Our last class of 2022 has been held and we have drawn the final curtain on this year.
It has been a strange one, recovering from the legacy of covid and trying to maintain the momentum of various projects we have started, as well as continuing learning, developing and practising. We have had some very memorable moments, starting with our Chinese New Year Celebrations returning to Inverness after an absence due to covid. We also returned to the Belladrum Tartan Heart Festival and the Tartan Heart Takeover at Eden Court.
Thanks to the continued efforts of Si-dai Gung – Frank Yee – we have been able to continue our learning experience online. Schools from all over the world have been able to learn directly from the man himself via the magic of modern technology. We have also had the opportunity to continue with grading tests online too. This has enabled all students to move forward and continue to progress when they’re ready.
We have also had the honour of Si-dai Gung visiting Scotland and learning and testing with him “in person.” In October he was able to travel to Peterhead and Edinburgh to conduct tests, seminars and Bai Si ceremonies. You can read more about his visit in our post – Great Grandmaster Frank Yee Visits Scotland
We are very excited to see what is in store for us in 2023. Our regular timetabled classes will begin on Tuesday 3rd January. New students are always welcome to come along and try our Form class at 6pm or Qigong class at 7pm on Tuesdays. Our kids classes will begin again on Monday 9th at 6.15-7pm. Children aged 8-12 are always welcome and encouraged to attend this class. Your first class is free and our online options are still available to everyone too. At 7-8pm on Mondays we also have our lion dance classes. If you are interested in learning and performing with our lion dance team, you’re welcome to attend these sessions and practice with us. On Sunday 22nd of January we will be celebrating Chinese New Year with a lion & dragon dance performance and traditional shop blessing procession at the Eastgate Shopping Centre, beginning at 11.30am. Please come along and join in with our celebrations. All money raised at this event will be donated to Cash For Kids. You can support by donating on the day or via our fundraising page:
All donations, no matter how much, will be gratefully received and make a big difference to this amazing charity that supports families all across the North of Scotland. ❤️
May we take this opportunity to once again thank you for your support and wish you a healthy and happy Christmas and New Year.
Great Grandmaster Frank Yee Visits Scotland
After 3 years Great Grandmaster Frank Yee has finally been able to return to the UK to conduct tests, seminars, Bai Si ceremonies and presentations. He spent a weekend in Peterhead from September the 10th-12th and then travelled to Edinburgh to repeat the same timetable of events the following weekend.
GGM Frank Yee last visited the UK in 2019. He was due to return a year later in 2020 but Coronavirus put a stop to those plans. Now, 3 years later, we finally had the honour of meeting again, in person, and learning more knowledge from this exceptional man.
Despite just arriving from a New York flight, with a 13 hour delay and only 5 hours of broken sleep across 3 days, GGM Yee was still his bright and characteristically energetic self. He also appeared to have not aged a single day since we last saw him. GGM Yee wanted to begin proceedings by presenting all the senior students in attendance with a special calligraphy scroll that he had personally penned himself. He had the original intention of presenting the calligraphy to us all on his planned visit in 2020. Not only did he have the kindness and patience to inscribe each scroll individually for each student but he also had the foresight to preserve them for the duration of the pandemic, knowing that better days would once again unite us all together again.
Next on the agenda were junior and senior grading tests. Students train for a long time before they are eligible to take these tests, sometimes for years. As you can imagine, many students were very nervous. Not only performing in front of their Sifus but also the watchful eye of GGM Yee. This round of tests saw many students achieving great success, including the first Jo Gow (black belt equivalent) for the branch in Ellon. Congratulations to all students who succeeded in passing their tests. Following the tests GGM Yee gave a speech on the importance of correct practice and practicing for the excellent health benefits that Hung Ga can provide.
After a brief lunch break GGM Yee conducted two separate seminars. We have been lucky over the last few years where we have been able to further our knowledge with seminars online. Nothing can beat being there, in the room, learning the precious knowledge which GGM Yee spends months preparing. His notes for each of the seminars are rolled onto huge scrolls of paper and draped over chairs so that every small detail can be articulated to all the attendees, both in person and online.
The end of the seminars concluded the first day of GGM Yee’s visit to Peterhead. A banquet was held at the school for students to enjoy some celebratory time together after a long day of tests, practice and learning.
The next day began with many students taking Bai Si ceremonies. These are traditional discipleship ceremonies where the student is formally accepted as either an ‘in the gate’ or an ‘in the room’ disciple. You can read more about these ceremonies in our previous article, “Ceremonies in Edinburgh.” GGM Yee explained in great detail the significance and symbology of the altar and table set up for these ceremonies. This ensures that future generations of students can benefit from the rich culture of Traditional Hung Ga Kung Fu and that these traditions are never forgotten.
The finale of a memorable weekend was a senior seminar on advanced pole techniques. All attendees have been learning these techniques online over the past year. The chance to cover fine details and corrections in person was extremely beneficial, however, and demonstrates how important close contact learning is, especially after such a long period of time studying online.
After an eventful weekend in the North East of Scotland, GGM Yee then travelled to Edinburgh, to continue his comprehensive teachings of the complete Hung Ga kung fu system. It was only a short period of time but an incredible wealth of knowledge and many treasured memories spent with GGM Yee. We hope it won’t be so long before we can meet again.
Re-opening
We are re-opening our kung fu school on Tuesday 22nd June.
It has been a long time. We’ve been training online since December last year. Online testing and seminars have been conducted using this format too. We have been able to re-open for over a month but we chose to delay for a number of reasons. We’re now very excited to announce that we are ready to re-open the doors to the school and knuckle down to some good, old fashioned hard work. There are, however, a number of safety measures and precautions that we have put in place.
If you would like to join us, we have a beginners class at 6pm on Tuesday evenings. Just turn up 5-10mins beforehand. If it is your first class, then it is free. If you’ve trained with us before, our prices haven’t changed: £5 per class; £30 per month; £90 per month for all classes plus 1-1 tuition. (£4, £25 & £75 for students)
Our online classes will continue alongside our regular ones at the school. If you can’t make it to the ‘in-person’ classes, or prefer to train at home, these options won’t change. You can find all our online options here:
https://www.yhginverness.com/product-category/online-classes/
If you are just starting, or thinking of joining, there are a few free online stance training classes. This will give you a wee taster for what to expect. You can find them in the “Single online classes” menu:
Single Online Classes
We have a range of online classes throughout the week.
Whether you wish to join in with our live classes or practice at home at a time that is suitable for you, these options will grant you access to a class of your choice. Please select the class of your choice and proceed to checkout. No money is charged for the free classes.
We have done our best to make sure that our school is a clean and safe environment for everyone to train in. We ask that students do their part to maintain these standards to keep themselves and others safe. There are a number of precautions that we ask all students to take in order to keep everyone safe:
• First and foremost, if you feel unwell, even if not showing symptoms of Coronavirus, please stay at home. You can still join in online (an option that was previously unavailable.) Or catch up with class recordings.
• Please keep up to date with government guidance. This includes:
▪ Wearing a mask is now down to your own personal preference.
▪ Keeping hands clean and sanitised before, during and after training.
Hopefully we will see you all soon. We look forward to returning to normal with a full timetable of classes. For the time being we are open on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. Feel free to message if you would like more information. Email See you in class!
Altar Signboards
The Sun Toi, or ancestral altar, is a major feature in a traditional kung fu school. It is usually a main focal point upon entry to the training area. There are many features to the Sun Toi. You can read more about the Sun Toi in our article, “The Sun Toi – Ancestral Altar”
Hanging above the altar and down the sides, you can find the school’s signboards. These are boards with carefully carved Chinese characters that have a special meaning that relates to the style of kung fu. The top board, above the altar, is usually the name of the style itself, such as “Hung Ga Kuen,” meaning “Hung Family Fist.” They are read from right to left, in the same way that Traditional Chinese text was written.
The vertical boards down the sides are read from top to bottom. These demonstrate a theory, philosophy, motto or poem that relates to the kung fu style. They have an equal amount of characters on either board for symmetry.
Meet Aimee Williamson, owner of HollanDesign, and her mum, “Without her, no work would get done.” Aimee was commissioned to make the signboards for Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy, Inverness. Aimee does everything herself. From taking the orders, to designing, buying timber, marking and preparing timber, operating the CNC machine, painting and finishing. Aimee sends her designs through her computer to her CNC machine. This carves the boards to the exact specifications of the design. The inner vertical black boards are coated with an ebony timber treatment. The top, horizontal and outer vertical boards are carved in American white oak and have been coated with Treatex UV oil. All the carvings are painted with acrylic paints.
Due to the pandemic we were unable to meet with Aimee to discuss details. All communication was through messages. We only met Aimee for the first time when we collected the signboards upon completion. The signboards have been designed to custom fit around the window architrave where our Sun Toi is situated. Aimee has made a grand job of them too.
Read right to left, word-for-word, the top horizontal board reads:
“Simon Hung Family Fist National Art Society.” Simon, being the first name of the chief instructor of the Inverness branch, Sifu Simon Hepple. Hung Family Fist is the style of kung fu practiced at the school. National art is translated as martial art.
