One of the most common questions we often get is how long will it take to be good at Wing Chun? The answer relates to how much time and effort that you are willing to put in to practicing this martial art. In general the more you practice the better you will get. So here is our advice on what to practice in order to get better at Wing Chun quickly.
Some martial arts, such as Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, have no structured approach for training specific techniques without a partner. Granted, Boxing and Kickboxing have the method of shadow sparring, but this is still simplistic when trying to develop an understanding of what you should be doing when someone is pushing your arm (or punch) away. How does it teach you how to respond to physical contact?
We’ve all been in the position where we want to practice our martial art, but we don’t have a training partner to hand. Of course, practice makes perfect. So, how do you train a martial art when on you are on your own? Here is our advice in a two part article on ‘How to Train on Your Own’. The first article will briefly outline what you should practice in the gym for Boxing, Kickboxing, and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, while the second in the series will focus on how to train Wing Chun out of class.
Of course it is important to warm up properly for any training session at the gym. A Martial Arts class is no different, but should your warm up be specifically related to Wing Chun, San Da Kickboxing, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu or should it be functional for self defence?
In the past, Kung Fu schools would fight bare hand on a Lei Tai (a raised platform) to see which was the better fighting art. San Da as the modern development of traditional Lei Tai contests used to test the fighting arts of Kung Fu, but governed by rules to reduce the risk of injury.
Of course it is important to warm up properly for any training session at the gym. A Wing Chun class is no different, but should your warm up be specifically related to Wing Chun or should it be functional for self defence?
As a woman, choosing the right martial art for you can take time, especially while exploring many different types of classes. Before settling with Wing Chun, I trained Kyokushin and Go Kan Ryu karate. Having seen and practiced different martial arts made me more aware of what I was looking for and needed from my training as a woman looking for a good approach to self defence.
Ask any new student why they wish to train martial arts, and they will invariably reply “To get fit, and learn how to defend myself”. But how fit do you have to be in the first place to defend yourself? Is there a relationship between fitness and self defence and should you take it seriously?
Our success does indicate that we are different from the typical Wing Chun school. We are effective, dynamic, and capable of fighting in arenas out of our comfort zone. Most importantly our training methods and approach differs by far too many Wing Chun schools in London.
Good fitness training is essential for well rounded self defence ability. By focusing on functional fitness requirements rather than simple gym exercises you can build a better body, but more importantly a fighters mind.