There are several very important Wing Chun sayings (kuen kuit), which state that the body, stance and hands must be united. Yu ma hup yut, ging lik fut duk (when waist and stance are united, power is generated); yu ma chai dong (waist and stance move together); yu ma yu hup (waist and stance must move as one). It is important therefore to understand what is meant by this. Body structure (san ying) focuses on several points. It is based on simple, natural geometric shapes which can be assumed instinctively and reflexively and maintained during combat. Using the concepts of the centreline, the body is positioned relative to the opponent such that direct attack access is denied and you are able to obstruct their attack before it is completed. The skeletal alignments you use naturally disperse attacking force and reduce the need for you to use muscular strength. In essence you work as effortlessly as you are able too, whilst forcing the opponent to work as hard as you are able to make him.
Each individual motion has its own characteristics, but there are several general structural principles that can generally be applied in most movements.
Ma (Stance/Lower Body)
The word “ma” means “horse”. This implies that it is dynamic and never static - just like a real horse. In our Wing Chun Kuen Ma, the thighs and knees clamps actively. They don’t sink down, they sink down and forwards - naturally - until they are a fist width apart. Obviously, as the base of support, the lower body connects the ground with the upper body. The ground is considered the source of power in Wing Chun Kuen. The ma roots the practitioner to the ground. If you are pushed you let the opponent’s force travel down your joints to legs and into the ground, if you are pulled you let the opponent’s force travel down your front leg into the ground - so he is fighting the ground. When you are moving the ma is like a cow-pusher on a train, uprooting and pushing away your opponent.
Points of Yee jee kim yeung ma structure
- Keep the spine straight, sink down and forwards until the knees are a fist width apart. Lowering the body helps with stability and rooting.
- Point the feet inward and heels out and grip with the toes (this helps with rooting), torquing the heels in (this creates an internal rotation in your legs helping stability).
- Tuck the hips so the pelvis is straight and tense the anus lightly to join the upper and lower body - this helps with chi (bio-electrical energy) circulation.
Upper body
The upper body links the stance and arms. It should be relaxed and sunken naturally. If you are tense you inhibit power flowing.
Points of upper body structure
- Straighten the spine and keep it vertical.
- Relax the chest and abdomen.
- Keep the neck straight - don’t lean the head forward.
The arms (kiu sau/kiu - bridges)
The most common tools used to contact the opponent. They form the bridge between you and your attacker. They are kept relaxed. Not limp, not tense.
Points of bridge structure
- Hang the shoulders, keep them relaxed. Tensing them causes you to rely on muscle power alone.
- Keep the elbows in, down and close towards the centerline (jee ng sien). Keep the elbow joint pointed down. This protects the body, makes it harder for an opponent to stop your punch, puts the body mass behind your punch, and helps relaxation.
- When the bridges go out the elbows are not resting against the body but are a fist width in front.
- When bending the elbows form an obtuse angle at the elbow. In hand thrusts only extend for the instant of the attack then retract swiftly.
- Center the wrists along the centerline as this is the shortest, most direct route to attack and allows you to put your bodyweight behind strikes.
When performing Wing Chun, the practitioner must conform to several principles. These define the correct performance of the form. In Chinese they are summarised as: kim sut, chum, ting yu, dung tao, mai jing, yu ma sau. (You’ll have heard me say some of these often enough in classes!)
Kim Sut
Kim sut is the single most significant feature of correct Wing Chun. Put bluntly, Wing Chun without kim sut has strayed from the original. Kim sut refers to the positioning of the knees pressing forward and together a fist width apart. This occurs naturally as the knees are bent as the body weight relaxes and sinks down. The all too familiar admonishment of the traditional old sifu's to “sink” refers to allowing the body to relax properly in order for the weight to drop and push the knees forward and down.
The knees are not forced in, but forward. The knees are not stiff, but relaxedly sink as you relax more and more forwards and downward. Kim sut is sometimes too much effort for. It depends on strengthening your thighs, knees and ankles. Imagine being rooted to the floor, as though you are part of the ground. Imagine the ideas of “sinking” and “rooting” and your stances and steps will be far stronger.
Lok Ma (Chum)
Lower the stance downward, sinking through the knees. Lok ma is where the "rootedness" is developed. It trains the legs to effectively support the body, and helps the practitioner to, later on, develop the advancing steps of Wing Chun. The quadriceps should not be physically tensed. Let the angle of the stance work for you. Keep your pelvis tucked slightly under and forward, but with your back straight.
Ting Yu
Back straight, vertical spine, pelvis rolled under slightly so that each vertebrae is stacked one on top of the other. The spine is completely aligned. The upper body should not be leaning back nor is the head tilted forward. Maintaining the head in the right position with the chin a fist width off the sternum and proper execution of Ting Yu is a prerequisite for Dung Tao.
Dung Tao
Head up, neck relaxed; shoulders relaxed downward by gravity with no tension. The head should be held as if being pulled upward gently by a string and the ears drawn towards the rear to help draw the cervical spine straight.
Mai Jiang
With the arms in front of the body, press the elbows inward within the body line and forward. The retracted elbow should not be forced into the centreline, but gently and gradually guided towards the centre as is comfortable *for you*.
Yu Ma Sau
Yu ma sau refers to integrating and linking the stance, kwa and arms. The “joint train” entails the practitioner progressively developing awareness, relaxation and control of ankles, knees, hips, torso, shoulders, elbows and wrists and being able to link or unlink certain segments of this train.