The board furthest to the right reads:
“The disciples of the Hung Family are everywhere.” Meaning that Hung Ga kung fu has spread across the world.
The board furthest to the left reads:
“Fist techniques astonish ancient and modern.” Basically meaning that the techniques taught from ancient times are still relevant today and for the rest of time.
On the inside, right and left, boards, in black and gold, is a list of the twelve bridges. This is a philosophy which Hung Ga styles all over the world are renowned for. In order, from the right hand side, they read:
Gong, Yau, Bik, Jik, Fun, Ding, Chuen.
The inside, left board finishes the twelve bridges and adds two characters for symmetry:
Tai, Lau, Wan, Jai, Deng, San, Haw.
The last two characters (San & Haw) literally mean “mountain river.” The reference to “mountain” and “river” refers to very different environments for which the 12 bridges would still be applicable. Basically, it is a shorthand way of saying that the 12 bridges are applicable everywhere.
You will notice a round mirror and red ribbon that is located centrally on the top signboard. This is similar to the mirrors on traditional lion dance heads. Its purpose is to reflect good fortune into the school. You may also notice the peacock feathers or Jam Foh (triangle feather) at the sides of this board. These also bring luck and good fortune to the school. In traditional kung fu schools, the angle to which the feathers are pointed has a special significance and meaning too.
News & Updates 20 Oct 24
It has been a while since we last checked in and wrote an update on our school in Inverness. Here’s what’s been happening lately. The Coronavirus Pandemic has taken it’s grip of the world and we’ve all had to learn to adapt ourselves to the new norm. Hopefully we can all return to the way that things once were, at some point down the line. For now, we must do the best that we can under these difficult circumstances.
Scotland went into lockdown earlier in the year, from the end of March to August. During lockdown our school was forced to close its doors for the first time. We ran a program of classes online to keep our students practicing and moving forward. When restrictions were lifted in August, we were able to return to our school, with a limited timetable, whilst simultaneously maintaining our programme of online classes. We have been unable to accept new students, due to class size and distance restrictions. We ask that all new students wishing to join us to please be patient. We currently have a waiting list. If you wish to join our waiting list please email for more information: enquiries@yhginverness.com
New students can join in with our online program, however. This consists of four pre-recorded classes a week. Links are sent to your email address and students can practice and learn at their own pace. Online students will also be invited to join in ‘live’ at our school twice a week, via Zoom, on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. There’s even an option to have a 1-2-1 session with Sifu Hepple, live via Zoom. These can all be purchased using the following links:
-
Single Online Classes£0.00 – £5.00 -
All Online Classes For One Month£30.00 -
1-1 session with Sifu Hepple£30.00
Despite all the restrictions we’ve encountered this year, we’ve managed to adapt and continue training, learning and progressing our martial art. Grandmaster Frank Yee has developed a range of fascinating and insightful seminars, broadcast to all our schools and students around the world. We’ve all managed to keep in touch with each other and developed new solutions to our ever changing world. Last weekend (17th October 2020) students from branches across Scotland, Sweden, USA, Brazil and Peru, managed to sit gruelling online grading tests. This is a testament to the unwavering commitment and dedication from our students and thanks to the ingenuity and leadership of our teachers. Together we can continue to push forward with our growth and knowledge, overcoming the obstacles placed in our paths.
Class Procedures
The following procedures and precautions are still in place for everyone’s safety at our school:
Before You Train
It is crucial that you remain at home if you:
• Have been in contact with someone with COVID-19 in the last 14 days.
• Have been overseas or exposed to someone with COVID-19 in the last 14 days.
• Have COVID-19 symptoms (self-isolate for 7 days) or are feeling unwell.
• Have been told to self-isolate as part of the contact tracing measures in place.
Physical Distancing & Hygiene
• Refrain from handshakes and high fives. The traditional sun and moon bow should suffice.
• Keep 2 metres away from other people at all times.
• Do not share food, towels, and drinks.
• Clean your hands weapons and equipment frequently.
• Cover your coughs and sneezes and dispose of any used tissue in your own bag and take it home with you. Wash your hands for 20 seconds or sanitise afterwards.
• Bring a bottle of sanitiser for your own personal use.
• Avoid touching your face.
Booking Process
• For private 1-1 tuition, please use our booking system on the Classes page or contact Sifu Hepple
• New students and students returning after a hiatus must now join our waiting list by contacting Sifu Hepple. We will be in touch in due course when there is an opportunity for you to attend classes safely.
• Current students should inform Sifu Hepple of their intention to attend each class.
Procedures At The School
• Arrive in good time.
• Please sanitise your hands upon entry and wait in the changing area for the class to begin.
• Sifu Hepple will direct you to your training station for the duration of the class.
• Stations should be sanitised by students before and after each class. Any weapons or equipment must be sanitised in the same way.
After Class Advice
• Once training has finished leave promptly and maintain physical distancing.
• Hands should be washed and/or sanitised as soon as possible.
• Ensure personal kit and equipment is cleaned thoroughly after use.
• If you become unwell after training, you should first contact your GP/NHS 24 and then inform Sifu Hepple.
Return to school activity
From the 31st of August, Scottish Government guidance states that gyms and sports facilities can open their doors to welcome the public once more. This is great news as we have pre-tests, tests and seminars just around the corner. This will be a new experience for everyone and we will be testing the water tentatively.
At YHGinverness, students are welcomed back on Tuesday the 1st of September. We will continue to run classes every Tuesday and Thursday evening at 6pm until such a time that we feel we can add more to the timetable. There will be a few changes to the regular routine which we have outlined below.
Before You Train
It is crucial that you remain at home if you:
• Have been in contact with someone with COVID-19 in the last 14 days.
• Have been overseas or exposed to someone with COVID-19 in the last 14 days.
• Have COVID-19 symptoms (self-isolate for 7 days) or are feeling unwell.
• Have been told to self-isolate as part of the contact tracing measures in place.
Physical Distancing & Hygiene
• Refrain from handshakes and high fives. The traditional sun and moon bow should suffice.
• Keep 2 metres away from other people at all times.
• Do not share food, towels, and drinks.
• Clean your hands weapons and equipment frequently.
• Cover your coughs and sneezes and dispose of any used tissue in your own bag and take it home with you. Wash your hands for 20 seconds or sanitise afterwards.
• Bring a bottle of sanitiser for your own personal use.
• Avoid touching your face.
Booking Process
• For private 1-1 tuition, please use our booking system on the Classes page or contact Sifu Hepple
• New students, or students returning after a hiatus, must now join our waiting list by contacting Sifu Hepple. We will be in touch in due course when there is an opportunity for you to attend classes safely.
• Current students should inform Sifu Hepple of their intention to attend each class.
Procedures At The School
• Arrive in good time.
• Please sanitise your hands upon entry and wait in the changing area for the class to begin.
• Sifu Hepple will direct you to your training station for the duration of the class.
• Stations should be sanitised by students before and after each class. Any weapons or equipment must be sanitised in the same way.
After Class Advice
• Once training has finished leave promptly and maintain physical distancing.
• Hands should be washed and/or sanitised as soon as possible.
• Ensure personal kit and equipment is cleaned thoroughly after use.
• If you become unwell after training, you should first contact your GP/NHS 24 and then inform Sifu Hepple.
News & Updates 12th April 2020
It’s been a strange few weeks for everyone. It’s not the best time to move house or be without internet access. We are all doing our part to get through it though and adjusting to our new way of life.
Project Yard Shark barely got off the ground before the UK went into lockdown and we had to close the doors of Yee’s Hung Ga, Inverness. With a family and house to move, Sifu Hepple has been extremely busy. Due to his house move he has had no internet access, other than mobile data, and been unable to post updates or set up live streaming services.
We have now set up regular live streaming classes throughout the week, to continue with students training. There are free classes, as well as paid classes that anyone can join in with. Whether you are a complete beginner, interested in what we do, or an advanced student wishing to keep up with training, we are now set up to enable you to train with us.
We are currently using Zoom as our platform for our live classes. This works best whilst using the app which you can download from your device’s app store. We will send you a web link so you can also join in via your web browser. All Zoom meetings are listed on our Classes page and updated regularly.
To join in on a class, simply click on the class that you want, or find it under ‘Live-Streaming Classes’ on the Fu-kit section of our website. Add the class to basket and process as if you were buying any product online. We will then send you all the relevant information to your email.
If you wish to continue paying your monthly fees for all the live-stream classes, you can do that too.
If you fancy brushing up on your skills whilst in lockdown, we can also schedule 1-1 sessions too. Just follow this link or find the session in our shop.
Classes, Courses & Seminars
A selection of online classes, courses and seminars for you to learn from.
