Wing
Chun Blog – Sifu Garry
Wing Chun Guard
(Wu
Sao)
Different
lineages of wing chun generally demonstrate different arm positions for their
guard.
Why,
should there be so much disagreement with a simple arm position.
A
protective guard is hardly used in a real combat situation.
Try
it out!
Someone
shoulder butts you as you walk past. You turn and he pushes you back with a
single arm push. As you step with his force, he throws a punch which you block.
You are not aggressive so you decide to be defensive. He throws several more
punches and you block them easily. On the third punch you block and counter
with several punches and a takedown.
Where
was the guarding hand? It wasn’t used at all! In a real street situation, if
somebody harasses you the last thing you should do is put up you guard.
This
will tell your opponent all there is to know about you and how you fight.
(art
of war) “to defeat your enemy, you must know everything about him”
If
my attacker faces me with a guard, I will know if he is a boxer, muaythai
fighter, karatedo, kick boxer, etc. This is actually what I want, but I don’t want
to give him information about me.
A
fighting guard is conceptual in wing chun kung fu.
If
you opponent is a huge guy, your guard will be higher to protect you head and
brain. If your opponent is smaller than you, you can afford to lower you guard.
So,
you see, a wing chun guard should be very adaptable.
The
wing chun guard does have a deficiency, though, as do all guards.
In
wing chun kung fu, the Guard protects our Centreline. Therefore, our flanks can
be open to attack.
Another
example:
A
person walks up to you and accuses you of chatting up his Girl. He throws 3
punches at you. You step back and block each one with Bill Sao and then finish
off with 3 wing chun punches.
Where
was the Guard?
As
you can see, a guard is hardly used in a real situation.
In
Competition, guards are used all the time.
If
several perpetrators are attacking you simultaneously, you will use both arms
to protect your head, but this is not a formal martial arts guard.
It’s
easy to be a critic or couch professional, but, I have real life experiences to
call on.
I am
an expert in street survival, street tactics and the psychology of fighting.
