We can say each Wing Chun technique has specific key points to which it must adhere. Many sifus repeat these points over and over as their students learn and train. The wise student repeats them in his mind and critically self corrects to ensure they develop correct structures. This is important because the correct Wing Chun structures have been designed to ensure optimal functioning. The Wing Chun student should listen to their sifu and act on the sifu’s instruction. They should watch the sifu and seniors as models of correct structures. They should do their individual training in front of a mirror so as to facilitate self correction, measuring themselves against the points taught by the sifu.
We can say that there are specific key points which are overall structural specifics which must be adhered to. “San ying” refers to the body structures which we must be aware of, understand and incorporate. I use the word “incorporate” here in its truest sense of “putting something into the body”. The key points must be automatically incorporated into the body of the Wing Chun practitioner. There are sets of key points for the ma - the stances; the yu, hips; upper body; and, the kiu sau - bridging arms.
Here we will look only at the key points for the torso (upper body) structure. We’ll discuss the ma and arms elsewhere. In accordance with the advice of the kuen kuit: “yu kwa ma sau, yiu hup”, we have to coordinate the body, the waist, the stance and the arms. We can do this most efficiently if we focus on and learn one of these components at a time. We must learn the components sequentially then we must learn how to incorporate them simultaneously. We learn first to do this in a stationary stance, then whilst turning, then whilst stepping. Then we apply all of this against a cooperative partner then against a partner who is not cooperating but simulating realworld attacks in unpredictability (randomness); speed; and, ferocity. In this structured and logically sequenced approach each step leads to the next. Each step must be mastered before the next is focused upon so as to cumulatively develop the correct use of structural requirements in steps of increasing difficulty.
The upper body is the link translating either the stability or the dynamic expression of power from the legs through the kwa and upper body to the arms. Like the stance, the upper body must be relaxed and sunken. Having said this, it must be stressed that the relaxed sinking must not detract from correct skeletal alignment. The spine must maintain verticality. This is a constant during the rotation of the body, contraction or expansion, sinking, rising, in any stance including gwai ma (kneeling horse). The stomach, chest and shoulders must be relaxed (“sunken”) and not forced down or inwards nor tensed and pushed out. They must hang naturally off the coat hanger of the clavicles. Neither shoulder should be depressed or elevated by movement of the arms. The shoulders must remain level horizontally. The eyes must maintain a horizontal gaze with the neck vertical and the chin a fist width, or a fist width plus a bent thumb width for longer necks, from the sternum’s supraorbital notch. The chin should not jut forward. The spine should be as straight as possible without tension. The coccyx (tailbone) must be tucked under so as to straighten the lower back in the kwa area. The mouth should be closed with the teeth touching. These are the points we must focus upon and incorporate with respect to our body.