JC Yiquan

Excellent late night training session with my Sifu.

A great seminar today with Master Chan Tak Chuen, really impressive work and effort from all attendees. A few hours of leg recovery before things kick on tomorrow!

Fantastic to have my teacher Master Chan Tak Chuen arrive today, started with an “easy” 5 hours training today. Seminars for my students this weekend then more private training next week.

I met with a friend recently who is a sports photographer. He told me a story from several years ago when he was photographing England Ruby player Jonny Wilkinson and asked him to look into the lens the very moment he kicked the ball for his famous drop kick shot.

Wilkinson flatly refused to do that on the basis of altering the perfection of the movement and changing such an important point for even one repetition (basically doing it wrong) could wreck years of training and ultimately his career.

It reminded of the famous quote from Vince Lombardi: “Perfect practice makes perfect" a refined adage emphasising that simply repeating an action isn't enough; one must practice correctly to avoid reinforcing errors. Focus, high-quality repetition, and correct form create neural patterns that make skills automatic and accurate.

Key Aspects of Perfect Practice are:

Focus on Correctness: It is not just about repetition, but ensuring the technique is right every time to avoid reinforcing mistakes.

Quality Over Quantity: Short, focused sessions that are done properly are more effective than long, unfocused ones.

Actionable Feedback: Using tools like video recording or coaching helps identify areas for improvement to maintain "perfect" form.

Building Automaticity: Consistent, correct, and repeated actions train the brain, making complex tasks feel effortless.

In Wilkinson’s case he had a whole routine breakdown:

The Run-up Setup: He aligned the front seam of the ball directly with his target. He then took exactly four steps backward and five steps to the side at a 45-degree angle.

Toe Tapping: He tapped his left kicking toe on the turf (usually twice in sets of three) to "harden" the foot and mentally program the point of contact.

The "Clasped Hands" Stance: Standing with his body half-turned and knees bent, he interlocked his fingers and cupped his hands together in front of his stomach. He famously compared this to cupping water in his hands, waiting to begin his run-up until the imaginary surface was perfectly still.

Deep Centring Breath: He exhaled completely to lower his heart rate, "centring" his energy behind his navel to ground his stance.

The Target Lock: He fixed his eyes on an incredibly specific target far behind the stadium posts (such as a specific spectator holding a drink) to force himself to kick entirely through the ball rather than just at the crossbar.

Once the mental routine was complete, the physical strike relied on an elite transfer of kinetic energy:

Leading with the Chest: Instead of relying strictly on leg power, Wilkinson drove his chest and head forward over the ball. This body weight shift acted like a sling, generating effortless speed.

The "Stay In" Finish: Upon striking the ball with the sweet spot of his foot, he would look at the ball using only the corner of his eye. He forced himself to hold his body position and follow-through line for as long as possible after the kick was gone, ensuring complete mechanical stability.

So, what are the takeaways for your own martial arts practice? For me there are many.

Grease the groove or microdose your training to build perfect technique and structure.

Do not train half hearted or mix up technical sessions with fatigue building work.

The advance work or techniques is performing the basics at PHD level.

Mindless repetition in itself does not lead to perfection. Bruce Lee once (allegedly) said “fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but the one has practiced one kick 10,000 times”.

I fear the man (or woman) who has perfected 1 kick and can perform it flawlessly everytime.

Great training this evening with participants across Europe and North America. Our twice weekly zoom classes have been consistently running since 2020. We ask new students who are interested in starting to first complete the 4 beginner entry lessons which can be downloaded on payhip. https://payhip.com/JCYIQUAN