Health benefits of Wing Chun

The late Grandmaster Yip Man (1893 - 1972) trained and taught until his death at the age of 79, his eldest son Master, Ip Chun was born in 1925, he is 5 feet 2 inches and weighs 108 lbs. Today, he still teaches every day and and can train and practice Chi Sao (sticking hands exercise) for over four hours non-stop controlling, dominating and wearing out much bigger, fitter students a third his age.

The Wing Chun principles of conservation of energy and momentum whilst borrowing the momentum and energy of the opponent, and doing the minimum amount of work mean that size, fitness, age or sex are of little consequence;

Incorporated within the Siu Nim Tao form (see the Wing Chun system) are breathing exercises commonly called 'Chi Kung' or 'Hay Gung' meaning breathing energy. This breathing exercise helps us control our cardiovascular metabolic rate as well as detoxify and then store fresh energy in our bodies. The breathing influences the bodies bio-electrical balances, just as diet influences its bio-chemical balance, hence this is taught at an early stage.

According to the Taoist view, the nutrition provided by air through correct breathing is more important to life, health and longevity than that provided by food or water. Oxygen is the food of life, without it we would die quickly. Providing oxygen to our body is a fundamental and instinctive body function that most people give any thought to, it is accepted as natural. In truth however, most people breath inefficiently under stress, using only a small percentage of the available lung capacity which, though it increases dramatically during strenuous exercise, is often insufficient to provide the muscles with the 'food' they require to function effectively and efficiently. By practicing correct breathing methods, particularly during Siu Nim Tao, it is possible to increase the amount of lung capacity used, therefore increasing the oxygen intake and providing the muscles with their 'food' allowing them to function more efficiently, whilst not tiring so quickly.

"You can live two months without food and two weeks without water, but only a few minutes without air"

Master Hung Yi Hsiang