What can be trained solo in WC/WT?

[PiedmontChun]

I've had a lot going on this summer and especially last few weeks; getting to class and training with my Sifu has been infrequent. I haven't really had much in the way spare time even at home, but it has had me wondering what can realistically be trained solo for someone learning WC/WT?

What do you guys work on when you can't train with anyone for periods of time? Hit a wall bag? Practice strikes / movements in the air, practice chi-sau sections mechanically in the air? (this one might make more sense to WT people than other lineages) Practice your forms? (maybe that one is a given) Work drills or individual movements on the dummy?

Thoughts? I would imagine many guys here with years and years invested have some insight on what has value and what doesn't.

It seems like our system relies so much on contact to improve. I would imagine anyone practicing a grappling system faces a similar challenge, for sure. I have to admit, sometimes I'm kind of jealous of striking systems that can just practice kata or their highly technical kicking techniques solo, or even boxers who can work combinations on a heavy bag and do cardio since that is such a huge part of their system's effectiveness.

 

[Punchy]

Not only do I think that solo training is necessary to develop deeply rooted skill, it's actually something I look forward to on a daily basis.

Forms, as you said, are the obvious answer, but let's talk about that. Practice your forms, not to get good at the form, but to get good at what the form is teaching you.
The techniques are there to guide us to the underlying principles being taught, but if we only practice the form itself, we may never reach the underlying principles, because we haven't ingrained the technique enough.

Take the double fak sau movement from SNT as an example. If you practice SNT daily, then in a year's time you've trained the fak sau movement 365 times, providing you don't take off Sundays and holidays....that approach is a long, long road to mastery.
Better to take the fak sau and isolate it, train it 100, even 500 or 1000 times, then place it back in the form. You will find that not only is your fak sau better, but so is the rest of the form.
I use the analogy of having a classic car. When you want to work on the car, you don't take everything apart and work on it...you take one particular thing, say the carburetor, take it out, clean it, etc, put it back in...now the whole car runs better.
It sounds corny, but how can we "master" an opponent, if we can't master ourselves? If we are training chi sau, how can we effectively yield to a proper bong sau if we haven't perfected that idea in our CK form?
Without our own body awareness we will never achieve our goal of being able to effectively use the principles of our art.

Here is an excellent essay on this very subject.:

My arguments for our WingTsun forms | WingTsun-World - The Magazine of the EWTO

 

[PiedmontChun]

That's good stuff Yak, thank you!

I know when I have had my forms tweaked or corrected by my Sifu or Si-Bak, it gives me something very specific to go work on solo and I'll do repetition of those movements. I don't think I have looked at it quite the way you describe though.

 

[wckf92]

...what can realistically be trained solo for someone learning WC/WT?
What do you guys work on when you can't train with anyone for periods of time?
Hit a wall bag?
Practice strikes / movements in the air, practice chi-sau sections mechanically in the air?
Practice your forms? (maybe that one is a given)
Work drills or individual movements on

My daily individual / solo stuff contains mostly attribute training... things like flexibility, balance, conditioning, timing, speed, power, GPP, of course all the forms, MYJ, gerk jong, the weapons, and the list goes on and on.

 

[Danny T]

What Yak said and:
Footwork, Footwork, Footwork.
Turning the body as a unit with arm movements as in Chum Kiu.
Wall bag punching (if you have one)
Wooden Dummy work (again if you have one)
Leg strengthen...; for balance and kicking. SLT on one leg (hold your leg as in a front kick), front kicks, side kicks, combo kicking (front kick to side kick to front kick) excellent for balance and leg strengthening.
Did I mention footwork?

 

[guy b.]

Forms, dummy, pole, knives, hitting things, stepping and moving

 

[wckf92]

hitting things

 

[PiedmontChun]

What Yak said and:
Footwork, Footwork, Footwork.
Turning the body as a unit with arm movements as in Chum Kiu.
Wall bag punching (if you have one)
Wooden Dummy work (again if you have one)
Leg strengthen...; for balance and kicking. SLT on one leg (hold your leg as in a front kick), front kicks, side kicks, combo kicking (front kick to side kick to front kick) excellent for balance and leg strengthening.
Did I mention footwork?

Thank you. I do have a Wall Bag and a homemade dummy. The actual dummy form is beyond my level so its never been a big part of training at home; it has seemed useful for a handful of things though. On the bright side, a recent move (part of the reason I've been so tied up) means I have a LOT of practice space now that I previously lacked, so things like practicing footwork should be easier at home.

 

[wckf92]

Thank you. I do have a Wall Bag and a homemade dummy. The actual dummy form is beyond my level so its never been a big part of training at home; it has seemed useful for a handful of things though. On the bright side, a recent move (part of the reason I've been so tied up) means I have a LOT of practice space now that I previously lacked, so things like practicing footwork should be easier at home.

I'm assuming from your name you most likely live somewhere in the Carolinas... did you move away from there / your school and are now training on your own primarily?

 

[PiedmontChun]

I'm assuming from your name you most likely live somewhere in the Carolinas... did you move away from there / your school and are now training on your own primarily?

Yes, SC. And no, it was a local move thank goodness. All the logistics of it sucked up a lot of time though, and I found myself missing class a lot. Also, life often gets in the way of training in person more than 1x a week anyway, so making the most out of some solo training alongside that seems needed.

 

[Phobius]

Dont forget relaxed stretching your body in every little way possible each day. And finally general conditioning, not weight lifting but thought through conditioning that fits your style of martial art.

Learn your body and the rest should become a breeze.

 

[OzPaul]

Hey mate, I am in a similar position to yourself. I work shift work with an ever changing roster and can never make it to class on a regular basis. Going back a little to 2012, I decided to take my training further and went to Hong Kong in an attempt to locate a school. I found the one I was after and ever since I have traveled back twice a year for a fortnight at a time. Whilst I don't think this is necessary to learn Wing Chun I have learnt a lot from my travels and made some life long friends along the way.

The key to successful solo training in my view is to take details notes when you are with your Sifu and if he/she is allows take some videos on your phone so you can reference them when you are training by yourself.

I don't know what stage of your training you are at but my Sifu suggested to me after my first visit to focus on the following and to practice them daily. By doing the simple things a lot of times you will pick up the more complex movements easier.

SLT : everyday
CK : everyday
Straight punches : atleast 300 (not fast, getting the technique correct)
Tan da (stationary) : 100 each side
Tan da (pivot) : 100 each side
Pivot and punch : 100 each side
Step and punch : 2 punches per step, 100 steps (I am lucky to have a 20 metre gap down the side of the house for this)
Kwan sau with a step forward : 100
Kwan sau (pivot) : 100
Stepping drill : a stepping drill going in all angles and with each step a different hand technique i.e. kwan sau going forward, pivot left with a bong sau etc. Basically just stepping around working random techniques
Kicking : from YJKYM kick 100 times with each leg

I practice this daily and it takes anywhere from 30-60 minutes depending on my mood, time etc.

I like to warm up with skipping, push ups, sit ups and squats.

I hope this is of some help to you. It has helped me greatly especially practicing the movements with the pivot as my CK was useless and i was unbalanced and wobbly but now i'd like to think i can pivot to an average standard.

Cheers