Stylish Fun (Kung Fu)

Member Name: 87degrees

Product:	Kung Fu
Date:	14/06/09 (99 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: fun, good exercise, fun, sociable, did I mention fun?

Disadvantages: None

Last autumn, I started a new job which involved moving to the opposite end of the country away from friends and family. Good though the job is, this had some problems associated with it, particularly at first. I got lonely. I didn't know anyone outside work and it wasn't easy to get back home or visit university friends. This led to the situation where I could go from Friday evening to Monday morning without any real, human contact.

This was depressing, to say the least.

So I looked up courses and classes to see if there was anything I could do during the weekends that would get me out of my flat and meeting people. In the course of my searching, I came across a website for Fujian White Crane Kung Fu. At that time, the sum of my knowledge of kung fu came from a combination of The Matrix and Power Rangers, so I was going in blind. But I figured I might as well. The worst that would happen was that I'd waste an hour and know that it wasn't for me.

Fujian White Crane is an organisation that spans a fair few local clubs. The one nearest me has classes twice a week in a local YMCA. I sent an email to the instructor and got a brief reply giving costs and telling me that beginners were always welcome and that I should wear something comfortable to exercise in (i.e. t-shirt and tracksuit trousers). So I put on my sports kit and went along for an hour one evening.

That was last November. Since then I have become a member, bought a uniform, started sparring, been to two Chinese banquets, had a class with the head instructor in London, gone on a training day, passed two foundation gradings, earned a sash and signed up for a week's training in Crete in July. That's not bad for about six months.

I now take classes for about four hours a week (including sparring and Suang Yang) and practice in my own time. I love it. When I went along that first week, I never imagined I would get so into it.


~~~ Classes ~~~
Classes last about an hour. I only really know the club I attend, but I expect most of the clubs follow the same pattern because the instructors all train together under the head instructor. It's probably a safe bet to assume that training at any FWC club will follow similar lines. We've had a few classes taught by a different instructor when our regular one has had other commitments (such as his wife having a baby) and those classes, while slightly different, still were pretty close.

There are different types of classes and they vary depending on the club in question. The club I go to has classes for kung fu, Suang Yang and sparring. Other clubs might have classes specifically for beginners or aimed at flexibility and so on. The website has a list of the different clubs and the classes taught at each.

~~~ Moves ~~~
There are various moves in kung fu or any sort of martial art. Some are simple; some are complicated. Some will be much the same as those in other styles; some will be unique to a particular style.

This is the first style of martial art I've ever studied, so I can't really say what the differences are between Fujian White Crane and the other styles, but the moves which are particularly emphasised are crane kicks and crane blocks. There are various other kicks, blocks and attacks. This style is a fairly defensive one, so there's a lot of emphasis on blocking and evading attacks - but you still get taught how to punch properly!

When you first start, you won't be taught all the moves at once. On my first couple of lessons, my instructor showed me some of the simple moves. Then, when the others in the class were told to practice something I hadn't learned, he would tell me just to work on the ones I knew. This means I wasn't overwhelmed trying to learn everything at once and could focus on getting the basics right. It was also nice to see progress as I was deemed ready to learn other moves.

Some moves are practiced more than others. We will do something involving straight punches most weeks, but there are other moves that we practice rarely. Every now and then, someone who turns up to class infrequently will go, "Erm... which move was that again?" when in instruction is given.


~~~ Gradings ~~~
The club has various gradings. Most of the gradings are based around patterns. Each pattern is a set sequence of moves lasting about half a minute. The idea is that students will run through these patterns as a way of demonstrating some of their capabilities. As you might expect, the patterns get more difficult as you move up the gradings.

There are also three levels of foundation grading to teach the basics of the style.

Once you've passed your first grading, you're entitled to wear a red sash, but I'll get on to that when I talk about the...


~~~ Uniform ~~~
The uniform is made up of a pair of trousers, a t-shirt, a pair of shoes and (once you've graded) a sash. It costs £80 to buy the complete uniform. I'm sure it's possible to buy the individual pieces as one guy in my class requested a second t-shirt (he was sick of constantly doing laundry) but I'm not sure what the prices are for the various items.

The t-shirt is a fairly standard black t-shirt. On the back is a stylised design of a crane in white. On the front is some Chinese writing along with "Fujian White Crane Kung Fu" also in white.

