Learn KUNG FU OnlineIn this course, I am teaching my own style of Kung Fu. You could simply call it Kung Fu. It’s the accumulation of everything I’ve learnt.
In terms of classical styles, it’s primarily based on Wing Chun for simplicity and practicality, then cleansed with Tai Chi for balance and extended dynamics. Wing Chun is quick to learn and great for Self Defence, while the addition of Tai Chi helps to refine it into a Fine Art.
It’s also supplemented with Jeet Kune Do for proactive mobility & agility, then polished with Wu Xing theory for conceptual completeness.
We’ll also explore The Way Of Fighting Without Fighting, which is the greatest style of them all and is deeply embedded within Tai Chi, Wing Chun and JKD.
I also occasionally refer to other great martial arts including Boxing, Aikido, Judo, Xing Yi, Ninjutsu, Capoeira, Fencing and more.
Five Styles
In summary, the Five Styles of Kung Fu that I teach, and the way I organise them collectively, are as follows:
- Style Zero – The Way of Fighting Without Fighting – Wu Wei as a martial art.
- Style One – Tai Chi – The Way of Blending (yin & yang), incorporating Wu Wei.
- Style Two – Wing Chun – The Way of Conflict, incorporating Blending and Wu Wei.
- Style Three – JKD – The Way Of Reaching (to intercept, far & early, with lively leads), incorporating Conflict, Blending and Wu Wei.
- Style Four – Wu Xing as a martial art. The Neverending Novelty. The Unholy Insight. The Unnecessary Extra Perspective.
The first four (Wu Wei, Tai Chi, Wing Chun & JKD) can be called the Core Four. Then the last one is an ever-fresh novelty for those who can never get enough.
Tips for merging these styles
Synthesising Wu Wei with Tai Chi involves understanding the relationship between Wu Ji 無極 and Tai Ji 太極, which is no different to the relationship between Dao 道 and De 德, or Zero and One. Understanding when & why to relax – to be empty – and how & why to switch from empty to full, and vice versa.
Synthesis of Tai Chi with Wing Chun can be massively aided by understanding & embodying the concepts of Yiu Ma 腰馬 and Sau Tai Sun 手提身. Yiu Ma means Hip Stance, which means driving with your hip (and whole body) in every move you make, for structure and power. This is similar to the concept of Ashi Koshi Te 足腰手 in Japanese martial arts, which literally means “Foot, Hip, Hand” and refers to aligning your feet and driving your hips in the direction you want to strike with your hand. Sau Tai Sun, on the other hand, means Hand Moves Body, which means lead the way with your hands and let the body follow. Tai Chi teachers often neglect Yiu Ma – not putting their hip into their techniques for real power; while Wing Chun teachers often neglect Sau Tai Sun – they rotate their stance to face a different direction while leaving their hands behind and not even adjusting their foot placement to compensate (of course not every teacher is prone to these mistakes – there are always exceptions).
Synthesising Wing Chun with JKD involves understanding the changes Bruce made and why. These changes were mainly for stance mobility, inter-range fluidity and technique diversity. They affected balance, speed, power, conditioning and adaptability.
Synthesising the Core Four styles, with Wu Xing theory, involves consciously thoughtfully reflecting on your natural subconsciously-driven habitual flow of technique combinations and seeing how well it corresponds with the Cycle of Creation & Nourishment, then exploring potential adjustments that could be made for greater congruence without undermining practical efficiency. Beware of making things worse by trying too hard to make it match up, because you may be unwittingly doing things that already cater for elements in ways you don’t yet understand, and by making heavy-handed conscious changes you may be making things worse – natural instinct should always be prioritised and Wu Xing congruence analysis should be no more than an uncommitted after-thought.
Beyond Style
Namedropping aside, I mainly focus on Balance and Practicality.
- I always aim for optimally balanced and natural movement. With attention to technical detail, I treat Kung Fu like a fine art.
- I always come back to practicality, for real self-defence scenarios. I consider threats of all kinds – especially those most common and those most dangerous.
