Seven Added Training Benefits You May Not Know About!
Most people choose Wing Chun because it’s one of the best ‘street-smart’, hand-to-hand combat martials arts.
It’s also easy to learn. It works – regardless of your age or gender. And it will easily take down a stronger, faster opponent.
But there are many other ‘hidden’ benefits you get from training in Wing Chun that you may not realize. Here are just a few:
#1 Helps Refine Your Spatial Awareness
Your Wing Chun training helps you refine your spatial awareness (knowing where your body is in relation to things around it).
In a day and age where many of us sit at desks or cars, our sensitivity of knowing where we are in relation to other people and objects becomes dull. With training you become more visually aware of your distance from objects (both stationary and moving ones).
This helps you in everything from sports to driving to social interactions.
#2 Improve Your Body Mechanics and Reduce Minor Injuries
With consistent Wing Chun training, you learn how to use proper structures to do everyday activities. This, in turn, will help you reduce minor injuries because of poor body mechanics.
#3 A Healthy Outlet for Pent-Up Stress
Wing Chun forms especially can help teach you how to truly relax your body as you master more efficient body mechanics. This helps tremendously with stress relief – something most of us need in our go-go-go world.
Doing the forms can also provide a meditative benefit – a sort of ‘moving meditation’. Forms are a great way students can work through stresses and problems of the day in a healthy way.
#4 More Confidence and Better Focus
With forms training you also gain good body posture, which can help you appear more confident and in control to those around you.
Training over the long term also helps you develop increased focus in everyday life. This translates into helping you achieve your other life goals faster and more effectively.
#5 Improve Your Reflexes
Chi Sau (or sticky hands), provides the training of increased contact sensitivity and increased auto-reflexes. This will also help you in other martial arts or sports that you choose to take.
I often find that, when studying another martial art, I progress much more quickly through it because of my years of Wing Chun training.
#6 Better Relationships and Social Support
Another benefit that my students especially like about their training is the social interaction and friendships that come with taking classes.
In my classes for example, I emphasize to my students that they are family. Because we’re a family we help each other improve. We’re not there to break each other down but to build up. We’re also there as a social support in a world where many peoples social supports are breaking down.
#7 Increased Discipline
Self-discipline is a lost art today in a world where so many things are cheap and easy. The downside to this is that people aren’t given a lot of chances to develop self-discipline.
But the truth is that you need it if you want to go anywhere in life. Wing Chun helps you develop self-discipline in a truly enjoyable way. While you’re learning the art, you’ll also be developing the self-discipline of training, practice and conditioning.
You’ll notice before long that this self-discipline (and the confidence that comes from developing it) is leaking over into other areas of your life, helping you achieve more and go further than you ever dreamed.
So those are just a few of the added benefits of training in Wing Chun Kung Fu. If you’re interested in taking classes, make sure to look for a good instructor that provides a supportive positive environment to train in.
You should be able to ask questions and work to your own fitness level. Good luck in your training!