# Wing Chun cross training



## shaolin_al (Jul 8, 2010)

Hi everyone for the last 3-4 months I have been studying basically the EBMAS system of wing chun and Latosa escrima as a separate art. Both compliment each other very well except for the footwork being very different and the usage of short power can be different as well. I used to study Baguazhang a few years ago, and I was considering going back to relearn the Sun style Bagua I was taught while I continue to study wing chun and escrima. I was wondering if any of you on this forum cross train in other arts along with your wing chun and what problems and successes you've faced from doing so?


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## cwk (Jul 8, 2010)

I also train in northen shaolin and judo (when i get chance) and every now and again some hung gar.
I can't say I've ever had any problems cross training only seen benefits.
Then again, these systems blend quite nicely into each other with a little bit of tweaking so maybe it's not as difficult as if ,for example,you cross trained something like Taji and shotokan.


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## dosk3n (Jul 8, 2010)

I dont personally but I was actually talking to a kid in my class that cross trains just last night and he does dance fighting and karate and says he doesnt find any dificulties at all doing other arts.


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## mook jong man (Jul 8, 2010)

dosk3n said:


> I dont personally but I was actually talking to a kid in my class that cross trains just last night and he does *dance fighting* and karate and says he doesnt find any dificulties at all doing other arts.


 
I used to do dance fighting in my younger days too , thats where you'd go to a nite club , get as full as a catholic school , try to dance and get into a fight.


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## Tez3 (Jul 8, 2010)

mook jong man said:


> I used to do dance fighting in my younger days too , thats where you'd go to a nite club , get as full as a catholic school , try to dance and get into a fight.


 

:lfao::lfao::lfao:


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## yak sao (Jul 8, 2010)

For me, cross training is less about keeping it all straight and more about lack of time. I did Latosa Escrima for a few years while I studied with Emin and I think it's a fantastic art. 
I have so little time these days I find it better for me to focus on WT exclusively rather than having a bunch of plates spinning.
That said my si-fu is also a big proponent of Tai Chi and has taught me the Yang Style long form. I don't practice it as often as I should, I use it more as a form of exercise. but it compliments WT a great deal. I would bet pa kwa would as well.


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## shaolin_al (Jul 8, 2010)

Yak sao not sure if you have spoken with geezer on this forum but I am a student of his and he used to train for some time with Emin as well. Dance fighting? Is that like capoeira or? "get as full as a catholic school" Haha that is hilarious mook jong man. I was just curious at what level it was you guys began learning some mook jong and/or weapons forms? I've been training all level 2 stuff last night at class, we were doing dan chi sao and a good amount of lop sao drills. I think yang tai chi would compliment wing chun very well. Cwk what type of northern shaolin do you study? Mainly long fist stuff? I was curious as to whether that would compliment wing chun. Hung gar sounds like it would be a great system to train as well.


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## Nabakatsu (Jul 8, 2010)

I don't study anything other than the EBMAS program, very little practice with the latosa stuff, I have a real problem using the escrima footwork.. anyways, I definitely think there are merits to cross training, I'm pretty interested in going about training southern mantis or bak mei.. or lung ying..
The hakka styles fascinate me so..
best of luck with your decision.


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## shaolin_al (Jul 8, 2010)

I agree nabakatsu. EBMAS is a great system by itself. I was considering bak mei, or southern mantis hakka styles etc.. also. It's very tough where I live to find southern style sifus besides wing chun.


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## geezer (Jul 8, 2010)

Nabakatsu said:


> I don't study anything other than the EBMAS program, very little practice with the latosa stuff,* I have a real problem using the escrima footwork.*. anyways, I definitely think there are merits to cross training, I'm pretty interested in going about training southern mantis or bak mei.. or lung ying..
> The hakka styles fascinate me so..
> best of luck with your decision.



A problem with the escrima footwork? Man, I hear that from so many people, a lot of whom are very good at WC/WT/VT. A buddy of mine who trains EBMAS (I'm with the NVTO) just got back from training with Michael Casey. "Do any LWS?" (Latosa Weapons System) I asked. "Nope" he emailed me back, "Sisok Michael said I needed to focus on my WT". OK, so that was probably good advice. Still, it's getting hard to find anybody around here who will swing a stick at me. Very disappointing. 

You know, when you factor in range and the fact that you are holding a weapon, I find that the Latosa Escrima stance makes perfect sense. Even our WC/WT/VT stances change when using the Long Pole Or Bart Cham Dao. With the BCD its less obvious, but the weight still shifts forward a bit. So why's that a problem with escrima? The trick is being able to find the commonality between the two arts at the underlying level of _concept_, while still keeping the movements and techniques separate.

Either that or I'm just making all this up because I really like escrima. LOL


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## shaolin_al (Jul 8, 2010)

Haha thanks for the input sifu. I think maybe just at the beginning people see difficulty in the footwork when doing both. It's after you become comfortable with the footwork in each that I will be able to see a common ground between the two. The truth is what makes EBMAS such a great system is the fact that it includes both escrima and the wing chun. I've found that doing fma has greatly increased my reflexes and even helped with keeping my arms relaxed when I practice the wing chun. The truth is a lot of people don't understand how deep fma systems can get, and that they go far beyond stick fighting. However I still really enjoy the stick work as much as I enjoy the wing chun.


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## shaolin_al (Jul 8, 2010)

I wonder if there are any similarities between wing chun and silat also. Not sure why i'm posting it here you guys may have seen it but it's a very funny story take a look http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2010/05/20/would-be-muggers-in-australia-thwarted-by-ninjas/


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## mook jong man (Jul 8, 2010)

shaolin_al said:


> Yak sao not sure if you have spoken with geezer on this forum but I am a student of his ..........
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## shaolin_al (Jul 8, 2010)

Haha yeah he lets me out of the basement from time to time to practice my chain punches in sunlight lol. What system of wing chun do you study mook jong man?


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## mook jong man (Jul 8, 2010)

shaolin_al said:


> Haha yeah he lets me out of the basement from time to time to practice my chain punches in sunlight lol. What system of wing chun do you study mook jong man?


 
_" It rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again ".    :lol2:_

Ok now I'm starting to creep myself out and the dog's looking at me weird lol.
I'm from the Tsui Seung Tin line under my late Sifu Jim Fung.


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## dosk3n (Jul 9, 2010)

Mentioned above was saying Hung Gar may compliment Chun Fu how ever I know little of this style apart from a Chun Fu brother of mine that I train with used to do Hung Gar for many many years and told me it was a lot more forefull and I can see in the way he trains and does Chi Sau he adds a lot of force.

So I cant really say if it would work well but from my one and only experience with someone that trained Hung Gar and moved to Chun Fu it doesnt seem to have blended in as well as other styles may.


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## Poor Uke (Jul 9, 2010)

Interesting tha the footwork thing has come up. This caused me quite alot of problems when I started Filipino martial arts. The style of WC I trained was very rooted through the heels. It took over a year to get back on to the balls of my feet.


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## shaolin_al (Jul 9, 2010)

I had thought before because Hung gar was a southern style it would compliment wc. But you give a good point that HG is a forceful and aggressive style and I could see that clashing with wc concepts.


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