COVID-19 Update ☆Project ‘Yard Shark’☆
Last night the government announced its latest list of countermeasures to curb the threat of the current COVID-19 outbreak. As well as social distancing and self isolating, the new measures include the immediate closure of all bars, restaurants, cinemas, theaters, gyms and cafes. In our continued efforts to reduce and minimize the risks of COVID-19, we have no other option but to close the doors of our Highland branch of Yee’s Hung Ga.
The closure of our school doors has triggered our pre-planned special operations directive called ‘Project: Yard Shark.’ Project Yard Shark is a plan which has existed since the conception of YHGInverness. The idea behind Yard Shark was to transform a disused piece of wasteland, at the rear of our school, as an outdoor training space. It is named after a toy shark found amongst the weeds of the area and yes, we just made that name up!
Work on the area started before the internal work of the school began in 2011. This was whilst we were waiting for planning permission to be approved. The work needed to transform the area was far greater than we first anticipated. We managed to make a start, clearing the area of weeds, overgrown roots, rubble and rubbish. This included over 20 bin bags of empty cans and broken bottles. Amongst the weeds and rubbish we also found the treasured toy shark. Once planning permission was approved it was ‘all systems go!’ to get the internal work of the school complete. This was in order to commence classes as soon as possible. Project Yard Shark was put on the backburner until more time was available to carry out the work necessary to transform the area.
Over the years various attempts to re-energize Project Yard Shark were attempted. The lack of available free time and man-power necessary to continue the project fell woefully short on every occasion. Project Yard Shark was due to be reestablished later this year, at the end of spring.
COVID-19 has now emerged as a dangerous threat to our community and potentially our lives. Inevitable restrictions necessary to attempt to control the spread of the virus have meant that closure of our school has granted us 3 things we have been lacking in previous attempts to complete Project Yard Shark:
- The first is manpower. Since we are unable to train in the school, we now have fit and able bodies to tackle the work. We could, of course, continue our classes in a public park, like many of our branches in warmer climates do regularly. This seems a little counterintuitive as we already have our own outdoor space to train in.
- The second is time. If we aren’t training, then we should use our downtime constructively and positively. This will give us the perfect opportunity to use our energy in such a manner.
- The third is necessary for any large undertaking and that is willpower. We are no longer able to train indoors, however current government guidelines state that we can, and should, exercise outdoors in small groups. Adhering to the social distancing guidelines, of course.
Project Yard Shark – we just like the sound of it – is due to be reestablished instead of regular timetabled classes until the outdoor area is in a suitable and safe state to be used for outdoor classes. The work begins….
15th March 2020 News & Updates
We will discuss the impact of the coronavirus on our school, and gyms in general, and what precautions should be taken to maintain your health. Our class times and prices have been updated. The launch of our Spring Qigong Routine is expected any day now and you can read an inspiring interview with one of our students in our latest Student Spotlight article
COVID-19: Is it safe to attend my kung fu classes?
We are not experts on infectious diseases by any stretch of the imagination, however, due to the warnings from health officials we have sought advice on what precautions we should be taking to ensure the safety of our students and their loved ones.
If you have been infected by the novel coronavirus or have symptoms of COVID-19, you should stay at home unless directed otherwise. If you don’t have any symptoms and have no reason to believe that you have been exposed to it, then there is currently no need to lock yourself in your home.
The recent advice from health officials is to practice “social distancing,” to reduce the spread of the virus from one person to another. This is achieved by staying about 6 feet away from each other, avoiding large gatherings, and working from home (as far as is practicable).
Attending our classes in Inverness is a great way to escape the anxiety and stress of everyday living for many of our students. There have only been a few cases of the virus in the Highlands (at this point) so the threat is relatively low.
According to current advice, perspiration alone cannot transmit COVID-19. It is estimated, however, that the coronavirus can live on metal, glass and plastic surfaces for up to nine days. In an effort to reduce the risks we will be cleaning and disinfecting mats and equipment before and after use. Where possible, students are asked to bring their own equipment which they might need for any of the classes.
“Where possible and safe to do so, we will remain open as usual. We ask that all our students attend as normal, where possible and safe to do so.”
If any of our students are unsure or require further information, please phone or email in advance. In the event that we must close our doors, we will post announcements on our website and social media channels. We will also look into the possibility of introducing teaching classes online, if the closure is for a sustained period.
In October last year we published our first seasonal Qigong routine titled “Autumn Qigong Routine to Boost Immunity.” Qigong can be a gentle, yet effective, way to boost your body’s natural ability to fight off disease and infections. Despite the fact that it is no longer Autumn for us here in Scotland, our Autumn Qigong Routine still remains a fantastic way to boost the immune system. This will give your body the best possible chance of fighting the virus quickly and efficiently, so you will be back on your feet sooner than you might think. Why not give it a try and see what you think.
Spring Qigong Routine
Spring has sprung, here in Scotland. Snow drops, crocuses, daffodils and cherry blossom have all begun to bloom everywhere. Temperatures are very slowly rising and the days are beginning to stretch longer. We are working on our Spring Qigong Routine and hope to deliver this very shortly. We aim to balance the body’s systems with focused, deliberate, slow exercises and rhythmic, deep, diaphragmatic breathing. To be sent our routine, completely free of charge, into your inbox, simply send us your name and email address in the form below:
Updated Prices & Times
You may have noticed that our timetable has been adjusted to include or Qigong classes on Thursday evenings at 6.15PM. Our classes in Forres have also been running for a few weeks on Friday evenings. We have updated our prices too, making it more affordable to attend our public classes along with our private tuition once a week.
We also have private tuition spaces available all day on Monday and Wednesday this week. It is actually really easy to book these by choosing a space on the following calendar and entering your details. You will be redirected to PayPal where you can pay securely for your session. All you need to do after that is turn up on the day, ready for action!
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Hire Our School
If you have thought about running your own martial arts, yoga, meditation or exercise class but you’re put off by the high charges for renting space out, we have a great solution. Our Academy has a fantastic central location in Inverness. It is available throughout the day Sunday to Saturday. We also have Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights available for you to run your classes. If you wish, we can even designate space for your marketing and help get the word out on our social media platforms. It only costs £12 to rent out our school for an hour. If you need more time, speak to us about what you need and we can come up with a fair arrangement. As always, you can email us directly or read more about what we can offer you in this article: Space Available
Student Spotlight
Our latest Student Spotlight article focuses on Emma Archer. Due to Emma’s work commitments Emma is often working away. This doesn’t stall her unwavering commitment to practicing the art of Hung Kuen. Far from it in fact. Emma is so dedicated to learning that she trains at multiple branches of Yee’s Hung Ga whilst travelling. Find out more about her inspiring story here: Student Spotlight: Emma Archer
As mentioned earlier, our Spring Qigong Routine will be launched very soon. Please make sure that you have signed up to our email alerts for this. Any further information about the coronavirus or school closures as a result of the pandemic will be announced via our website and social media channels, so please make sure that you check regularly, or sign up to our email alerts below…
8th March 20 News & Updates
Some weeks it’s business as usual and then other times you just can’t cram anything else into the week. Last week was one of those weeks. We’ve had new classes beginning on our timetable, pre-tests and a combat sport workshop as well as all our regular classes. Our Forres school has even made the local papers too.
Forres News Article
Our school in Forres has only been opened a short while, yet have already managed to have an article published about them in the local paper. The Forres Gazette wrote about the opening of our new branch and focused on how Sifu Hepple’s own journey with Hung Ga Kung Fu has shaped his own life, as well as the lives of many of his students. You can read the whole article here: New Kung Fu Class in Forres Helps Build Physical and Mental Strength.
Pre-testing
Exams are never easy. The pressure to succeed can be overwhelming. Nerves can make you flustered. Trying to remember all the information you need can be a hard task on its own. Trying to recall it all ‘on the spot’ adds a whole new level of panic! The kind of skills you learn to deal with these pressures are useful in all walks of life. During our gradings at Yee’s Hung Ga, there can be a lot of information that students have to process. To take some of the pressure off and to set their minds at ease, our pre-testing stage is a valuable part of the whole testing procedure.
We conducted the pre-testing stage on Saturday the 7th of March. All students who participated passed with flying colours. The next stage is the final grading. Until then it’s back to business and lots of practice!
You can read more about one of our students who attended our pre-testing on Saturday. Emma Archer, who will be looking to take her Yee Cup Junior Level test (1st test of 2nd level) at the next grading, is the focus of our latest Student Spotlight Article. Due to her busy work schedule and commitments, Emma trains at various branches of Yee’s Hung Ga across the North of Scotland. This is a testament to her commitment and dedication to the training at Yee’s Hung Ga. If you are inspired by her tenacity and perseverance, you only need to make it along to your first beginners class to see why Emma is so dedicated. Read the article here: Student Spotlight: Emma Archer.
Hung Ga for Combat Sports
After the pre-test on Saturday, we also held a unique workshop in the Inverness academy. Sifu Michael Rose, Vice President of Yee’s Hung Ga Europe and instructor of the Peterhead branch, conducted a hands-on seminar about the use of Hung Ga techniques for competing in combat sports. Sifu Rose has first hand experience with competing and we were lucky enough to receive the benefit of his knowledge. More of these exciting workshops are in the pipeline, so to keep up to date, make sure you sign up to our email alerts below.
