Biomechanical Differences in Hung Gar and Choy Lee Fut: Part 1

Having trained in both Hung Gar and Choy Lee Fut, and having seen Hung Gar practitioners who do some Choy Lee Fut as well as some Choy Lee Fut practitioners who do some Hung Gar, I have long been intrigued by the different ways in which these two martial arts generate striking power. Of course, both styles will produce power in different ways at different times, I am looking at the typical striking methods the styles are known for. I have had the pleasure to have training sessions with some of the biggest names in each style. Lam Chun Fai, Don Hamby, Mike Marshall in Hung Gar, and Chan Yong Fa and Mak Hin Fai in Choy Lee Fut. So I have had the opportunity to see each style close up by true masters of the styles.

Through my relatively new athletic activity, running, I have developed an interest in biomechanics. I actually realized that what always intrigued me about martial arts was biomechanics. Now of course, I don't have a lot of equipment with which to take a lot of measurements of what is going on in the body during a martial arts technique, so this is all based on observations of the movements of masters, as well as observations of what is going on in my body as I train.

Lam Chun Fai performing Hung Gar

Hung Gar typically has a short, explosive, abrupt striking style. Punches drive from the heels up, using the muscles in the legs, core, and arms in chorus to create power. When throwing a straight punch, The rear leg, hips, core, shoulder, and arm line up to create a stable brace behind the punch minimizing the amount of shock absorption in the punchers body, thus maximizing the amount of force transferred into the target. By "target", I of course mean, "the other guy". In a series of punches, the abrupt stop at the end of the punch creates a bit of separation between punches, so each punch tends to be a separate entity. The analogy I think of when thinking of Hung Gar is a shot fired from a gun. An explosive production of energy forces the bullet forward, if the gun is not braced, some of that energy would also go backwards.

Chan Yong Fa performing Choy Lee Fut

Choy Lee Fut typically has long, fluid, connected strikes. There tends to be a lot more reliance on rotation from the core. Often in Choy Lee Fut, the rear heel leaves the ground and the back knee bends, this takes away the stable brace of Hung Gar, but allows a different biomechanical process, namely more rotation from the core. Rotation from the core is key to Choy Lee Fut, but it is important to know how to do so dynamically and fluidly. Muscles, tendons, and ligaments in the body will act as a spring. If you stand with your right shoulder facing a wall (or any direction) then without moving your feet turn your body so that your left shoulder is as close to facing that wall as you can, then relax, your body will spring back towards its original position. This is the essence of Choy Lee Fut. The more dynamically you load the springs, the more dynamically they will unload. This is why punches in Choy Lee Fut flow from each other. My analogy for Choy Lee Fut has always been a wrecking ball on a cable, but that doesn't account for the spring action. So, I would like to supplement that image with this one.

He-Man.

My old He-Man action figures were designed so that when you twist their waist, they would spring back, just like Choy Lee Fut.

This analysis is of course oversimplifying the mechanics, as each style has a variety of ways to move, but this description is meant to serve as a generalization of the different approaches of the two styles. One method is not better than the other, they each have their time and place, and they each have their strong points and downsides, but understanding the differences highlights the importance in different training methods for the two styles. In my next posts I will be highlighting the purpose of different training methods of the two styles.

Why?

Some times I just have to wonder why  I do all this stuff that I do. Particularly things like teaching martial arts and starting up crazy programs like the ten tigers program.

Seriously, do I think I'm something special? Do I think I'm that much better at this stuff than the next guy teaching martial arts up the street or in the next town over? Do I think people want to follow my program and listen to me talk because I'm just that cool?

The fact is, the reason I do it is basically the opposite of all of the above. I don't think I'm special, or better, or cool. If anything, I may be a little to hard on myself (or way too hard on myself).

I do these things because in some way, I need to.

I need to teach martial arts, I need to share the things (far more than kicks and punches) that were taught to me by my instructors. I value the lessons I learned from them, and from others so much, that I need to pass those things on, and I choose to pass them on in the vehicle of martial arts. Martial arts training is a very good tool for this job.

I need the Ten Tigers Program. I need the accountability it provides me to myself and to my peers, I need it to be in the public eye, because if it is not, I can slack off. I need to succeed in front of my peers, and when  I fail, I need to fail in front of my peers. It keeps me real.

Someone said to me, as I was posting lots of stuff about getting the Ten Tigers thing back on track, and getting me back on track, that I must be doing well based on my posts. He was wrong. I was seriously backsliding, doing the minimum to get by, and I was sick of it. The whole reason I got this thing going again is because sometimes, I just need to give myself a kick in the pants!

The Master or The Servant?

I've dusted off the Ten Tigers Program and I've jumped right in. . . too quickly.

In the first few days I remembered how good it felt to do all that physical stuff, then remembered how bad it felt to do Too Much Too Soon.

So, the plan is thus:
 
  1. Rest and Recover (thus letting my numbers get behind)
  2. Start up again with lower numbers (thus letting my numbers get further behind)
  3. Gradually ramp my numbers up to the point that I can start getting caught up.

If I never get caught up, I am not going to let that beat me up. This program was designed to be my servant, not my master.