Over my years of training Wing Chun, I've tried all kinds of ways in order to improve, kinda like a researcher using myself as a guinea pig.
One of those aspects I tried many years ago was the Wing Chun training ring. I was advised against it. I was told that it develops bad habit. I didn't understand how. So of course I didn't listen to it. Does anyone ever listen? So not fully understanding the implications, I didn't think it could be that bad.
Knowing what I know today, man was I wrong!
I can honestly say that I just can't see ANY positives for using it.
Here's why...
I only see it reinforcing specifically attributes want to reduce ("spreading" someone's hands away with outward pressure). Every beginner has more of this reflexive spreading/outward pressure at first, but through chi sao and other drills, wework hard at reducing it since it takes us away from your goal (the other person's center line). What's more, when we give outward spreading pressure to someone we are also struggling against the pressure from their arms. This struggle against and away from their center is very defensively driven, rather than offensively driven. Since the best defense is an offense, we must stay focused on taking our energy to their core, not way from it against their arms. The more we give the other person this struggling outward pressure, the more we create an opportunity for them to use it against us by simply letting our pressure go and flowing around it to our center. If our pressure is directed at their core, they can't let it go or they will get hit.
So there you go. Not that you'll end up listening to me though. :)
Posted by Adam Williss, Founder of The Dragon Institute