JKD’s Three Stages of Learning
The wall of Bruce Lee’s school in Chinatown, LA, which opened in 1967, displayed his JKD logo, with three symbols beneath it, representing three stages of learning.
- Partiality refers to entering the school with preconceived notions – a partial understanding of martial art. You may attempt some moves, but they’re not yet refined. They’re inefficient and exaggerated, which throws you off balance and slows you down. Your body is not yet working smoothly as a singular cohesive unit, especially when taken out of its comfort zone, but it may appear comfortable within the realms of what you’re used to already.
- Fluidity refers to having smoothed out your technical mistakes and filled in any tangible gaps. You’re now a fast and fluid, accomplished martial artist. Your body parts are now working together as one. This appears to be mastery of physical bodily mechanics.
- Emptiness refers to finally emptying your mind of all learned constructs and expectations, and ironing out any bias built into your muscle memory through prejudiced training exercises. Now you’re truly ready for anything, responding instantly and creatively without obstruction. This is true mastery of mind, body and spirit.
These three symbols, plus the logo above them, correspond to the Core Four of the Five Styles I teach. The logo at the top represents JKD (Style Three). Then beneath it, from left to right, are Partiality (akin Wing Chun – Style Two; not that Wing Chun is intrinsically flawed, just that it’s a simplified framework, like a skeleton, begging to be enhanced & refined by more dynamic flesh), then Fluidity (akin to Tai Chi – Style One) and then Emptiness (akin to Wu Wei – Style Zero).
Other martial arts worth learning too
I encourage you to also train in the following martial arts, if you can. But take them with a pinch of salt in case anything they teach clashes with any of the vital Kung Fu principles we’re learning on this course.
Boxing & Kickboxing
I recommend Boxing and Kickboxing for developing footwork and striking techniques – just be careful not to develop a ‘point-scoring mentality’ or a ‘sparring mentality’ which is the wrong mindset for genuine combat – inappropriate for everything from pacifism to assassination. Also beware of neglecting techniques that work much better without gloves on, such as those that depend on grip, or knuckle contact, or two hands working closely together.
Bruce Lee tried Boxing under Queensberry Rules when he was a teenager in Hong Kong (guided by Brother Edward Muss, at St Francis Xavier’s College – a Catholic highschool in Kowloon). Without training much boxing – using mostly Wing Chun and street fighting skills, Bruce won the local inter-school championship (between 12 schools), beating the reigning champion (a British boy called Gary Elms) who held the title for 3 years running. Wong Shun Leung (who spent about 18 months teaching Ip Man’s Wing Chun to a teenage Bruce Lee in Hong Kong) also had a background in Boxing himself prior to learning Wing Chun. Bruce’s first student Jesse Raymond Glover also boxed in the US Air Force, and Bruce’s second student Ed Hart was a professional boxer too.
Judo or Shuai Jiao
I recommend Judo and Shuai Jiao for footsweeps, throw-type takedowns, and chokeholds & submissions from stand-up positions – just be mindful of striking range boundaries & protocols that are forgotten by purely grappling systems – also be careful not to develop an overly sporty mindset here – on concrete streets against multiple attackers, it’s advisable to avoid ‘falling down with them for half a point’. Traditional Judo included striking and stay-standing principles that the modern Olympic sport neglects.
Bruce Lee began learning Japanese Judo from Fred Sato, at Washington Uni in Seattle in his early 20s, and continued learning Judo through his 20s with the help of Gene LeBell and Wally Jay, plus his first set of students, many of whom were Judo players, and a couple of whom were black belts, including his very first student Jesse Glover who was an accomplished Judo competitor, as well as Pat C Hooks.
Aikido
I recommend Aikido for multi-opponent footwork, takedowns (ultra sharp or ultra soft) and pacifist tactics – just be aware that there is a lack of pressure testing in this discipline (for safety reasons) compared to sportier styles (where wrist locks are usually banned for safety reasons), and this can breed over-confidence in your ability, while leaving gaping holes unexposed.