Rent Our School
If you have thought about running your own martial arts, yoga, meditation or exercise class but you’re put off by the high charges for renting space out, we have a great solution. Our Academy has a fantastic central location in Inverness. It is available throughout the day Sunday to Saturday. We also have Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights available for you to run your classes. If you wish, we can even designate space for your marketing and help get the word out on our social media platforms. It only costs £12 to rent out our school for an hour. If you need more time, speak to us about what you need and we can come up with a fair arrangement. As always, you can email us directly or read more about what we can offer you in this article: Space Available
Classes
Our Qigong classes commenced last Thursday and will continue at the same time of 6.15-7pm every Thursday. Our timetables and price list have been updated. These classes are suitable for anyone, of any age, who is interested in learning the art of Qigong. 1-1 tuition will still continue in the normal fashion.(see below)
As well as Qigong, we obviously have Hung Ga kung fu classes too. Our kids class is on every Monday at 6.15-7pm. There’s no waiting list for this so your child could start straight away. We also have our beginners class at 7pm on Tuesday evenings. There is plenty space available for anyone who wishes to begin their training. For more information on beginning, see our page: How Do I Join?
As well is these classes which are oriented for complete beginners, we also have a Techniques, drills and applications class on Monday evenings at 7pm. This is designed for students of all levels to practice turning their skills into 2nd nature. Our Lion Dance & Performance class is designed for students of mixed ages and abilities. The stances, footwork and co-ordination are a great accompaniment to your Hung Ga training. Traditional training & sparring is for more experienced students to hone their skills with. Anyone who has completed an introductory Tuesday evening class is welcome to attend any of the classes on the timetable. On Friday evenings we also have classes, available to anyone, at our Forres branch of Yee’s Hung Ga.
1-1 Private Tuition
Whether you wish to learn Qigong or Hung Ga kung fu, you have the option to learn in our public classes, 1-1 private tuition with Sifu Hepple or a mixture of the two. Private tuition is simple and easy to arrange. Simply pick the available time that suits you, enter your details and then pay securely via PayPal.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]We are STILL working on our Winter Qigong Routine notes and our Spring Qigong Routine. Due to testing and workshops, they’ve pushed onto the backburner slightly. We will, however, be back on track soon and should deliver on our promises shortly. To make sure that you don’t miss out, sign up to our email alerts below….
Student Spotlight Emma Archer
In our Student Spotlight series, our students have the opportunity to tell you about their training in their own words. Emma Archer has been training since 2015, participating in demonstrations and lion dance displays. Due to working life, Emma’s progress has been more gradual than some other students, however she enjoys committing her leisure time to training and gaining a deep appreciation for the style. Emma is currently learning the famous Fu Hok Seung Ying Kuen (Tiger & Crane Double Fist) form for her Yee Cup Junior level (1st test of 2nd level). Here Emma tells you about her experience of training at Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy in Inverness.
What made you want to train in martial arts?
Originally, I was inspired by my father who practiced Lau Gar Kung Fu in his teens. He taught me some stances and techniques. These share similarities with Hung Ga. Of course, films starring famous practitioners were also an influence.
How did you hear about the school?
There was no Kung Fu school in my hometown, so growing-up I practiced Shotokan Karate off and on for several years. While I did enjoy the training and think it is a great style, something about Kung Fu always appealed to me more.
In my 3rd year of University, I desperately needed an alternative focus to my dissertation, and decided that it was time to look into Kung Fu again. Miraculously, there was a school across from my flat (Yee’s Hung Ga Aberdeen at the time); guess it was just meant to be! When I moved to Inverness for work, I knew of the school here and began training under the instruction of Sifu Simon Hepple.
What was your first class like?
Just as nerve wracking as my first class in Aberdeen. However, I had met Sifu Simon and some of the Inverness students before at tests and events, and they were very welcoming.
Did it live up to your expectations?
Exceeded them.
How did you feel after your first class?
Pumped with motivation to train again and after a few more classes, felt right at home.
What do you think of your training so far? Is there anything you’d change?
Enjoy every minute of it. If I could train all day every day, I would.
What are your hopes for your future in martial arts?
Apart from maintaining my own fitness and well-being, eventually I would like to help others on their Hung Ga journey.
Anything else that you wish to add?
I have trained at a few branches, and each has a positive and friendly atmosphere. While it is not common for a student to change schools, branch instructors have been very accommodating of my working situation. I feel accepted and enjoy training with everyone. Sifu as well as my Hung Ga brothers and sisters are always encouraging and help to improve my skills.
It is also nice when we join other schools for seminars and events. Not to mention our predecessors are very skillful, knowledgeable and approachable. Always an honour to learn from them.
Kung Fu truly improves your fitness and self-confidence, which has helped me in other areas of life.
Come try Hung Ga and join our awesome family.
1st March News & Updates
We have a busy week ahead of us at YHGInverness. Our public Qigong classes are due to be reinstated to our timetable. We have students undergoing pre-tests on Saturday morning and we also have our exciting seminar, available to anyone, on Saturday afternoon.
Highland School of Qigong
Our public Qigong classes make a welcome return this week. Our syllabus has been developed further to add extra sensitivity for our students. Springtime is traditionally a time of year for cleansing, renewal, creativity and inspiration. We have developed our Spring Qigong Routine especially for the Spring months to help balance and encourage growth in these areas. We will also harmonise energy in the physical body to boost health and productivity.
Qigong Classes
Our public Qigong classes are due to return to our Inverness Academy this week. On Thursday the 5th of March we will hold regular public Qigong classes. These will continue every Thursday evening at 6.15pm. The classes are open to anyone, of any age, who are interested in learning the art of Qigong.
Classes will be priced at £5 per class. There is also the option to buy a loyalty card for £30. This will grant you a 7th class for free. They will follow a similar format to our previous Qigong classes where we will practice a set routine. A Qigong exercise will then be taught to individual students to practice throughout the week. Comfortable, loose clothing should be worn with flat trainers or plimsoles. If you would like to enquire further about these classes, you can email us directly to ask any questions. We will also post updates on our Facebook page:
If you prefer to learn privately, we still have 1-1 tuition available. These sessions can easily be booked with our online booking system. Just select a day and available timeslot that is suitable for you on our calendar below. Fill out your details and you will then be taken to PayPal. You can securely pay for your session with any debit or credit card at this stage. We currently have availability all day on Monday this week.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Spring Qigong Routine
Continuing from our previous Autumn and Winter Qigong routines, our Spring Routine is due to be released this month. This will follow a similar format, with everything that you need sent out to you, completely FREE, in an email. This will include a warm up, main practice and cool down. Each exercise will have a video of it being performed. It will also contain brief instructions, an explanation of any theory and a list of the main benefits. A workshop will also be held a few weeks after the release of the routine. This will aid you in your practice and help to clarify any questions that might arise after practicing it for a short time. Any notes from the workshop and general feedback will then be compiled and sent out to everyone, which should aid further practice and development.
All this information will be completely FREE of charge to anyone who is interested in learning the art of Qigong. To receive this information, you only need to complete the form below. Once compiled, we’ll send it all out to you at the email address that you provide.
Rent Out Our School
If you have thought about running your own martial arts, yoga, meditation or exercise class but you’re put off by the high charges for renting space out, we have a great solution. Our Academy has a fantastic central location in Inverness. It is available throughout the day Sunday to Saturday. We also have Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights available for you to run your classes. If you wish, we can even designate space for your marketing and help get the word out on our social media platforms. It only costs £12 to rent out our school for an hour. If you need more time, speak to us about what you need and we can come up with a fair arrangement. As always, you can email us directly or read more about what we can offer you in this article: Space Available
Classes
Our classes this week see the return of our public Qigong classes on Thursday evenings at 6.15pm. We also have our Forres classes on Friday evenings at 7-8pm for kids & 8-9pm for adults. New students who wish to start are more than welcome at either of these classes. If you wish to begin in Inverness, the best class to start with is Tuesday evenings at 7pm. See the following page for further information: How Do I Join?
Private 1-1 Tuition
Many students prefer to learn in private, with 1-1 tuition from Sifu Hepple. Perhaps you feel anxious about learning in front of other students or just want to learn at a faster pace. These classes are an invaluable tool for any students who wish to perfect their art. Whatever your reasons might be for learning solo, they’re easy to arrange. Simply select a date and available time slot, fill out your info and then pay securely by PayPal with any credit or debit card.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]An Interview With Sifu Frank Yee
If you would like some insight into what Hung Ga training is like, or want to weigh up the options of contemporary vs traditional, perhaps you’ve been training for some time but need a little direction, then this interview with Grandmaster Frank Yee is extremely insightful. It was published almost 20 years ago, in 2001, for Kung Fu Magazine. It discusses the history of the Hung Ga style, Grandmaster Yee’s own background, how he started in Hung Ga, training requirements and some really good, solid advice. You can read the full interview here: An Interview With Sifu Frank Yee
Inverness Pre-Tests
This coming Saturday (7th March) we have scheduled pre-tests for our students. These help our students prepare for the rigorous grading procedure, which we are quite proud of at Yee’s Hung Ga. We ensure that our students are fully capable for the level that they are testing. Simply attending a grading does not guarantee a pass in the Yee’s Hung Ga system. A student must undergo a number of tests to pass each grading. This ensures that the art of Hung Ga is passed on fully for future generations. It also means that our students are under no disillusions about their strengths and capabilities. The pre-testing stage also helps to settle any anxious feelings that our students might have about the main grading.