The shoes are flat-soled plimsolls that are very flexible. They a black with the crane design embroidered in red on the sides. The laces on my shoes are ridiculously long and, unless I'm careful, they can end up trailing even when they're double-knotted. Someone else said that they had the same trouble so I think there was a batch of shoes that had extra long laces. Most people don't seem to have had a problem with this.

The trousers are the problem. They are long and black, with the white crane embroidered onto one leg. You're meant to wear them so the crane is on the right leg, but it's easy to get it wrong because there's no fastening on the tops. When you put on the trousers, the waist is probably about twice the size of your own waist (more if you're skinny). You do up the trousers by folding the top over and rolling down in a similar way to how you would get a towel to stay round your waist. I am forever having problems with these trousers. A lot of people cheat by tying a piece of elastic around their waist and folding the top of the trousers down over this, but it doesn't stop me having difficulties.

Supposedly the sash should help keep the trousers up. The sash is a very long piece of fabric that's a deep red. Unlike other martial arts, you don't get different colours as you progress through the gradings. Someone who's only just learned to stand straight will have the same colour sash someone who can knock you down with their hands tied behind their back. Students wear a red sash. Trainee instructors wear a sash of the same colour, but theirs have little blue lines at the end. Instructors wear blue sashes.

You wrap the sash tightly round your waist to support your lower back and to hold the trousers up. The sash is tied at the left hand side. Apparently this is because it's a civilian style. According to Chinese traditions, tying it on the right would indicate it was a military style. Tying it in the front indicates that you're the "main man," so only Dennis, who I will talk about in a bit, wears a sash tied at the front.

You have to have the full uniform before you can take a grading. This caused me some difficulty because I was put in for a grading at the last minute, before I'd bought my uniform. My instructor came to a Wednesday class and said I should take a grading soon. I was pleased - until I realised he meant I should go the grading that Sunday. He brought my uniform along on the Sunday. At least, he bought the shoes and the t-shirt. He didn't have any trousers in my size so I ended up taking my grading wearing a pair of trousers that belonged to my instructor's wife!


~~~ Club Dinners ~~~
There are two club dinners, held at Christmas and Chinese New Year. These are held in a restaurant in China Town, near Leicester Square in London. The club basically takes up a couple of floors of the restaurant for a Chinese banquet that lasts all afternoon.

By banquet, I mean banquet. There are about ten courses, each delicious. I can't remember exactly what the courses were, but there were things like lobster, duck in yam, honeyed pork (especially wonderful), and loads more. The menu is slightly different at each dinner, but you can be certain you'll like some of what's on offer. There's a vegetarian table as well. Because the restaurant are told how many people will be attending, they can prepare something really special.

My theory is that Dennis has been into the kitchens there and the staff are as terrified of him as I am, because the quality really is exceptional.

You don't have to know how to use chopsticks. You will be expected to try, but there are forks provided for those (like me) who can't seem to get the hang of them. I have a great deal of respect for anyone who can eat lobster with chopsticks.

Beware of being the most junior person on the table, particularly if there are instructors there. It seems to be a tradition to present the most junior person with the head of something to eat. At the Christmas dinner, I got presented with the head of the lobster. The next most junior person got presented with the cheek of a fish. One of the instructors gave an anecdote of being presented with the head of a duck by Dennis and not knowing whether it was a joke or if he was really meant to eat it. Yes, you are meant to eat it. The lobster head was actually quite nice.

Fortunately, there were no instructors on the table at the Chinese New Year dinner, so no one was presented with anything.

At the end of the dinner, there are speeches. Everyone piles onto the same floor as Dennis's table and Dennis and the other instructors stand up and give speeches. At the Chinese New Year dinner, Dennis had the foundation instructors and the instructors' wives and partners give speeches as well. This went on way, way, way too long. We were all absolutely stuffed with amazing food and none of us wanted to stand/sit through that many people talking. Plus, if you get stuck at the back, you'll only hear half of what's being said anyway. The food was worth it, but the speeches (aside from a couple of highlights) really did get tedious.


~~~ Food ~~~
Food is surprisingly important. Not only are there the club dinners, the various instructors seem to be firm in the belief that the right food is vital to being a good martial artist. The instructors will talk about the importance of eating a good breakfast and so on. I've picked up a nice smoothie recipe since starting kung fu.