According to Dan Inosanto, Bruce Lee once saw a demonstration of Aikido and commented (paraphrasing) “that could be useful if someone is trying to grab you, but wouldn’t do well against punching & kicking”. And according to Peter Chin, one of Bruce’s last students, Bruce enjoyed training in Aikido – he took private lessons from Mitoshi Uyehara, the founder of Black Belt Magazine. Bruce Lee also did a couple of classical Aikido moves on Sammo Hung in the opening scene of his final completed movie Enter The Dragon (1973), followed by a classical Judo move, then a wrestling submission to finish the fight. Note also, the founder of Judo (Kano Jigoro) once saw a demonstration of pre-war Aikido by its founder Morihei Ueshiba (at Mejiro dojo, 1930) and said “this is ideal Budo – true Judo” but he was already 70 years old, so instead of committing to the study of Aikido himself, he sent two of his best students (Kenji Tomiki and Minoru Mochizukio) to train under Ueshiba and report back.
Ninjutsu and Capoeira
I recommend Ninjutsu and Capoeira for broadening your range of techniques – there’s a lot of good stuff to find in these dynamic disciplines, just be mindful of anything that might contradict our vital Kung Fu principles. For example, rolling around on the ground contradicts the Kung Fu principle of staying on your feet, but still has relevance in certain contexts (there’s an exception to every rule) such as hyper humble conditions (major injury, slavery, etc) and super stealthy operations (military manoeuvres, etc) – plus it can be great for developing certain athletic attributes that benefit you in all scenarios.
Arnis
I recommend Arnis for working with short blades and short sticks. Just be careful not to over complicate things, because Arnis is full of fancy rhythm & sensitivity drills which, just like Sticky Hands in Wing Chun, can encourage a point-scoring mindset, but it’s important not to forget the potential potency, efficiency and humility-nurturing properties of singular isolated movements and clean-escaping short in-and-out combinations, especially when working with blades.
Bruce Lee learnt Arnis from Dan Inosanto in return for teaching him Kung Fu.
Fencing
I recommend Fencing for developing long-range footwork & principles.
Bruce Lee learnt fencing as a child, alongside his elder brother Peter who became a world-class competitor with foil and epee. In the same year that Bruce won his inter-school boxing tournament (1958), his brother Peter represented Hong Kong in the Commonwealth Games.
Does style even matter?
There are endless different styles of martial art out there. They all have their strengths and weaknesses. Some are more practical. Some are more holistic. Some are better suited to certain mind or body types. Some are better suited to helping you develop further when you already have a background in certain martial arts. Because they all have their own strengths & weaknesses, and because every teacher is different too, it’s hard to make blanket recommendations of particular martial arts styles or schools, but I’ve done my best on this page.
Some people say it doesn’t matter what style someone does – it’s all about the quality of the martial artist, not his style. Some people say all styles are as good as each other – all can be good or bad depending on the teacher. People who say this, generally haven’t experienced the best and the worst of what’s out there. As someone who has, I can assure you, some styles will waste years of your life, even teaching you bad habits that take years to shed and make you a worse fighter than before you ever started. Other styles can have you doing cool things that you never imagined were possible, within just a few lessons, even in a below average school of that style. Indeed, in my experience, there is a HUGE difference between the best and worst styles out there, even if technically the lines between styles always blur at the top level. So the recommendations & cautions on this page should point you in a very fruitful direction, but bear in mind, the quality of your teacher and the level of your own commitment are also massive factors in determining your rate of progression. Plus, people sometimes do one style and call it another, so don’t be too quick to jump to conclusions upon hearing the name of someone’s style.
Let’s get started
After this overview of the key styles of Kung Fu that I teach, as well as various other recommended martial arts to train, it may be a lot to digest and you may be wondering where best to begin. Well, let’s just dive straight in. You’ve got to start somewhere, and I believe there’s nothing better to start with, for practical self defence, than the Kung Fu in this course, so let’s get started.