Hung Ga Techniques For Combat Sports
On the same day at 1pm, Yee’s Inverness will host a seminar, suitable for anyone, students and non-students, to attend. This seminar will be delivered by Sifu Michael Rose, instructor from Yee’s Hung Ga Peterhead and Vice President of Yee’s Hung Ga Europe. The seminar is all about the Hung Ga fighting system and how it can be used for various combat sports including; MMA, Sanda & Kickboxing. Sifu Rose can also advise on correct stance, positioning, stretching, diet & nutrition in preparation for competing. Boxing or MMA gloves are suitable for this workshop. A limited supply is available at the school but we recomend that you take your own.
If you’ve ever thought about competing or would like to know more about the training involved, this is your chance to gain the knowledge you need to take it to the next level. The seminar lasts for about 3 hours. It is suitable for both men and women, basically anyone interested in learning. For students of Yee’s Hung Ga it is priced at £30 and non-students £35. Tickets can be pre-booked, to avoid disappointment, here:
Hung Ga Fighting System for Combat Sports Tickets
Facebook event page for seminar
Coming Soon
The notes for our Winter Qigong Routine have now been compiled and will be ready to send out shortly. You can find out how our students got on in our Qigong classes, pre-tests and combat sport workshop next week.
23rd Feb News & Updates
You can find out how to rent our school out for your own classes, workshops or groups. Our new Qigong classes are due to commence at the beginning of next month. We also have an exciting seminar workshop to coincide with our scheduled pre-testing at the beginning of March. This is available to Yee’s students and non-students to attend.
Spring Festival/Chinese New Year Video
One of our students has created a fantastic video from footage of our performance at this years celebration in Inverness for Chinese New Year. We welcomed in the Year of the Rat at the end of January with a large lion & dragon dance display across the city centre. This was the result of three Yee’s schools from across the North East, collaborating together for one big celebration. You can see the video below and subscribe to our channel for more:
Hung Ga Fighting System for Combat Sports
On the 7th of March we have scheduled pre-tests for our students. These help our students prepare for the rigorous grading procedure which we are quite proud of at Yee’s Hung Ga. We ensure that our students are fully capable for the level that they are testing. Simply attending a grading does not guarantee a pass in the Yee’s Hung Ga system. A student must undergo a number of tests to pass each grading. This ensures that the art of Hung Ga is passed on fully for future generations. It also means that our students are under no disillusions about their strengths and capabilities. The pre-testing stage also helps to settle any anxious feelings that our students might have about the main grading.
On the same day at 1pm, Yee’s Inverness will host a seminar, suitable for anyone, students and non-students, to attend. This seminar will be delivered by Sifu Michael Rose, instructor from Yee’s Hung Ga Peterhead and Vice President of Yee’s Hung Ga Europe. The seminar is all about the Hung Ga fighting system and how it can be used for various combat sports including; MMA, Sanda & Kickboxing. Sifu Rose can also advise on correct stance, positioning, stretching, diet & nutrition in preparation for competing. Boxing and MMA gloves are both suitable for this workshop. A limited supply is available at the school but we recomend that you take your own.
If you’ve ever thought about competing or would like to know more about the training involved, this is your chance to gain the knowledge you need to take it to the next level. The seminar lasts for about 3 hours. It is suitable for both men and women, basically anyone interested in learning. For students of Yee’s Hung Ga it is priced at £30 and non-students £35. Tickets can be pre-booked, to avoid disappointment, here:
Hung Ga Fighting System for Combat Sports Tickets
Facebook event page for seminar
Highland School of Qigong
Our Spring Qigong Routine is due to be released in March. Springtime is traditionally a time of year for cleansing, renewal, creativity and inspiration. We have specifically developed this routine for the Spring months to help balance and encourage growth in these areas. We will also harmonise energy in the physical body to boost health and productivity. Our public Qigong classes will make a welcome return next week. Our syllabus has been developed to add extra sensitivity for our students.
Spring Qigong Routine
Continuing from our previous Autumn and Winter Qigong routines, our Spring Routine is due to be released at the beginning of March. This will follow a similar format with everything that you need sent out to you, completely FREE, in an email. This will include a warm up, main practice and cool down. Each exercise will have a video of it being performed. It will also contain brief instructions, an explanation of any theory and a list of the main benefits. A workshop will also be held a few weeks after the release of the routine. This will aid you in your practice and help to clarify any questions that might arise after practicing it for a short time. Any notes from the workshop and general feedback will then be compiled and sent out to everyone, which should aid further practice and development.
All this information will be completely FREE of charge to anyone who is interested in learning the art of Qigong. To receive this information, you only need to complete the form below. Once compiled, we’ll send it all out to you at the email address that you provide.
Qigong Classes
Our public Qigong classes are due to return to our Inverness Academy on the 5th of March 2020. We will hold regular public Qigong classes every Thursday evening at 6.15pm. These classes are open to anyone, of any age, who are interested in learning the art of Qigong.
Classes will be priced at £5 per class. There is also the option to buy a loyalty card for £30. This will grant you a 7th class for free. They will follow a similar format to our previous Qigong classes where we will practice a set routine. A Qigong exercise will then be taught to individual students to practice throughout the week. Comfortable, loose clothing should be worn with flat trainers or plimsoles. If you would like to enquire further about these classes, you can email us directly to ask any questions. We will also post updates on our Facebook page:
If you prefer to learn privately, we still have 1-1 tuition available. These sessions can easily be booked with our online booking system. Just select a day and available timeslot that is suitable for you on our calendar below. Fill out your details and you will then be taken to PayPal. You can securely pay for your session with any debit or credit card at this stage. We currently have availability all day on Monday and Tuesday this week.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Rent our school
If you have thought about running your own martial arts, yoga, meditation or exercise class but you’re put off by the high charges for renting space out, we have a great solution. Our Academy has a great central location in Inverness. It is available throughout the day all week. We also have Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights available for you to run your classes in private. We can even designate space for your marketing and help get the word out with our social media. It only costs £12 to rent out our school for an hour. If you need more time, speak to us about what you need and we can come up with a fair arrangement. As always, you can email us directly or read more about what we can offer you in our article:
Classes
Our classes continue at our academy in Inverness and at the swimming pool gymnasium in Forres. Anyone wishing to begin their martial arts journey at Yee’s can attend our Tuesday evening beginners class at 7pm in Inverness. Both our classes in Forres are suitable for complete beginners. We have a class at 8pm for adults or 7pm for kids. Anyone is welcome to come along and give it a go.
1-1 Tuition
We have private 1-1 tuition classes available for anyone who would prefer to learn solo. These classes are easy to arrange. Simply select a date and available time slot, fill out your info and then pay securely by PayPal with any credit or debit card.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Coming soon…
We will shortly be releasing our notes from our Winter Qigong Routine. The notes give further information about each exercise and Qigong practice in general. We will soon be announcing further details about another seminar based on Hung Ga techniques. This should take place towards the beginning of April. To keep up to date with announcements, make sure that you sign up to our email alerts below.
16th Feb News & Updates
We’ve had another exciting week in Inverness. New Qigong classes have been announced and are due to commence at the beginning of next month. We have also planned an exciting seminar workshop to coincide with our scheduled pre-testing at the beginning of March.
Highland School of Qigong
Springtime is a time for getting out and about and putting all those plans you made over the Winter months into action. It would seem that March is the month where it is all going to happen. Our Spring Qigong Routine is due to be released then. We also have the long awaited return of our public Qigong classes.
Spring Qigong Routine
Continuing from our previous Autumn and Winter Qigong routines, we will also be compiling a Spring Routine. This will follow a similar format with everything that you need sent to you, completely FREE, in an email. This will include a warm up, main practice and cool down. Each exercise, within the routine, will have a video of it being performed. It will also contain brief instructions, an explanation of any theory and a list of the main benefits. A workshop will also be held a few weeks after the release of the routine. This will aid you in your practice and help to clarify any questions that might’ve arisen after practicing it for a short time. Any notes from the workshop and general feedback will then be compiled and sent out to everyone, which should aid further practice and development.
All this information will be completely free of charge to anyone who is interested in learning the art of Qigong. To receive this information, you only need to sign up with the form below. Once compiled, we’ll send it all out to you at the email address that you sign up with.
Qigong Classes
Our public Qigong classes are due to return to our Inverness Academy next month. From the 5th of March 2020 we will hold regular public Qigong classes every Thursday evening at 6.15pm. These classes are open to anyone, of any age, who is interested in learning the art of Qigong.
