what they don’t realize is that they are BOTH right. that’s why i am always saying “if it works for you, then keep doing it!”.

Today’s lesson is about how I as an instructor have a duty to show you “both sides of the coin” and for you to decide which you wish to pursue. It’s one of the most difficult challenges as an instructor, to set aside my own personal preferences, my likes and my dislikes, and to show you from an unbiased position, so that YOU can make your own decisions along YOUR journey.

hopefully, after seeing this video, you understand that training on a “half beat” or “full beat” or “one and a half beat” is all up to you and they are all right as long as it works for YOU, but just because it works for you, doesn’t mean that the same beat will work for someone else.

To do this, just take all the concepts of the shoulders and move them to the hips, the elbows are now your knees and your hand is your foot.

But the power will always be generated initially by the “body structure”, this should never change and only becomes more and more important as you get older and become forced to rely less and less on physical attributes.

As you practice, the “medium range” kicks, don’t worry about a slight sway back of the upper body, this is almost inevitable because you are trying to “engage” the hips, and will be predicated on your flexibility, just don’t overdo it.

practice with a partner, on a heavy bag and in front of a mirror, make sure to focus on the details.

But remember that “jamming” can only work if you use your “body structure” and maintaining your strong “root” as you enter with good footwork. That is the key to getting anything and everything that i have to teach, and getting your Chinese Boxing to work against a resisting opponent.

Remember that the “body controls the hand” and not the other way around.

The 2nd line is what we are covering today, this line moves from your shoulder towards your opponents opposite shoulder. It is used to “Jam” anything that gets in your way, which makes this movement multi purpose. It relies on the concept of “the best defense is a good offense” or combining the concept of “defend and attack” in the use of one hand.

make sure to pay particular attention to the “landing the plane” concept which i talk about in the video. this is very important to the understanding of this “line”, it is also an important concept that should be applied to your “sticky hands” practice.

This was something that Hawkins Cheung and Bruce Lee realized when testing their fighting skills during the famous “roof top fights” in Hong Kong. As we get into sparring and sparring drills, this 2nd line of attack will become more and more clearer as to “why” and “when” to use. For now, practice with a partner, on a wooden dummy, or in front of a mirror, so that you avoid some of the common mistakes.

It’s very important that when you practice Huen Sau, especially when practicing the form, that you do not let your elbow (hallway) swing outwards when performing the action.

Hawkins Cheung likes using basketball as a way to explain certain concepts and movements. I wanted to share one of his analogies with everyone today to help develop a good Pak Sau to stop an opponents low groin kick and continue to “medium range”.

practicing this way will also improve your understanding of the pak movements in your siu nim tau form and teach you how it should “feel” when performing the action during practice.

dribbling a basketball while adhering to the concepts and principles that i keep repeating will help you to realize how  the pak sau should “feel”, instead of just knowing what the pak sau should “look” like.

this reminds me of the scene in “Enter the Dragon” where Bruce Lee approaches his student after a side kick, Bruce Lee says “how did it feel to you?”, the student replies, “let me think”. That’s when Bruce Lee slaps him on top of his head and says, “don’t think…feeeel!”

how a movement should “feel” is one of the hardest challenges of an instructor to teach their students. i hope you enjoy and grow from this video.

this is a very important drill especially if you are a small frame individual. make sure when you practice this drill to focus on defending your centerline by maintaining your elbow to your center. also make sure to keep your elbow from touching your body, to ensure you maintain your “medium range” and to prevent you from getting jammed.

in grappling, there is a saying, “position before submission” and IMO wing chun should also be about “position before striking” and not the other way around. that’s what this drill is primarily about, learning to gain the advantage by moving to the best position first, which means, you “face” your opponent, and he does not “face” you.

Hawkins Cheung always reminds us that wing chun is nothing more than “problem solving”, you give someone a problem, and they have to try and solve it. sounds so simple…but like i always say, simple does not mean easy.

practice this slowly, with a training partner, and really pay attention to your “position”. if you don’t have a partner, train on a wooden dummy, or in front of a large mirror.

keep practicing, keep growing!