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What inspired me to study Martial Arts is the determination to master the Art of Self-Defence. I began my Martial Arts training in the mid-1970's in Karate, Wushu and Lau Gar Kung Fu.
In early 1980, I discovered the most popular, practical and effective style of Martial Art, "Wing Chun", which has been specially developed to give women an advantage over an attacker who may be bigger and stronger, without necessitating a repertiore of high kicks and turns, so I enroled myself in the Wing Chun Martial Arts Academy.
In 1983, I appeared on the BBC programme "The Way of The Warrior", narrated by Dennis Waterman. The critics have described my contribution to the film as "outstanding". The programme was shown again by the BBC in June 1989.
& repeated in June 1989
In March 1987, I participated in a demonstration organised by the People of China, held at Camden Lock, North London. The public viewed it as a "sensational performance".
at Camden Lock, North London in March 1987
In 1988, I was an Assistant Instructor, and started teaching Women's Self-Defence on Sundays and assisted the main classes during the week at the Academy.
In June 1988, "Fitness" magazine published my article on Women's Self-Defence, featuring the Wing Chun style of Martial Art. In the same year I was offered a proposal to produce a short series on the Art of non-aggressive self-defence based on Wing Chun, by Chameleon Television Ltd.
Through the "S.O.S" Campaign ( Spotlight On Safety ), run by the Royal College of Nursing, I demonstrated the Art of Wing Chun to nurses in London to combat violence in hospitals and nurses homes. It was featured in the News column in London's Evening Standard in 1988 and The Nursing Times in 1989.
organised by the Royal College of Nursing in 1989
In 1989, I was invited to participate in an exhibition, "Fighting Spirits", a profile of the female Martial Artist, organised by the Inner London Education Authority. I received another invitation by the International Martial Arts Organisation from Holland to teach women from all over the World.
organised by the Inner London Education Authority in 1989
In early 1992, I left The Wing Chun Martial Arts Academy to continue my journey for further research into the training of the Internal Arts, such as "Qigong".
In late 1994, I began my Qigong training at the Qigong Centre, whilst simultaneously keeping in touch with my Wing Chun training.
In 1997, I was an Assistant Instructor in Qigong, based in London.
In November 1999 , I conducted a Qigong workshop for nurses in the London Clinic for 3 months. Following that, the editor of the Nursing Standard approached me to participate in writing an article called "Making Time Campaign". This aimed to help nurses to achieve a healthy balance between life and work. To my surprise, I had won the award for writing the article and it was featured in the Nursing Standard magazine in November 1999.
In March 2000, I opened my first school in Chiswick, London, under The Qigong Centre, hoping to pass on my knowledge and skills in both Wing Chun and Qigong. Later that year in November, during a National Stress Awareness Day, I was invited back to conduct another workshop for nurses and office staff at the London Clinic. I felt very honoured that my name appeared again, this time in the new column of the Nursing Standard magazine.
Life is a journey filled with opportunities to learn and meet people. In 1982, I met two brothers, Garry and David McKenzie, and I am greatly inspired by their kind, patient and humble personalities. Garry runs The Wing Chun School in Hackney, London, and I have been fortunate to have been able to train with Garry at his school, which he opened in 1987.
April 2005, was a turning point for the Chiswick school as we left The Qigong Centre and amalgamated with The Wing Chun School.
In June 2008, I and members of The Wing Chun School partcipated in a demonstration in support for the "Sporting Futures" at the Lee Valley festival, North London. The event was a sucess.
In October 2008, I travelled to Hong Kong and China with a group of my students and other members of The Wing Chun School. The purpose of this trip was to meet reputable and respectable Wing Chun Masters and Grandmasters like Wan Kam Leung, Tsui Seung Tin, Ip Chun and Sigong Ip Ching and to visit Ip Man Tong (Museum) to see the Wing Chun heritage. Whilst we were out there, we also visited the "Chin Hoo School" where "Fist of Fury" was filmed, the "Wong Fei Hung" museum at the Ancestral Temple in Foshan, South China and all other interesting places. During our two weeks school trip, our daily activities started with early morning training in the Kowloon Park, once at the beach in Lantau Island and we would end the day in the evening visiting and training with other Sifus, students, Masters and Grandmasters in their schools.
