be based on the sensations, on the contact, on what your opponent tells you at all times.
Can anyone learn Wing Chun?
No physical prerequisites are required to learn Wing Chun. Rather, it is a type of self-defense that can be practiced by all age groups and regardless of physical fitness. In short: Wing Chun is self-defense for everyone.
In addition to general classes, there are also special women’s, children’s, and youth classes. So you can enjoy training that is specially tailored to your age group and needs.
The three-part Wing Chun system – What do the three levels look like?
Certain movement sequences, reactions, and methods form the basis of well-founded, effective training in Wing Chun. The learning process can be divided into three stages, which ultimately – like many Asian martial arts – aims at self-development.
In the following, we will give you an initial overview of the three levels that you can reach step by step with Wing Chun.
First level: Physical self-defense of Wing Chun
In Wing Chun, you start on the 1st level with physical self-defense. You will learn how to effectively protect yourself from physical attacks and how to ward off the attacker.
At this level, you will also be taught special basics of movement so that flexibility can be increased step by step. You will learn special strategies for defense, which can be easily accessed if necessary and adapted to the situation.
The focus is on effective self-defense in the event of an attack, the correct behavior in the event of attacks, and ritual combat.
Second level: Strategy and technology of Wing Chun
The basic knowledge acquired from the 1st level is taken to the 2nd level as the basis for further training. You should now implement the effective strategies of the art of fighting in Wing Chun in everyday life.
It’s not primarily about physical self-defense. Rather, you should use Wing Chun to strengthen your private, social, and professional position.
Third level: self-perfection
Self-perfection is the highest level that you can reach in Wing Chun. This level is usually also the goal of masters and grandmasters.
FAQs: Why Should You Learn Wing Chun?
There are many reasons why people want to learn Wing Chun Kung Fu. The main reasons for learning Wing Chun are for health, fitness, fun, and self-defense. Before starting, the main questions you want to ask yourself are:
1. Am I going to have bruises learning Wing Chun?
As you’ll practice Wing Chun primarily through body mechanism, internal awareness, as well as small movements, your goal is to increase how much energy you can generate. As skills take time to acquire, you won’t go home bruised on your face or having cauliflower ears from fighting or boxing.
2. Are you primarily interested in physical exercise, or do you want to learn something real?
Some people don’t wish to learn a complete martial art. Their priority is getting themselves in shape. In Wing Chun, more focus is on body awareness and internal development. It extends the power of the body to your arms for when one day you need it. Wing Chun helps you learn to conserve energy, not making use of it all in exercises.
3. Do I need to have a good physique to learn Wing Chun?
Wing Chun focuses on internal methods, teaching you to deploy the internal power of the body to the limbs. This means that a person who weighs only 50 kilos could use that weight in his strokes. So, this martial art doesn’t focus on size, but on skill. Bigger physiques don’t necessarily mean more power.
Small people that have more skills can protect themselves better against bigger attackers. This gives people with smaller constructions a great opportunity.
4. Why spend years practicing for a self-protection situation which may not occur?
This is a common question. You should know that training in martial arts like this is always fun. It’s also a type of beneficial personal development. For example, why go for a run every day? Is it because you may need it someday? No.
With swimming, you may need the skill, but a little basic training in swimming is sufficient for saving your life. You don’t necessarily need endless training. People practicing this martial art do it for fitness, fun, as well as personal development.
Final Verdict
Wing Chun is simple to learn but may be a little bit difficult to master. The latter takes you time. The martial art is the perfect style for those who want to learn a simple and effective art of defense that does not require any physical or acrobatic skills. It is very suitable for women and people of low stature.
It also remains accessible to all men, women, and children aged five and over. What it takes for a student to progress well in the martial arts is discipline, persistence, and commitment. You have to be prepared to put in the time and effort to make progress and achieve your goal.