Reading through a few of the posts I think that people may be forgetting one good strategy that I personally remember being taught quite early on.
Attack the opponents strongest weapon.
A puncher? Take out his arms, deaden the shoulders, elbows and fists by striking them continuously.
A grappler? Break his fingers and unsettle his waist, again by striking!
A kicker? Charge in to strike the upper leg, stamp the instep and break the shin.
Ofcourse, this would require specific drills and understanding of positioning, timing and accuracy but if you’ve trained enough in the basics these ideas should already be there IMO. Everyone may not agree, sometimes it’s easier to strike the weakest area of a fighter (like taking a boxers legs out) Every attack you throw doesn’t have to hit the same target, and every attack can be excecuted with more than just the fists alone.
[QUOTE=couch;830861]Sihing/James had a great post and posted a great vid too!
Just wanted to add that Wing Chun is YOURS. I don’t know about everyone else’s Sifu/Teacher, but mine always told me that he’d give me Wing Chun and to make it mine.
I think that when we get into the B.S. of “that’s not Wing Chun,” it’s more about the flavour than anything else. For the most part, the core is the same.
Lastly, Redrooster, just keep learning. It’s cool that we have everyone off in all these directions because you can get a lot from each other in regards to the way they use the tools.
Best,
Kenton Sefcik[/QUOTE]
Hi Kenton:)
I’ve realized that in essence WC is a training model, you learn the stuff it teaches you and then you apply it as you see fit. For example, I used to think that economy of motion strictly dealt with the idea of efficient movement and being non telegraphic, now I also consider it to also mean that you can use what you want from the system to fight with. Sometimes you may only need a little bit of it to set the guy up, sometimes more, it depends on who you are dealing with and what their skills are and what you want to do in the given situation (sometimes we are more defensive, sometimes we are more aggressive, remember assault holds prison time in most countries today, who wants to go to jail because of a jerk). I can push you out or knock you out, the choice is up to me and how I want to use the art.
In the beginning we have to be strict about it all and do everything very precisely, according to WC concept, principle and application. Then after that is done we can be more natural and adapt it to how we understand it and our own attributes and needs, the thing is people get stuck in the process and feel there is no need to advance. Sifu Lam is a perfect example of someone that is natural with it, you don’t see the YJKYMA or elbow down to much, because he just does it and use it as he see’s fit. Not too many people are at that level, and to trying to imitate someone that good is wrong as well. We all must travel the same road to gain the skills, once we do it is up to us to apply them.
[QUOTE=LoneTiger108;830870]Reading through a few of the posts I think that people may be forgetting one good strategy that I personally remember being taught quite early on.
Attack the opponents strongest weapon.
A puncher? Take out his arms, deaden the shoulders, elbows and fists by striking them continuously.
A grappler? Break his fingers and unsettle his waist, again by striking!
A kicker? Charge in to strike the upper leg, stamp the instep and break the shin.
Ofcourse, this would require specific drills and understanding of positioning, timing and accuracy but if you’ve trained enough in the basics these ideas should already be there IMO. Everyone may not agree, sometimes it’s easier to strike the weakest area of a fighter (like taking a boxers legs out) Every attack you throw doesn’t have to hit the same target, and every attack can be excecuted with more than just the fists alone.
ps. I’m personally not much of a fighter :eek:[/QUOTE]
The thing is, in a real fight you have little time to analyse and find out what type of fighter the other guy is, so you must have something that does not fight the tools, but rather fights the man and works against most people in surprise situations. Fighting in a ring or competition is different because you have time to train specifically for the opponent you are facing, and are governed by rules and other things that bring about certain situations. Of course boxers and MMA guys can fight on the street but if they do so the same as they fight in the ring or octagon they may be surprised by what happens. Also there are times when the guy you are fighting is just plain old better than you with superior skills, strength, speed and experience, so there is not much you can do there if you are weapon less.
[QUOTE=sihing;830881]The thing is, in a real fight you have little time to analyse and find out what type of fighter the other guy is, so you must have something that does not fight the tools, but rather fights the man and works against most people in surprise situations…[/QUOTE]
I thought that was what I was suggesting in my post James. The thing here is that the ‘man’ you want to defeat has refined tools according to your previous examples. This is all I used as a template here. I understand that you may not know too quickly how a person is going to attack you in a real situation, but with certain training you should be able to see all the weakest/strongest areas and use what you have to enter and control.
[QUOTE=sihing;830881]…Also there are times when the guy you are fighting is just plain old better than you with superior skills, strength, speed and experience, so there is not much you can do there if you are weapon less.[/QUOTE]
Then I would suggest rule number 36! RUN!!!
Or pick up a familiar weapon of your own and be prepared to be hurt yourself.
You have also said before:
[QUOTE=sihing;830881]We all must travel the same road to gain the skills, once we do it is up to us to apply them.[/QUOTE]
The same road? If only this was true today! I am tryting to pick up on similarities and enhance my own understanding of where I’m at these days, but I have a strong feeling that all our roads have been different, especially from family to family. Core knowledge seems to be similar, but individual interpretation of ‘how to’ train is very different from what I’ve read/seen.
Guidance is essential for proper progression. This can only come in two forms IMO, from your Sifu and from your training partners. If you have none of these available, self exploration is the only option and a very dangerous one indeed. Outside influences are now also at an all time high.
The only strategy I ever advocate in terms of “generalizations” is to fight YOUR fight.
Do what you do best.
That said, I am a firm believer in “prepare for the worse”.
If one does assume anything, it is that his opponent is better, stronger and faster than they are.
Some people don’t follow the prepare for the worse case scenario view because in terms of probability, it may never happen, I mean what are the chances of facing a trained fighter in the “real world”?
Pretty slim, but they way I see it, if I can “handle” a trained fighter, then I can handle a “average joe”, it doesn’t work the other way around.
I’ve thought a lot about your question and on a hunch, asked a few Teachers, PhDs, Graduate students of different disciplines to summarize their field of research. It is an interesting exercise, and one will continue and recommend to everyone.
One Sifu told me that Wing Chun is a scientific art where techniques and theories are backed up by physics, psychology and human nature. He smiled and added, “just like every other Martial Arts discipline.”
Sorry I don’t have much to offer, but I have to thank you again for asking this question.