Classes will be priced at £5 per class. There is also the option to buy a loyalty card for £30. This will grant you a 7th class for free. They will follow a similar format to our previous Qigong classes where we will practice a set routine. A Qigong exercise will then be taught to individual students to practice throughout the week. If you would like to enquire further about these classes, you can email us directly to ask any questions. We will also post updates on our Facebook page:
If you prefer to learn privately, we still have 1-1 tuition available. These sessions can easily be booked with our online booking system. Just select a day and available timeslot that is suitable for you on our calendar below. Fill out your details and you will then be taken to PayPal. You can securely pay for your session with any debit or credit card at this stage. We currently have availability all day on Monday and Tuesday this week.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Rent our school
If you have thought about running your own martial arts, yoga, meditation or exercise class but you’re put off by the high charges for renting space out, we have a great solution. Our Academy has a great central location in Inverness. It is available throughout the day all week. We also have Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights available for you to run your classes in private. We can even designate space for your marketing and help get the word out with our social media. It only costs £12 to rent out our school for an hour. If you need more time, speak to us about what you need and we can come up with a fair arrangement. As always, you can email us directly or read more about what we can offer you in our article:
Hung Ga Fighting System for Combat Sports
On the 7th of March we have scheduled pre-tests for our students. These help our students prepare for the rigorous grading procedure which we are quite proud of at Yee’s Hung Ga. We ensure that our students are fully capable for the level that they are testing. Simply attending a grading does not guarantee a pass in the Yee’s Hung Ga system. A student must undergo a number of tests to pass each grading. This ensures that the art of Hung Ga is passed on fully for future generations. It also means that our students are under no disillusions about their strengths and capabilities. The pre-testing stage also helps to settle any anxious feelings that our students might have about the main grading.
On the same day at 1pm, Yee’s Inverness will host a seminar, suitable for anyone, students and non-students, to attend. This seminar will be delivered by Sifu Michael Rose, instructor from Yee’s Hung Ga Peterhead and Vice President of Yee’s Hung Ga Europe. The seminar is all about the Hung Ga fighting system and how it can be used for various combat sports including; MMA, Sanda & Kickboxing. Sifu Rose can also advise on correct stance, positioning, stretching, diet & nutrition in preparation for competing. Boxing and MMA gloves are both suitable for this workshop. A limited supply is available at the school but we recomend that you take your own.
If you’ve ever thought about competing or would like to know more about the training involved, this is your chance to gain the knowledge you need to take it to the next level. The seminar lasts for about 3 hours. It is suitable for both men and women, basically anyone interested in learning. For students of Yee’s Hung Ga it is priced at £30 and non-students £35. Tickets can be pre-booked, to avoid disappointment, here:
Hung Ga Fighting System for Combat Sports Tickets
Facebook event page for seminar
Classes
Our classes continue at our academy in Inverness and at the swimming pool gymnasium in Forres. Anyone wishing to begin their martial arts journey at Yee’s can attend our Tuesday evening beginners class at 7pm in Inverness. Both our classes in Forres are suitable for complete beginners. We have a class at 8pm for adults or 7pm for kids. Anyone is welcome to come along and give it a go.
1-1 Tuition
We have private 1-1 tuition classes available for anyone who would prefer to learn solo. These classes are easy to arrange. Simply select a date and available time slot, fill out your info and then pay securely by PayPal with any credit or debit card.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Coming soon…
As well as our Spring Qigong Routine, our Qigong classes commencing, our pre-tests and seminar, regular classes in Inverness and Forres, we will shortly be releasing our notes from our Winter Qigong Routine. The notes give further information about each exercise and about Qigong practice in general. We will soon be announcing further details about another seminar based on Hung Ga techniques. This should take place towards the beginning of April. To keep up to date with announcements, make sure that you sign up to our email alerts below.
9th Feb News & Updates
Our first classes in Forres kicked off this week. We also have a blog article on the “Ecology of the Dancing Chinese Lion,” from one of our Inverness students. We have updates to our classes for the week ahead and an exciting announcement about regular Qigong classes beginning soon.
Forres Classes
Our first classes in Forres began this week. It is great to see an interest in traditional Chinese martial arts here. We appreciate everyone who has shared our posts and helped us advertise these classes. The hard work is just beginning though. Please keep helping us to spread the word so more people can find out about us.
If you are interested in joining us in Forres, just come along to one of our classes. Both our current Forres classes are on every Friday evening in the swimming pool gymnasium. We have one at 7pm for 6-12yr olds. They are open to both girls, boys and any parents who want to join in. They are only £4 for an hour.
Our adult class is at 8pm and only costs £5. It is open to anyone, men and women aged over 12 years, who are willing to give it a go. You dont need to be mega fit to do these classes. They are designed for anyone to follow along to. You practice at your own rate and get fit as you practice. The more you practice, the better you get!
If you are interested in coming along but a little anxious about attending your first class, don’t worry. You can give us a phone or email and we can set your mind at ease before you attend. For pointers on what to expect, check out our page, “How Do I Join”
You can also check out our Forres website page here:
And our Forres Facebook page here:
Ecology of the Chinese Dancing Lion
A Yee’s student from Inverness has written a fun blog article about the Chinese Lion Dance. You can read it here:
Ecology of the Dancing Chinese Lion
Emma Archer, the author, begun her Hung Ga journey at our academy in Aberdeen and has been training for a number of years now. She is currently training for her Yee Cup Junior level.
Classes
Highland School of Qigong
We are happy to announce that we will be reinstating our public Qigong classes at our Inverness branch. These will begin on the 5th of March at 6.15pm until 7pm. Each class is priced at £5 or £30 for a loyalty card which will give you a 7th class for free. There will also be updates to the curriculum we previously taught in these classes. The Qigong classes will take place instead of the Hung Ga kids class for ages 8-13. The older kids class will now be incorporated into our kids class on Monday evenings.
Hung Ga, Inverness
As mentioned above, our kids class for 8-13 yr olds will now be incorporated into our Monday kids class, to allow room in the schedule for our refreshed Qigong classes. This will take place immediately, however the Qigong classes will commence on the 5th of March.
Our Monday kids class at 6.15-7pm will now be for 6-12yr olds. Anyone interested in attending, within that age bracket, is welcome to join us. Anyone outside that age bracket, who would like to join, is welcome to attend our Tuesday evening class at 7pm.
1-1 Private Tuition
We have full availability for 1-1 training sessions on Monday and Tuesday this week. There is also some availability in the evenings after the public classes. These are ideal if you wish to improve, at a faster rate, on what you have already learned in class. If you wish to learn out with the public classes then these are also your best choice.
They are simple to arrange and pay for. All you need to do is complete the form below with your required dates and times. You will then be taken to the PayPal site where you can securely pay for your chosen class, even if you dont have a PayPal account.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Space Available
Do you wish to start your own yoga class or meditation group? Perhaps you already run a martial art class, excercise club or group and are looking into other locations?
We currently have space available (out with our regular timetabled classes) where you can rent out our school. Check out our article here:
Or you can email us to find out more.
We shall soon be releasing our Winter Qigong Routine notes. This will accompany the routine we developed last year and the workshop which we held in our school in January. The notes give further information about each exercise and about Qigong practice in general. Don’t miss out, sign up to our email alerts below.
Space Available
Do you wish to start your own yoga class or meditation group? Perhaps you already run a martial art class, excercise club or group and are looking into other locations?
We currently have space available (out with our regular timetabled classes) where you can rent out our school. We don’t boast state of the art, air conditioned facilities. In fact our premises are very modest and humble. It does have a certain charm though and is an ideal training space. It would be a great place if you are thinking of starting up and want to “test out the waters.”
We can offer:
- Regular availability (outwith our own timetabled classes)
- Full use of our premises
- large storage area
- Advertising space on our A-frame signboard, front door poster and flyer rack area, social media and website.
- Discounts for students.
- A fantastic, central location.
All of this for only £12 per hour.
If you would like to take on a new venture in 2020 and this sounds like an ideal location and opportunity for you. Just email us to view the property, ask any questions or enquire about availability:
2nd February News & Updates
The dust has settled after our Spring Festival/birthday celebrations in Inverness last weekend. We really had a blast but now back to our regular training routine. Our sale has ended but there are still a few bargains in our store. There are updates to our classes for this week and we also have a new branch opening in Forres this week.
Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations
The Spring Festival, known as Chinese New Year, is a big event in China and many parts of Asia. It is gaining more and more popularity in western countries too. It comes at a time of year when a flash of colour and excitement is much needed to bring us all out of the gloom of Winter. Our celebrations in Inverness definitely did just that. Our troupe is forged from the bond of three separate Yee’s Hung Ga schools that are spread across the North East of Scotland. All three schools descended upon Inverness on the 25th of January to celebrate the Year of the Rat. Our lions performed displays across the city centre. We also performed around 50 traditional ‘Choi Chang’ blessings at retail and business premises. It was a very tiring day for all the students who took part but a hugely successful and enjoyable experience for everyone. You can find out more in our article:
Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations 2020
We have already announced next years dates. You can find our Facebook event page for it here:
Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations 2021
Hung
Our sale has now ended. We hope that you managed to grab a bargain while our prices were so low. There are still a few bargains in our Fu-kit Store. Just have a wee browse.
