Exploring Applications

 

Once you have reached the Chum Kiu/Chi sao level of your training it’s a good idea to collaborate on a regular basis with a few reliable brothers and or sisters and experiment with applications. What I would like to do is briefly outline a method for doing that. Before you get started there are a few things you should already have.

1.       A note book

2.       Eye protection, some sort of sport goggle, even lab goggles work well

3.       MMA style gloves , padded knuckles, open fingers

4.       Shin guards (consider a groin cup as well)

5.       Chest protector

You need the note book in order to keep track of what you are doing and what discoveries you make. To get the best results it is a good idea to treat this like research, honestly that’s what it is. At first you may not need any of the safety equipment as you may want to start off with low speed and low energy, just exploring timing, distance, and position. As you become more proficient it will be necessary to use safety gear. Do not attempt to train above your skill level, take your time and be patient.

The Honest Attack

For starters, have your training partner feed you an honest attack. What I mean by that is your partner will try to punch/kick/grab you with the idea that he has no idea of what you are going to do, but if you do nothing you WILL be punched, kicked, or grabbed. Again this is why we start off slow with low energy and work our way up to more energetic practice with safety equipment. Your job is to figure out how to deal with that honest attack. The person feeding the attack should not unrealistically track his/her training partner, or make things unreasonably difficult for the skill level that their partner is at. For example you might experiment with Pak Da. You would feed your training partner a straight punch that they must neutralize with Pak Da. Start off slow so they can get the timing positioning and footwork down. As they get better increase the energy to see if they can use their structure to dissipate the energy of the oncoming punch as they play the Pak Da.

Feed Back

The person feeding the attacks should also give feed back as to what felt like it would have been effective and what does not seem to be working as it should. The idea is to work together and fine tune each other’s technique based on continuous experimentation and feedback.

Follow Ups

Some questions to consider in your research…

If the attacker is diminished significantly by your initial response, what next?

More striking, a sweep, a takedown, some form of control technique?

If you are successful with your initial response, but the attacker is not diminished, what next?

Can you deal with a second or third attack from this position after the initial engagement?

Are you training so that your strikes are physically and psychologically devastating?

(In addition to forms,drills, and exercises, are you training for strength and endurance?)

Have fun.

A few words about Chi-Sao.

Chi Sao is the signature training exercise of Ving Tsun Kung Fu. It is an exercise in which we examine energy, timing, positioning, and structure. It develops a skill set that is useful in fighting but it is NOT fighting. It is a game, a game with rules, ideally the participants have an implicit agreement as to what the rules are prior to playing. I'd like to make 5 quick points about how to get the most out of your Chi-Sao training.

1. Unless otherwise stated, the si-hing (senior student) always functions as the aggressor, the si-dai is simply to try his best to hold the line, maintain good structure and proper hand positions. With your si-hing's permission you can work on trying to take the line and move forward.When you are done playing make sure to get some insight from your si-hing about what you need to improve.

2. It is just as important to know when you don't have the line as it to know when you do. Again, Chi - Sao is not fighting. If your training partner captures the line and plays a valid technique, acknowledge it. Also, any technique that relies purely on strength and or speed is not a good technique. Don't force your strikes! Use sensitivity, timing, and positioning.

3. Don't worry about getting hit and don't worry about hitting. This has a lot to do with ego, and how it creeps into our practice. "He hit me, so I need to hit him back", this way of thinking is not constructive and will take you off purpose. Your purpose is simply to occupy the line, anything that happens should be as a result of you staying true to your purpose. Don't chase your partners hands, play the line, all the time.

4. Do not attempt to defeat the drill (do not use "unstoppable techniques"). There is a video by Grandmaster Moy Yat where he discusses unstoppable techniques. People see a title like this and become very excited. I mean c'mon, who wouldn't want to be unstoppable? In reality, Grandmaster Moy Yat is discussing bad Chi - Sao, he is highlighting techniques you should avoid because although they may work in the context of Chi-Sao they require no skill to perform and thus they do not develop any skill.

5. Keep a note book, this is very important. As time goes by you will find that there are certain places where you get stuck. You may find you are repeating the same series of movements over and over again. Keeping a note book will help you examine and get past these dead ends. Also it will help you keep track of where you have been and help you establish where you need to go in your training. We often get comfortable with what we are good at and stay in the zone of comfort. Keeping a note book will help you to map out the areas where your Kung Fu is weak and determine how you might address those issues.

Now, go play Chi Sao!