At the end of one class, a new student made a comment about how he was really hungry after all the exercise and how he was going for a kebab. From the way my instructor reacted, you'd think he'd suggested committed some heinous crime.

At the training days, Dennis cooks dinner for everyone and provides a selection of fruit. He will talk at length about the importance of eating right. I've been told that food is an enormous part of the club trips as well.

Whether you intend it or not, you may find your eating habits improving after starting training.

A word of warning though: Dennis doesn't seem to think much of vegetarianism. He seems to strongly feel that you have to eat meat to be strong enough. He will never force anyone to eat meat, so there will be vegetarian alternatives at dinners and so on, but he will be extremely clear on his opinions. It must take some considerable strength of will to be a vegetarian and to train with Dennis regularly.


~~~ The Chief Instructor ~~~
The chief instructor is a man called Dennis Ngo. He basically runs the club in the UK and all the instructors train with him.

There is no doubt that he is an amazing martial artist, but I don't personally like his teaching style. He knows what he's doing and can spot mistakes in anybody's style from a mile off, but I don't think he's particularly good at explaining what those mistakes are to the person who's making them (or I wasn't good at understanding him).

He seems to have two modes. In one, he is a friendly person. When he's with his family, telling anecdotes during speeches or when he's eating, he is cheerful, funny and smiling. Then he goes into teaching mode and he is just scary. He is loud, serious and accepts no nonsense. If he spots someone doing something wrong, he will yell, "NO!!!" across the training area, demonstrate the move correctly and just stare at the poor person as they try to do it right.

I should point out that I have only trained with Dennis on two occasions and one was in an incredibly crowded class. My judgement of him is probably not entirely fair and there are plenty of people who train with him regularly and come back for more. There are probably as many different teaching styles as there are people in the world and it just happens that his teaching style doesn't match my learning style. I just think that if I'd him as my regular instructor, I'd have given up in a week.

I have actually been considering going to Dennis's classes occasionally, simply because it would be good to train with the best but I don't think I will ever like his teaching style.


~~~ Training Days ~~~
The training days are held at Dennis's house and are basically a day practicing with him there to point out all the things you're doing wrong. These are held outside in a field behind the house so you have to hope that the weather is nice. When I went, it was a gloriously sunny day and I actually got a bit sunburnt. Dennis came out with a garden hose at one point and we could go and get sprayed to cool off.

The training days can focus on different things are a lot more relaxed than classes. No one minds if you stop and have a chat or go to get a drink of water or eat an apple or something. Something I noticed was that the more senior people seemed to spend a lot more time standing around chatting than those who weren't used to the training days. Even with the fairly relaxed approach, my arms had started aching before the first tea break.

We had a tea break in the morning and the afternoon, where there was tea and cake and a chance to just sit around and talk. There was also a break for lunch where Dennis brought out a meal that he'd prepared for us. When I was there, it was stewed lamb and it was very nice. The price of the food is added on to the training day, but, since it's home cooked, it's pretty good for what you get. If you're junior, you'll probably find yourself doing washing up at some stage.


~~~ Suang Yang ~~~

Suang Yang is a soft style. Some of the instructors refer to it as Tai Chi, which is a name I expect more people have heard of. The Suang Yang classes tend to be a lot slower and gentler than the kung fu classes. Please note, this does not imply that they are easier. In Suang Yang, there's a lot of emphasis on balance and breathing and the exercises can be as tough as kung fu training. They're just hard in a different way.

The two styles complement each other. There are plenty of people who do both. Then again, there are plenty of people who do just one or the other. If you think you might be interested, try out both and see which you like.

Suang Yang has its own set of gradings and passing these entitles you to wear a yellow sash.


~~~ Overall ~~~

You've probably got the hint by now that I really enjoy going to kung fu training. I first went on a whim and found I love it.

If you're even half interested, it's worth going along and trying out a lesson. If you don't like it, you don't like it, but at least you've tried. Go to the club website and see if there's a club near you and then get in touch with the instructor of that club. http://www.fwckungfu.com/


It's great for keeping fit and having fun. When I went to my parents' house for Easter, my mum commented on how I look stronger and have better posture than when she saw me at Christmas. Kung fu did that to me in just a couple of months. I'm certain my strength and flexibility are a lot better than they were when I started.

And it succeeded in achieving my main goal, which was to get me out of the flat and making friends.

Summary: A form of Chinese martial arts