# Wing Chun's Stress on an Injured Knee



## Bumblebee (May 10, 2010)

Hi, I injured myself practicing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu 6 months ago.  I have a torn meniscus and my doctor suggested to try strengthening the muscles around the knee as an alternate way of fixing it.  The other way would be surgery.  What I want to know, is how much stress is there on the knees in Wing Chun.  I'm interested in starting to take some classes, and after I read that one guy used to travel 2-3 hours to attend Private Lessons, I figure, I could at least travel half an hour twice a week to attend classes at the nearest studio.  I'm currently wrapped up in a contract with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, but if my knee injury is going to prevent me from going back and I'd be allowed to void my contract, then I would like to give Wing Chun a try.


----------



## mook jong man (May 11, 2010)

I suppose it depends on how much pain you are in and how much you are willing to endure.
The typical Wing Chun pidgeon toed stance might aggravate it a little bit depending on how far you sink down in your stance.

Pivoting exercises might also hurt  but this can be minimised by wearing less grippier shoes.

Then of course you have the practice of the low kicks and the holding of the kicks shields for low kicks most of which are targeted at the knee and thighs.

But just explain to the Sifu that you have a knee problem and that you would rather not hold the pads for anyone , I'm sure they can work around it somehow.

I have had a cartilage problem in my left knee for about 15 years , some days its good , some days its bad.
I still keep training when its bad , but I just have to back off on the intensity of the impact training on that leg.

All you can do is go there and tell them that you have a knee problem , train for a while and see what the effect is on your knee.
You might also want to wear a knee brace to give it a bit of support.


----------



## Carol (May 11, 2010)

I don't know, I have only tried Wing Chun at a MartialTalk gathering,  but I found the pidgeon-toed stance to be very hard on my knees.    Nothing wrong with trying out the art, but it may make sense to wait  until your knees are stronger.

Something that has helped my knees a lot is hiking up and down mountains.  Even if you're not a hiker, you can accomplish similar gains by walking up and down California hills, esp. if they are steep.  Walking uphill strengthens your major muscle groups, walking downhill strengthens the small stabilizer muscles.

Good luck, I hope you heal up soon!


----------



## wushuguy (May 11, 2010)

i think if you let your sifu know, he'll work with you to find a comfortable and stable stance that you could work the wing chun drills if needed. all depends on how injured your knee is and how well it can recover.


----------



## Xue Sheng (May 11, 2010)

Hello... guy with tone meniscus here

I imagine that not all meniscus tares are created equally but I can't, nor is it recommended that I get into a Wing Chun Stance. And it is not recommended that I do any MA at this point without a rigid knee brace. Eventually I will not need it but right now I do.

Talk to your Doctor is the best thing you can do at this point


----------



## yak sao (May 11, 2010)

The "pigeon toe" stance as we practice it has the feet at a 60 degree angle. We also adduct the knees and sink. If you decide to try WC, don't try to drop right into the ideal stance. Lessen the angle of your feet and don't adduct too hard. Allow your body to adapt to it. Gradually as your knee strengthens you can increase the angle, etc.
I have found the stance to be rather therapeutic, but unfortunately it is also easy to do it wrong. As already mentioned, talk to the instructor and get his input.


----------



## naneek (May 11, 2010)

be careful with your knee buddy, better to go to a physiotherapist and get some exersises from them to strengthen the knee than to get into stances which may worsen it. get the knee strong first is my opinion.


----------



## Bumblebee (May 13, 2010)

Yeah, I did speak with my doctor and all she told me was that if it hurts, then stop.  Right now my knee is probably at 99% of what it used to be.  I only feel pain if I bend my knee all the way, but other than that I can run, I can just about almost squat.  I appreciate all the comments, I guess the only thing I can do is go to a class, talk to the sifu and say, "My knee's messed up, can we work with this?"


----------



## wkmark (May 13, 2010)

I had a Torn ACL and Bucket handle meniscus tear.  I had the ACL reconstructive surgery as well as the repair on the meniscus tear.  I wear a knee brace.. the elastic one with the metal hinges on the side.  Before i wore the FULL METAL ones.  

For Wing Chun, make sure you rehab your knee well before you do anything.  After that, if you feel pain then just take it easy.  I still wear the knee brace and sometimes my knee gets sore but i have learned to live with it.


----------



## Bumblebee (May 13, 2010)

Yeah, I wear a knee brace too.  It's one of those Ace Tek Zone ones.  I have the one that has the metal hinges too, but it doesn't fit me anymore.  It's just now starting to feel full again after losing all that muscle.


----------



## wkmark (May 13, 2010)

Bumblebee said:


> Yeah, I wear a knee brace too.  It's one of those Ace Tek Zone ones.  I have the one that has the metal hinges too, but it doesn't fit me anymore.  It's just now starting to feel full again after losing all that muscle.



i still haven't gained back all that muscle, thus the need forever for the elastic metal hinge knee brace.  I can't imagine tearing my knee out again.  The pain after the surgery the next day was very, very memorable.


----------



## Domino (May 17, 2010)

The decision to defer surgery depends upon whether the knee  joint  remains functional.


----------

