The one that works at the moment of attack, or better yet the one that doesn’t require physical contact with the aggressor.
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Comment by Rob: Wise words. Keep practicing so the moves happen on instinct. Learn to use your words and guile to avoid physical contact (running a good sprint helps, too).
Here’s a great program I own that talks a bit more on this fight and flight topic
If you want to develop your Wing Chun skills better check out Video MASTERY
Missing block
by Curtis Ivill
(Manchester UK)
Hi just reading your list of blocks there’s no Fak Sao, Tok Sao, Bong & Jut can be high or low!
You can also block simultaneously with bong & pak or jum & pak! Both blocks trap opponents arm.
And although classed as a block a larn or lan Sao in more or a bar arm for trapping or pinning.
Tan Sau Thoughts —
by Taimoor Tahir
(Rawalpindi,Pakistan)
Only a palm and your opponents centre line is on the other side or he can not attack at your centre line…best block following a solid punch at nose.
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Comment: Thanks for sharing that Taimoor. The tan sau is a great defensive move in Wing Chun. It’s very powerful, and for most people it comes out naturally. In other words, they don’t have to train it very much in order to do it well.
At my kwoon, we don’t practice the tan sau as often as in other schools. My sifu believes most people have little to no trouble using it.
Instead, we work on all the other more cumbersome defensive moves: the bong sau, lap sau, bil sau. These tend to give people trouble, even advanced students.
The bil sau still gives me trouble. Mostly because it’s not about the arm position or shape. It’s more about the hip and shoulder position, which means my footwork has to be correct first for the bil sau to work well against a circular strike.
That’s a lot of coordination. And you have to get all these parts working together otherwise your bil sau structure collapses.
In addition, all these steps need to work together so you can also send your simultaneous counter-strike.
The tan sau is just like you wrote. If it stays in the center, it pretty much takes care of any attack coming down the center line.