Master Tse’s Wing Chun Notes #59

Step Back and Let Go

During Chi Sau 黐手, when the opponent is on the inside and we have both hands in contact on the outside it is easy for them to hit us with their Taan Sau 攤手, particularly when they have double Taan Sau 雙攤手. In this situation, you might not know which hand they are going to hit you with. So when we are in double Fuk Sau 伏手 on the outside we must keep a good distance, the elbow must be two fists away from the body. This is safer as it means if they want to hit us they need to step forwards. If they do this then we can step back using Teui Ma退馬. However, we will not just move back, but we will step back to the side. If the opponent’s hand can hit us, it means we need to turn more on the side of the hitting hand and keep that Fuk Sau there or change to a Jam Sau 枕手. More importantly, we must let go of their other hand so we have more room to step. A lot of people who get hit by the Taan Sau do not let go of the other hand so they are not able to turn and step back enough. Some people are scared and so grab hold very tightly. This is a bad habit as any tension will obstruct us and stop us improving our Wing Chun skill.

Michael Tse