Dreaming of Bruce Lee, looking like Kung Fu Panda

WING CHUN
A tell-tale sign of the Wing Chun style is the ‘vertical’ fist. Try this: stick your hand out to shake hands. If you look down, your thumbs on top, right? Now make a fist… the vertical fist. It may feel odd to punch that way, but with time, tweaking body and elbow alignment, it feels very solid.

Wing Chun is like a Pandora’s box of simple-looking ‘secrets’. Perhaps it’s because a woman is said to have been the designer and founder. Here in Hulme, Johnny Walker, 2nd technician level Wing Chun (equivalent to ‘dan’) keeps it simple: “Martial arts have a tendency to get very complicated – lots of details, but you should be able to pick up the essence of it in just one lesson.” Sure enough, the lesson I took, mostly working on self-defence scenarios in pairs, felt good and bred confidence in its applicability to real life. “As with every art,” says Johnny, “there are core principles but it’s really about the expression of each person doing it.”

This class is held in a large sports hall and Johnny makes full use of the space. About a dozen to fifteen students of varying skill levels drilled techniques ‘in motion’ around the hall with Johnny encouraging: “Can you move? Can you get your head out the way of an attack?”. And can you keep your head when under pressure? Johnny explains the mental side more than most instructors, summarising that “for self-defence, 80% of it is psychological.”

Johnny’s communication skills are second to none. As he wraps the session up, he makes perfect sense of Wing Chun and the world: “We meet conflict all the time. It could be a tough deadline at work, tension between co-workers, financial troubles… that’s what martial arts are about for me – resolving conflicts, learning how to be resourceful, intelligent, positive, focused. These make the biggest difference on a daily basis.”

Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, 6pm-8pm Trinity Sports Centre, Hulme.

The class fee is worked out on a monthly basis: £40 per month for access to the weekly classes.

www.kskungfu.comwww.ksmartialarts.co.uk

SOO BAHK DO
The martial arts are full of surprises and Soo Bahk Do was new to me: Korean, not Japanese, and very different from karate. Another surprise: a family friend was a black belt in Soo Bahk Do. Norman Kane explains the art: “This is more defensive. Anybody can kick and punch but it’s how they defend themselves that counts. You train to block or counter.”

The class involved several disabling defensive moves, including hands-on wrist grabs, to control attacker. We also practiced offensive skills: the subtle technique of kicks, blasting large punch bags, sparring. Norm’ gives a straightforward summary: “It’s all about power. We work on speed and power.” Norm’s words clanked round my skull as I ran towards him the full length of the room to deliver the first of several, well, pretty powerless and slow, flying sidekicks.

I watched on as a child flew full force into Norm making him stagger. This is a mixed class as Annie Bowker, Program Director (and Children's Welfare Officer) explains: “We’re now in our 26th year in this centre. In fact we’re teaching some third generation children. We pride ourselves on the fact we have an excellent facility and can therefore offer many benefits in your training such as wave master bags, padded floor, air conditioning, etc.”

“It’s a very flowing, rounded art. Everything comes from the hip. It’s not the fastest art but very powerful because you use the whole body mass all the time. Primarily it’s about defence – to disarm without conflict.”

There are monthly fees, here, suiting set curriculums. And there are try before you buy deals so check the website.

Soo Bahk Do, Stretford Leisure Centre. 01772 252425

£35 per month (plus insurance and membership around £45 per month: as many classes as you like, minimum two classes per week).

www.hedgesfamilykarate.co.uk

MUAY THAI
“I’ve been here 8 years in this building,” says Master A, “but I’ve been teaching for 22 years.” I comment that he only looks about 25. Master A laughs, “Thank you,” and gestures all around his gym, “You can see my history on the walls.”

Sure enough, the walls are full of intrigue: championship belts, photographs, and even large portraits of the royal family of Thailand. Master A is gracious and directs attention to portraits of the Mancunian champs he has taught. As it says on the signage outside, Master A is ‘trainer of World Champions’.

“I came over to help my brother, Master Toddy. He moved to Las Vegas in 1992.” Surely not a career change? “No he’s not stopped. He’s got a big team out there. We go out there once a year and sharpen up.” I can’t imagine Master A needs to sharpen up much – when he demonstrates blisteringly fast and forceful kicks with one student holding a pad, it sounds like a train wreck.

Master A summarises: “Thai boxing is a fighting art. We use the elbow like a knife, and boxing, kicking, knee, any part of the body.” Any ‘hard’ part, going by my lesson.

After a solid warm up and loosening of limbs and hips, Master A demonstrated an impressive assortment of different kicks – taking time to explain and subsequent care to correct students while we drilled the same kicks in pairs. Mondays through Thursdays, Master A’s classes focus, intensely, on different skills in turn – elbows, knees, kicking, boxing. Master A concludes: “80-85% of people train here for fitness. And confidence.” I’d add self-defence. And pure fun… this was a really enjoyable class – Master A is infectiously positive, good humoured and exceptionally skilful. A hard combination to beat.

Master A’s Muay Thai, 35 Thomas St. 0161 834 1127

Mon-Thu (inclusive) 5pm beginners; 6pm intermediate and fighters.

£75 annual membership.

www.masteramuaythai.co.uk

ESCRIMA
I would never have believed that a weapons-based martial art originating in the jungle island of the Philippines would be just a stone’s throw from my front door. But at a squash court in Salford, brothers Lun and Kit Lok are leading a small class in Escrima. The night I showed up there were only two students so I observed while the Lok brothers indulged in some one-to-one training.

Lun and Kit led the students through countless scenarios involving two sticks, one stick, stick-and-knife (yes, rubber knife), knife alone, and empty hands. To finish, students practised their Escrima forms under watchful supervision. So is Escrima just for weapons fanatics? “No, Escrima is everything,” says Lun. “Empty hands, stick, knife, sword, projectile weapons. At higher levels there’s even use of the whip. But with or without weapons it’s the same moves – so actually you’re always learning the moves for the empty hand.”

The improvement in the two students was visible, arguably due to the one-on-one attention. But it’s also about the quality of that teaching, as Lun says: “We love to give out as much information as we can. What’s the point of holding on to information?” A wise punchline.

Mondays, 6.40pm-8pm, Tom Husband Centre, Salford University (the Lok brothers tell me there’s also a Warriors Escrima class on Mondays, 7pm-9pm, at United Estates of Wythenshawe Gym).