What is Wing Chun Kung Fu?

Wing Chun Kung Fu as a kind of traditional martial arts of southern China, Is a kind of technique to defend the invasion and a kind of Chinese boxing with positive, that focuses on eliminating opponents as fast and as efficiently as possible. To do this, the attacks are aimed at the centerline of the opponent, which is a vertical line from the crown of the head straight down to the crotch.

Wing Chun was created in China during the seventeenth century, and it was the last Kung Fu art ever developed in China. It was the only Kung Fu art ever created by a woman.Wing Chun is an in-close combative system based on not fighting “Force against Force,” using the principles of Yin/Yang. The system’s movements are based on looking at and implementing the movements of certain animals. Those animals are the white crane, snake, tiger and fox. However, its effectiveness and uniqueness is its ability to utilize “chi”, one’s internal energy.The Wing Chun approach results in a no-nonsense defense system characterized by simplicity, directness, speed and techniques rather than physical strength to respond to the attack. Thus, Wing Chun becomes especially useful when applied to a larger, stronger, faster, more aggressive adversary.In addition, Wing Chun was designed to capitalize on each individual’s body mechanics. Therefore, people with varying abilities can quickly become adept in defending themselves and at the same time developing self-confidence.

Wing Chun characteristics and strengths

Wing Chun is very scientific, practical and fast with intensive defending. The stances of is flexible and could be changed fast. Its attacking and defending could be done at the same time. It emphasizes the combination of hardness and tenderness and wastes the least energy. Wing Chun uses the explosive power to attack and defend. In theory and mind, the middle line, hips, chasing shapes towards face, the consideration of both sides, holding and chasing, swing hands are emphasized. It’s strength is sparring in the shortest distance.

The middle line theory refers to the line from the top to caudal vertebrae of human body. In attacking, Winchun command that the trainers should attack toward the middle line of the opponent from the middle line of themselves. This is the shortest distance between two persons who have the same speed of punching. The one with the shorter routine of punching would hit firstly. If the middle line is attacked, the person will feel heavy power, and this one part of the most practical theory in Chinese martial arts system.
In Winchun, the power depends on the middle line of human body, because of this, the Winchun trainers should have powerful gross motor on the back. This power using method is quite different from those martial arts which need the power from the muscle from waist and arms.
In November of 2014, Winchun was listed into the fourth batch of national intangible cultural heritage representative martial arts items.

Wing Chun's specialty is in close contact combat

Using quick punches and kicks with a tight defence, coordinated through agile stances and footwork for a quick advance. The effectiveness of this fighting style is achieved by well coordinated attacks with simultaneous defence and vise versa. Due to its effectiveness this martial art makes for an effective form of self defence. The student must learn to deliver the correct amount of energy or force, whilst staying relaxed when possible. A good Sifu (instructor / teacher) will teach the student to overcome force and strength with positioning and turning rather than meeting it head on. The style uses kicks, sweeps, elbows, palm strikes, punches, trapping and control techniques as part of its fighting arsenal.

The Benefits of Wing Chun

Because of the fast-paced nature of Wing Chun, there are many obvious benefits, such as general physical fitness. However, there are some benefits that are specific to the fighting styles used in Wing Chun. Here are a few of the health benefits of practicing Wing Chun:

Physical fitness.
Coordination.
Mental health: Like many forms of martial arts, Wing Chun has many mental health benefits. The first and most obvious benefit comes in the form of stress relief — the kind you get from any kind of physical activity. Beyond that, though, it’s a great way to remove yourself from the constant swirl of thoughts in your brain. When you’re using all of your energy to focus on blocking or landing a strike, your brain doesn’t have the energy to think about the negative things going on in your life. In this sense, Wing Chun is somewhat of a form of meditation.
Better speed and power: Where as lifting weights will make your muscles stronger, Wing Chun will teach you how to use your muscles to be stronger. Wing Chun uses proper striking techniques to provide an added boost of explosiveness and speed to your strikes, a skill that translates well into other activities.
Improved eye focus: Hand-eye coordination didn’t get its name by accident. To fully maximize your hand-eye coordination, you must train your eyes to quickly recognize and process visual cues. Learning blocks in Wing Chun trains your eyes to quickly process a threat and your hands to properly respond.

The Importance Of The Wing Chun Stance

This martial art has several recognizable characteristics: the centerline, the stance, and emphasis on balance. This stance is such that the feet are at shoulder width with the toes pointing inwards. Knees are bent, and the thighs are rotated inward as if you are trying to squeeze something between them. Fists are held to the sides with elbows tucked in close to the body. This stable stance forms the basis of every attack and counter-attack. View the correct stance in the image below.