Training Aids
Find our liniments and care kits here.
Classes
Our classes at Yee’s Hung Ga are always open to new students. If you are interested in attending a class, all you need to do is turn up and try your best. We’ll take care of the rest. For more information on starting, see our webpage: How Do I Join? The best classes to start with are as follows:
Kids Class every Monday evening at 6.15pm. If your child is between the ages of 5 and 8, this is the right one for them.
Older Kids class every Thursday at 6.15pm. This is for older kids between the ages of 8 and 13.
Big kids Tuesdays at 7pm. This is for “adults” basically anyone over 13.
Come along and try out a class for free and see how you get on. If it’s not for you, no problem. You don’t need to sign up for regular classes or fill out forms or give us your bank details or any of that stuff. If you like the class, come back for more. If you want to learn, then we want to teach you.
We also have regular classes on Mondays at 7pm for Techniques, drills & applications this is where you learn to develop your skills. Tuesdays at 6.15pm is our Lion Dance class. If you have seen us perform and would like to get involved, come to this class. Thursdays at 7pm is our Traditional Training & Sparring Sessions. It is recommended that you have regularly attended a few classes before you attempt to spar, however the traditional training is open to all students.
We also have private tuition classes available. This week we have slots available all day on Tuesday and also on some evenings. For these, you can easily book and pay for them with our calendar below. Simply select a day and time that suits you best, pop your details in the form and then you’ll be taken to PayPal where you can securely pay for your booking, even if you dont have a PayPal account.
If you would like to discuss any requirements, intentions or ambitions. Please feel free to email us directly.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Yee’s Hung Ga in Forres
A new branch of Yee’s Hung Ga will open this Friday in Forres. Sifu Hepple is excited to announce the first classes to begin in his hometown of Forres will commence on Friday the 7th of February. There will be two classes every Friday evening starting at 7pm in the swimming pool gym.
The first class from 7-8pm is for 6-12 years old. It is £4 per session.
The 2nd class from 8-9pm is for adults. This is £5 per session.
All are welcome to attend. No experience is necessary. No special equipment, no sign ups, no bank details. Just turn up and we’ll take it from there.
If you are feeling anxious about attending your first class and not sure what to expect. Have a look at our page: How Do I Join? You will find lots of information and it may set your mind at ease.
Coming soon…
Highland School of Qigong
We shall soon be releasing our Winter Qigong Routine notes. This will accompany the routine we developed last year and the workshop which we held in our school. The notes give further information about each exercise and about Qigong practice in general. Don’t miss out, sign up to our email alerts below.
Seminars
We are currently developing a seminar which will be open to anyone interested in Hung Ga. Our seminar will cover techniques, stances & drills for some signature Hung Ga applications. It will be an ideal opportunity to find out, first hand, about the martial art of Hung Ga. Make sure that you are signed up to our email alerts to be the first to find out about this exciting opportunity.
Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations 2020
Our Spring Festival/birthday celebrations for Inverness has now been and gone. The dust has, just about, settled and our students have returned to their regular practice routine. We had a real blast with our lion and dragon dance parade and, if you came to see us, we hope that you did too. We performed displays at various locations across the city centre including Jimmy Chung’s Restaurant, The Eastgate Centre, The Victorian Market, Blacks Outdoor Retailers and outside our very own premises on Inverness High Street. We are honoured to have taken part in the blessing of so many stores around Inverness. It was quite a large undertaking but, with the help of our other schools across the North East from Ellon and Peterhead, we were able to complete around 50 blessings. This is sure to clear the city of evil spirits, at least until next year when ‘Nian’ is set to return for the ‘Year of the Ox’. These blessings are traditional “Choi Chang,” blessings. You can read more about them in our article about Chinese Lion Dance. The Spring Festival lasts for about two weeks so there will still be many more celebrations besides our own. You can check out photos and videos of our parade, blessings and performances on our Facebook and Instagram pages. Please feel free to tag us in your own posts, so we can see them all, with the tags #yhginverness #yeeshungga or #invernesscny20 You can also see many other performances and demonstrations from our Lion & Dragon Dance Team throughout the year. You can even book us for your own celebration, wedding or event.
We also have a Facebook Event Page for our 2021 celebrations. Feel free to like and share this to help us spread the word for next year.
Here are a few photos from our Year of the Rat Celebrations on Saturday the 25th of January 2020. 恭喜发财 (Gung Hei Fa Choy)
Chinese Lion Dance
Chinese lion dance is a tradition which is at least 1000 years old. It is a fun, colourful way to bring a party atmosphere to any happy occasion. Weddings, festivals, parties, blessings, shop openings and, of course, Chinese New Year. Lion dance is huge in Asia and in many other parts of the world. As with most Chinese traditions, there are many myths, legends, symbology and folklore attached to these practices. We’ll take a look at the significance of the different lions and explore some of the hidden meanings behind them.
Chinese lion dances can be split into two main groups or styles, Northern and Southern. The Northern style is sometimes called Beijing style. It can be very acrobatic. They usually appear in pairs and have long, ruffled, shaggy orange and yellow hair. Dependant on whether the lion is male or female, it will have a red or green bow on the head. Male lions have a red bow and the female has a green one.
The movements of Northern lions resemble those of a Pekingese or Fu Dog. Stunts and acrobatics such as lifts, jumps, walking on rattan poles, or balancing on giant balls are common. They sometimes appear as a family, with two large “adult” lions and a pair of small “young lions.”
Southern lion dance is usually performed as a ceremony or blessing. The ceremonies are performed to bring luck and good fortune. The Southern lions are decorated in many different colours and they have a very uniquely shaped head. There is a mirror on the forehead and a horn above it in the center. The performers animate the lion by flashing the large eyes and flapping the ears. The mouth also opens and closes.
Southern lion dance is also known as Cantonese style. There are two main groups within the Cantonese style. Fat San (Buddha Mountain) and Hok San (Crane Mountain). There are other groups too, such as Fat-Hok (a fusion of Fat San and Hok San), and the Green Lion (Qingl Shil – popular with the Fukien/Hokkien and Taiwanese).
Fat San is common amongst many Kung Fu schools. The movements are very powerful and require considerable strength. The lion represents each individual school and demonstrates a lot of the stances and footwork involved. It also shows how strong the students are. When performing, the most senior students are therefore chosen to represent their school with the lion. It is a great honour for students to be given this privilege.
The Hok San style combines a Southern lion head with Northern lion movements. Hok San focuses on life-like, realistic movements, and acrobatic stunts. The tail is shorter on this type of lion. Many lion dance troupes that perform pole (jong) jumping, use this type of lion. You will often see Hok San lion dances using three different coloured lions. A black, a yellow and white lion. The black lion is the youngest of the three. The movements of this lion are performed fast, like a young child with lots of energy. The yellow lion is the middle child, it’s movements are energetic and lively. The white lion is the oldest. You may see many other colours too. A red lion is common at weddings because the colour is considered to be lucky. The red lion also symbolises courage and strength. The green lion, however, represents friendship.
There are also three lions which represent three brothers in arms from the classic, “Romance of the Three Kingdoms.” The characters are Liu Bei, Guan Gong and Zhang Fei. Together they swore a blood oath to restore the Han dynasty. You can read more about Guan Gong and this classical Chinese novel in our article, “Who’s the guy with the big sword thingy!”
The Liu Bei lion is the eldest of the three brothers. Yellow is the main colour of his face with a white beard and fur. The imperial yellow colour is significant because it shows that he became the first emperor of the Shu-Han Kingdom. The white beard and fur shows that he was very wise. He has a multicolored tail with a white underside, representing the five elements. He also has three coins on his collar, to show that he is the eldest. The Liu Bei lion is used by kung fu schools or organisations to show that they are well established. He is also known as Rui Shi or ‘Auspicious Lion’.
The Guan Gong lion has red as the main colour of his face and a long black beard. His tail is red and black coloured with a white underside and white trim. He has two coins in his collar and is referred to as the second brother. He is also known as Xing Shi meaning ‘Awakened Lion’.
The Zhang Fei lion has a black coloured face with a short black beard. His tail is black and white, also with a white underside and white trim. He has bells attached to his body too. He has a single coin on his collar, showing that he is the youngest brother. This Lion is known as Dou Shi or ‘Fighting Lion’. This is because Zhang Fei had a short temper and liked fighting. Kung fu schools that are just starting out or those wanting to make a challenge might use Zhang Fei.
