# Beginner to Wing Chun



## KeirTuS (Jan 28, 2012)

Hey guys,

My name's Keirt, you pronounce it as Kurt. Yea it's a weird spelling . Anyway, I'm 16 years old from Burlington, Ontario, Canada.

My step dad did kung fu for about 8 years, but it's been 2 or 3 years since his school closed down. We're in search of a kung fu school, specifically training in Wing Chun around the burlington area. Do you guys know of any? Since the closest one he knows is in Hamilton, and I know of one in Mississauga which is both a good 20-30 minute drive away.

Also, if there are no schools nearby, is there any DVD's worth checking out? I have no prior experience in Wing Chun but my step dad showed me a few simple things like sticky hands. However, it's been a while since we practiced that. I was thinking of building one of the wooden dummies so we can both use it. Any information on that as well would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks


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## wushuguy (Jan 28, 2012)

Welcome to MT.
about the dummy, you can get some info about building it here:
http://www.wingchundummy.net/

Good luck in finding a school in your area.

What lineage of Win Chun is your step-dad from? If your looking for DVDs, it's probably good to keep it within the same lineage so at least it can help him remember what drills and concepts they have.


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## KeirTuS (Jan 28, 2012)

Awesome! Thanks for the site! As for the lineage, I'm not quite sure what it would be, I suppose I should ask him lol

Thanks!


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## mograph (Jan 29, 2012)

Hmm ... A 20-30 minute drive to a live teacher is better than a DVD at home.

If you want to go three nights a week and the driving time would really be a problem, tell the teacher and maybe you can go to fewer classes but practice with a local buddy between classes. If the teacher knows you're doing that, he/she might be able to give you exercises that better suit that way of training.


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## yak sao (Jan 29, 2012)

I would give my eye teeth if my teacher were 30 minutes away.

I suggest taking advantage of what you have, there are many who would love to be in your situation.

I understand that you are 16, and 30 minutes may as well be 1000 miles, but you also have your dad at your disposal. Again, take advantage...you are very fortunate.


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## Domino (Jan 30, 2012)

Yeah good luck in your training and welcome to the forum !
http://www.dojos.ca/ON/Burlington/
Conact them to see what they do and go feel if you're interested... and I don't feel rub up or massage lol.


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## onthechin (Jan 30, 2012)

Nothing to do with the thread sorry - although you're lucky to have a step dad who you obviously get on well with AND who does WC! Sounds like a cool guy. But Domino, I love your signature! "Greet what arrives,escort what leaves and rush upon loss of contact"...Never heard that before.


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## wtxs (Jan 31, 2012)

onthechin;1457743But Domino said:
			
		

> One of the many WC mantra, stick around and you will see more of them.


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## WCman1976 (Jan 31, 2012)

KeirTuS said:


> Hey guys,
> 
> My name's Keirt, you pronounce it as Kurt. Yea it's a weird spelling . Anyway, I'm 16 years old from Burlington, Ontario, Canada.
> 
> ...



Well, you kind of have a built-in partner at home because of your stepdad. Granted, it isn't good to do chi sao against only one person (good experiene with that is gained only through multiple partners), but it's better than what most of us might have going on. Also, since he lives with you, isn't there any way you could just ask him to start teaching you again until you find a school?


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## WingChunIan (Feb 1, 2012)

onthechin said:


> Nothing to do with the thread sorry - although you're lucky to have a step dad who you obviously get on well with AND who does WC! Sounds like a cool guy. But Domino, I love your signature! "Greet what arrives,escort what leaves and rush upon loss of contact"...Never heard that before.



It's arguably the single most quoted part of the kuit kuen. There are a lot of minor variations on the exact wording due to translations but the gist is always the same. Have you heard the phrase luk sao chik chung (certainly not the correct romanisation but my poor attempt at phoenetics)?


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## onthechin (Feb 1, 2012)

No..all I know is sao means hand..


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## geezer (Feb 1, 2012)

onthechin said:


> No..all I know is sao means hand..



"Loi lau hoi sung, 
Lat sau jik chung"

As we loosely translate it in our lineage: _"Stay with what comes, follow the retreat, and thrust forward when the hand is free"_ ...or some similar variation. Arguably the most insightful of the _kuen kuit_ or martial sayngs of WC, it truly encapsulates _the essence_ of the art. You flex and yield before hard pressure, sticking or "staying with what comes", then you spring back, "following" as your attacker retreats, and when "the way is free", you explode forward, striking your opponent.

...Or to be even more concise, "Be like a spring!".


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## WingChunIan (Feb 1, 2012)

onthechin said:


> No..all I know is sao means hand..



fair enough, it's said so many times on so many forums and in so many classes I'm amazed that there's a Wing Chun school out there where you don't hear it. The kuit kuen are only notes but they can be really useful reflections on training. My other personal fave is "others walk the bow, I walk the string". Between those two quotes you have the entire fighting philosophy of Wing Chun IMHO.


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## mook jong man (Feb 2, 2012)

I wouldn't bother with a dummy you are just going to embed bad habits that are going to be a pain to get rid of later .
Find a qualified teacher and get hands on instruction.


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## celestial_dragon (Oct 16, 2012)

check out www.masterwongacademy.com


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## Takai (Oct 16, 2012)

I currently drive about 30 mins 3x a week for classes. It may seem a bit much but in the end I feel that the investment of time (and fuel) is worth it. I would concur about about avoiding a dummy until your reach that point in your training. The temptation is great but since everything can be corrected on the dummy, it can also be messed up...and bad habits are a pain to break.

No chance that you and your stepdad could go to class together?


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## WC_lun (Oct 16, 2012)

20 to 30 minutes is not a great distance, if you truly want to train good Wing Chun.  There is no DVD that can come close to the knowledge a quality teacher can give you.  

"When they retreat, you follow, letting no space be between you" is our chi sao maxim.


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