Note: Originally posted to a previous weblog: May 8, 2006
When most of us train, it is usually against another Wing Chun/Ving Tsun/Wing Tsun practitioner. It makes sense, of course, because it is practical. At the same time, however, if we do not get exposure to anything outside of our normal training, what might we encounter?
Some will say that if you train with realism and dedicated persistence, you have no need to experiment with training against other styles. While I can understand the argument, I personally feel that it short-changes your skills if all you ever do is work against the same-style partners.
Over time with the same people, you learn their quirks, especially what they are strong and weak in. They will favor their strong points (particularly if they begin losing) and neglect their weak points. At that point, “tactics” will tell you to exploit their weaknesses vs. barrel into their most closely-defended structures.
Because of this, we can unknowingly create a false sense of security since we are never breaking out of what we are already familiar with and never pushing ourselves to grow in the realm of what really works in today’s world of fighting.
Because there is still somewhat an “air of superiority” in the Wing Chun world, sometimes a practitioner will think that just because they are “Wing Chun,” they will automatically win.
And anyone with real fighting experience will tell you, this is not the case. The “art” has a lot to do with it, but there are many other factors that contribute to success or defeat.
We see it repeatedly, too, when someone who has trained for years gets pummeled by a simple haymaker coming out of left field, or some punk kid who threw a wild hook and dropped the “master.”
How is that possible? A lot of reasons, really. For starters, the art and method is only as good as the person training it. It can be the best thing since sliced bread, but it still has to be trained in order to work.
Additionally, environment and pure luck can be factors, also. We can never pick-and-choose when, where or how we are attacked, and some things are just simply out of our control. It may be a losing situation right from the start, and these are things we can never know until the hammer falls.
It is close to impossible for a practitioner to be at their very best 24×7, and everyone hits a low point. Illness, injuries, emotional states, etc., will all play a role in fighting, as well as experience both within and “outside” their chosen art.
When we take all of these factors into account, we can readily see that “fighting” is more than just simple actions. It can be easily argued that unless we push ourselves to the fullest with each session, and experience how other fighters will respond to our methods (and what we can do about it), we can rarely reach a point of excellence.
If you do the same thing over and over, you tend to get used to it. And if you get used to it, it is easy to get relaxed with training. Like the saying goes, “If all you do is what you’ve always done, then all you’ll get is what you’ve already got.”
Many Wing Chun practitioners wonder what they would do against a Muay Thai fighter, or a mixed martial artist, or a karateka, or a TKD fighter, or even a western boxer. Well, rather than “wonder about it,” I recommend finding a school that will work with you and then experience it for yourself. Not all schools will be open to that, of course, because many are very protective of what they do (especially when working with someone other than their own students).
But if you are lucky enough, they are out there.
Some of the best experiences I have had were working with the many schools around Phoenix, San Diego and Las Vegas. Some great folks out there, let me tell you, and very open to working with non-students. Provided that your attitude is in check? You would be amazed at how friendly and open a lot of folks are.
posted by AWCA @ 5/08/2006 09:50:00 AM
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