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Every student’s first class tells a story. Some arrive early, apologetic if they’re even a minute late. They’re unsure where to put their bag, whether to wear shoes, or how to address the instructor. Some are nervous, others overconfident. Most do not know what to expect.

Over months or years, the story evolves. They walk in, pay respect to their kung fu brothers and sisters, set down their bag in “their spot” without thinking. They help a newer student find the changing room. They’re home.

What happens between day one and day one hundred? And more importantly, what keeps them coming back for day one thousand?

People start Wing Tsun for many reasons: self-defence, fitness, curiosity about martial arts, a friend’s invitation, something to do on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. In my years of teaching, I’ve heard them all. But here’s what I’ve noticed: people almost never stay for the reason they started.

They stay because of what happens when you show up consistently, train with heart, and become part of something larger than your individual practice.

When I talk about training with heart, think of it like a steady flame that doesn’t flicker: steady, present, reliable. It burns without consuming, illuminates without demanding attention. In practice, this means:

You’re fully present when you’re here. Not thinking about work, not checking your phone between drills, not going through the motions while your mind is elsewhere. When you practise Siu Nim Tau, you’re practising Siu Nim Tau. When you’re doing Chi Sau with your partner, they have your complete attention.

You’re honest with yourself and others. You admit when you don’t understand something. You tell your training partner when they’re giving you too much or too little pressure. You acknowledge your bad days instead of pretending you’re always at your best.

You care about your training partners’ progress, not just your own. When you’re working with someone newer, you’re calibrating your energy to help them learn. When you’re working with someone more advanced, you’re meeting their energy, even when it’s demanding for you. 

You stay curious. After five years, you can still find something new in Siu Nim Tao. After ten years, Chi Sau still teaches you things. You don’t train like you’ve figured it all out, you train like there’s always more to discover.

When you train at Wing Tsun London, whether at Victoria, Old Street, Camden, Ealing or our other locations, you become part of a specific community. You know the people who show up on your regular training days, recognise your training partners’ quirks, who has good structure in their Tan Sau, who struggles with footwork, who arrives early or stays behind to practice more. This local community is the foundation of everything, but it also opens a door to the wider Wing Tsun family across Europe and beyond.

I’m grateful to Si-Kung Máday Norbert, Si-Fu Ferenc Kovacs, and my Si-Hing Gabor Spenger for their inspiring teaching and for sharing the wisdom they’ve cultivated through decades of practice. As Si-Fu reflects in “With Your Heart You Can Build Tremendous Things”, it was students’ commitment that transformed private lessons into the thriving association that celebrated its tenth anniversary in 2023. 

When you train at your local school, you’re upholding something these masters have built, part of a living tradition that stretches back through generations of practitioners to our most distant ancestors in the art. For those interested, the opportunity to train alongside these masters at seminars opens naturally as your journey develops.

Training with heart and becoming part of this community creates something special I’ve witnessed unfold over the years. It’s more than learning techniques. It’s the steady accumulation of moments: forms practised with attention, Chi Sau sessions where something finally clicks, training partners who correct your structure with care, the quiet pride of watching someone complete their grading. The practice teaches us. The community supports us. Together, they create something more. In Part 2, I’ll expand on how they support wellness.