[ Post a Response | North Shore Wing Chun Kung Fu Forum ]
Posted by Tom Pappas
on 5/18/2001, 11:27 am
I understand that to progress in a martial art like Wing Chun you have to let go of conscious thought, quiet your mind and keep your emotions in check. This is difficult for most people to do and I am no exception. Even in a training environment this is hard to do. Obviously in a street encounter it is that much more difficult. For those of you who have been assaulted (i.e threatened with phyical violence) you know how it causes a physical responce. Adrenaline kicks in, your heart rate increases, pupils dialate, you get butterflies in your stomach and so on. This type of reaction (fight or flight) should really be called fight, flight or freeze. That is due to the fact that many if not most people shit their pants when they are confronted with a potentially violent situation and freeze (unable to respond and initiate their own preemptive strike). When this happens, many of the skills you develop in training will not be of any use to you because fear and hesitation have taken over. I have heard of certain training techniques where the instructor and students try to create a semi-hostile (yet controlled) environment to test themselves (not so much for skill but for mental toughness). I am not sure how it is done but I have heard positive things about it . Does anyone have any thoughts on this or knowledge of this type of training? By the way, please keep Bruce Lee type cliches (i.e. "Their is no opponent" etc...)and vague literary or intellectual references out of this discussion. I am looking for your thoughts, not what a philospher/teacher who has never been attacked would say. Thanks for taking the time to respond.
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