My life-long challenge is to impart my knowledge and skills of the Wing Chun art form. Wing Chun has 400 years history, dating back to it's creators Ng Mui, Madame Yim Wing Chun to the late Great Grandmaster Ip Man.
The Wing Chun School teaches the system based on Ip Man key principles "Economy of Motion" & "Conservation of Energy". It is a pragmatic form of self-defence suitable for men, women and children.
Both Wing Chun and Qigong are an excellent way of improving overall health and keeping fit.
Most importantly my role as a Sifu is to ensure that the tradition and the Chinese arts "Wing Chun" & "Qigong" are preserved for the next generation.
B H Loh explains how the invention of a Buddhist nun can help.
Women today are living in fear of unpredictable attacks like mugging, grievous bodily harm and rape. Faced with such circumstances different people act in different ways: for example, some would freeze with terror, others might break down and become hysterical. Trying to defend yourself by attacking vital parts of your assailant's body is not easy in a panic situation.
It is important for us to come to terms with the fact that we live in this kind of unpredictable society and women who learn some form of self-defence are being realistic. The first line of self-defence is natural wareness and this can be improved to the point of becoming second nature with training. Training also helps overcome fear, a stumbling block in effective self-defence.
Wing Chun is a form of the Chinese martial art, Kung Fu. It was begun by a Buddhist nun called Ng Mui some 400 years ago. She had observed a fight between a white crane and a snake and decided to use the movements of the two animals to devise a system of self-defence based on the importance of the shortest distance between two points. The techniques were further developed by her female pupil, Yim Wing Chun, who lent her name to the art. In Chinese the name 'Wing Chun' means 'perpetual springtime'. The system was passed down through generations to the last great Master, Yip Man, the teacher of the legendary Bruce Lee.
Wing Chun teaches the development of strength, posture, correct hand and arm movements, and how to shift the stances of advance and retreat. It also develops the sensitivity of the forearms to the movements of an opponent producing fast reaction in close combat.
A number of conditioning aids are used for increasing strength - the wooden dummy, for example. This is also a training aid for developing framework, power and co-ordination of hand and footwork, and fluidity of movements. In practice sessions the trainee gradually begins to fight with the dummy as though it were a live opponent - hence its label as the 'silent teacher'.
The sandbag is also used in training to develop the power of the punch and the chop and of elbow strikes, which are very effective at close range: the hardness of the elbow means that little further conditioning is necessary. The two types of elbow strikes are those which travel horizontally and those which travel vertically.
Kicking techniques in Wing Chun are divided into three basic 'below the waist line' types, all performed on the sandbag or suspended bag, the front thrusting kick, the side thrusting kick and the slanting thrusting kick. The kicking techniques have two functions - (a) to increase the power in the legs ( which is several times greater than that of the punch ) and (b) to improve the stability of the stance.
Double arm chi-sau ( sticking hands) is an unending process of changing hand techniques. It helps to develop faster reflex actions in the use of the hands and strengthens the power of the elbows.
Wing Chun is just as much a form of defence as it is of attack; the two are not mutually exclusive. Clothing will not restrict the use of its techniques because in many cases minimum movements can produce maximum effect. These easy-to-learn movements suit the female physique as they are graceful yet tremendously fast and powerful - they are based on using the opponent's strength to counter-attack rather than to dominate. Another advantage over other martial arts is that the stature and suppleness of the learner does not play an important part in mastering Wing Chun, which is already one of the most popular styles in Hong Kong today and is gradually becoming so in the UK.
The techniques of Wing Chun have been specially developed to give women an advantage over attackers who are bigger and stronger without necessitating a repertoire of high kicks and turns. The movements are performed in a swift and continuous flow.
Wing Chun contributes towards improving self-awareness and self-confidence in women. Like many other sports it is a social activity and an excellent way to keep fit and lose weight. ( Students are put on a set training programme and given tips on general health and diet. ) The period of time taken to master the art depends on the determination of the individual but, learned with the right attitude and in the right spirit, it will effectively transform your personality in a positive way.
Picture of B H Loh in action taken by Maggie Murray for Foundation of Women Martial Artists.
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