Choi chang
Choi chang is a Chinese New Year tradition. Shopkeepers, restaurants and business owners attach a red envelope filled with money to a lettuce and hang it above the doorway of their premises. Kung fu schools visit the premises with their lions and perform the choi chang. The lions approach the lettuce inquisitively, with cat-like movements. They will jump up and eat the lettuce, keeping the money, and spitting out the chewed up lettuce leaves around the doorway. This brings good luck to the store during the forthcoming year. “Choi chang,” literally means picking the greens. It is seen as especially auspicious for the lettuce leaves to land on you. Sweeping the lettuce leaves up however, rather than picking them up, is seen as sweeping away the good luck and therefore unlucky.
Sometimes the lettuce is hung quite high, 15 to 20 feet. The prize in the envelopes of these lettuces can be quite considerable. Only the most skilled martial artists are able to obtain these lettuces, whilst dancing with a heavy lion head and in front of a watchful crowd. The higher the lettuce, the bigger the challenge and the greater the reward, in the red envelopes and from the crowd. Kung fu schools gain notoriety through this practice and therefore more students too.
Many kung fu schools would take part in the choi chang. Occasionally more than one school might approach the same lettuce. If this is the case, the lions must fight a duel to decide a winner. The battle that takes place is not a street fighting brawl but one that uses the lion’s movements to impress the crowd. The greater the style and finesse from the performers, the greater the audience’s praise. The lions with the highest praise and cheers wins the right to complete the choi chang. The reputation of the schools are at stake during these duels so the performers must act with the highest respect and decorum.
There are other types of challenges that a lion dance troupe may be confronted with instead of lettuces. Pineapples, bananas, oranges, pots, benches etc have all been used as barriers for the lion to overcome.
Our own new year celebrations in Inverness will begin on Saturday the 25th of January 2020. We start out at Jimmy Chungs restaurant at 1pm, then on to the Eastgate Centre for about 2pm. We then proceed to the Victorian Market for 4.30pm and finally back to Jimmy Chungs for about 5.30pm for a final dance and some food. We would love for you to come and enjoy our celebration so that we may continue to honour this wonderful festive experience year after year. As always, we value your feedback so don’t forget to tag us in your photos #yhginverness #invernesscny20. You can also email us and let us know what you thought.
19 Jan 20 News & Updates
This is our final week of preparation before our Chinese new year celebrations begin. Our latest article explains some of the traditions, myths and legends surrounding the two week Spring Festival. We also have new classes beginning in Forres and updated times and info for our regular classes too.
Chinese New Year 2020
We now have less than a week before the beginning of the Spring Festival, commonly known as Chinese New Year. The two week festival is a busy time for kung fu schools all over the world. Yee’s Hung Ga are no different. We perform traditional lion dance displays and blessings to bring good fortune for people, businesses and organisations. You can find out what plans we have in store, plus learn about myths, legends and a Chinese/Scottish culture fusion called, “Gung Haggis Fa Choi,” plus loads more in our latest article, “Chinese New Year 20 – Year of the Rat.”
You can follow our Chinese New Year Celebration Event to keep up to date with our own celebrations here in Inverness. Our Facebook page, “Yee’s North of Scotland Lion & Dragon Dance Team,” will also give you updates on all of our performances throughout the year.
Classes
In the North of Scotland, Yee’s Hung Ga has schools in the Highlands, Aberdeenshire and we are now excited to announce that we will be running classes in Morayshire too. From the 7th of February we will be be running two classes every Friday evening in Forres. There will be one class for kids aged between 8 and 12 at 7-8pm and also a class for ages 12 – adult from 8-9pm. All classes will be held in the boys gymnasium at Forres Swimming Pool. We have a page on this website just for Forres classes and we have also set up a Facebook page to share content. Please feel free to share either or both:
New members are always welcome to attend our classes in Inverness as well as Forres. Tuesday evenings at 7pm are the best classes to start off with. You can find out more information about joining on the, “How Do I Join?” page of this website.
Private tuition classes, for the week commencing 19th-25th January, can be booked and paid for online via this website. We currently have full availability on Monday 19th plus a few other evening timeslots. Use the following calendar to pick a day and see availability.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Highland School of Qigong
If you wish to book a private tuition slot for Qigong, you can also use the appointment calendar above to arrange a suitable time.
If you registered to receive our Winter Qigong Routine, this has been sent out. If you would still like to receive it, completely free, or it didn’t arrive in your inbox, you can still sign up to have it sent out to you with the link below:
The Winter Qigong Routine Workshop was also held on the 4th of January. Notes from this workshop will also be compiled and sent out shortly. This should aid practice and give you further information about the philosophy, theory and practice of our routine.
We will release our Spring Qigong Routine, mid to late February, so keep an eye out for more information regarding this. If you have signed up for our Winter Qigong Routine, you will automatically be sent the Spring Routine too.
We have set up a Facebook page specifically for all our Qigong information and events. Feel free to ‘like’ this page. Any shares are also appreciated:
Hung Sale
Despite all the Hints you dropped over Christmas, you STILL didn’t get the hoody that you really wanted. Don’t stress it! Our sale continues throughout January in our online shop. Pop in to see what bargains we still have available.
Coming Soon…
We have a lot to look forward to this year and a lot of practice to crack on with. We have already kicked the year off on the right foot with our Winter Qigong Routine Workshop. We are planning to introduce our Spring routine around the middle to late February. Keep an eye out for updates on this exciting, and completely free, qigong routine. If you’ve already signed up to our emails then it will be sent out to you automatically. If not, it’s easy to do, just enter your details below.
Chinese New Year 20 – Year of the Metal Rat.
Chinese New Year is celebrated by more than 20% of the world’s population. It’s the most important holiday across China and most of Asia. There are lots of festivities from people, businesses and organisations all over the world. Yee’s Hung Ga are no exception, we have organised a free Chinese New Year Celebration for Inverness, performing lion dance displays, parades and demonstrations. You can find a link to our Facebook Event Page here:
Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations Facebook Event Page
If you would like to get involved, promote your business or would like us to perform a lion dance, please email us directly. You can keep up to date with all our displays and demonstrations on our specially created Facebook page:
Yee’s North Of Scotland Lion & Dragon Dance Team.
The Chinese New Year of 2020 falls on January 25th (Saturday), and the festival will continue to February 8th, about 2 weeks in total. 2020 will be the Year of the Rat according to the Chinese zodiac. The Rat is the first of all the zodiac animals and represents the beginning of a new cycle. In Chinese culture, rats are seen as a sign of wealth and surplus. Because of their reproduction rate, married couples used to pray to them to bless them with children. People born in the Rat years are likable, charismatic and energetic.
In China, you’ll hear Chinese New Year being called chunjie (春节), or the Spring Festival. It can still be very wintry, but the holiday marks the end of the cold, short days and the beginning of the days getting longer. People welcome spring and all that comes with it: planting and harvests, new beginnings and fresh starts.
At Yee’s Hung Ga, we celebrate with lion and dragon dance parades. Yee’s displays in New York Chinatown are world renowned. Here, in Scotland, our displays gain ever increasing popularity and media coverage. We travel all over the North, performing at galas, highland games, weddings, festivals, special occasions and events throughout the year.
Lion dance displays play an important role in Chinese mythology. They represent joy and happiness and symbolise power, wisdom, and superiority. The lion dance is one of the most important traditions of the Spring Festival. They are performed with the accompaniment of percussion instruments such as drums, cymbals, and gongs, synchronised to the lion dance movements and actions. People traditionally used to perform lion dances to bring luck and to get rid of evil spirits. It is performed nowadays to symbolise prosperity and good luck, for instance at a shop opening, celebration or wedding. It is also a great way to create a festive atmosphere, bringing happy times and good memories.
There are many legends surrounding the customs and practices of the Spring Festival. According to one such legend, a monster called Nian (年) would appear every New Year’s Eve and terrorise the local people. Everyone would hide away in their homes from the creature. The legend tells of one boy who was brave enough to fight off Nian using firecrackers. The next day, people celebrated their survival by setting off even more firecrackers. That practice has become, forevermore, a crucial part of the Spring Festival.
In modern times we use firecrackers to make a lot of noise for celebrating and to welcome in the new year. It is customary to stay up on Chinese New Year’s Eve and set off firecrackers at midnight. In the morning, firecrackers are used again to welcome the new year and bring good luck. The most amount of fireworks are set off at this time, more than any other time of the year, anywhere in the world. Due to safety reasons and concerns for air pollution, many Chinese cities have banned fireworks. Over 500 cities also have restrictions in place too. Beijing banned fireworks for 13 years. The ban was lifted in 2006 due to public pressure. If you’re in China during this time, you’ll probably be able to hear and see the explosions for at least 3 nights (and it can go on for weeks).
Kung fu schools have kept the traditional lion dance alive over the years. Chinese new year is a big deal for most kung fu schools all over the world over. It is a chance to demonstrate the skills of the students and promote the school, raising awareness and interest. It is a great honour for students to be involved in these celebrations. It demonstrates a high level of commitment to the school and also that their skills are worthy of such displays. It is a great way to showcase the strong stances of the students from the school. Lion dance can be quite hard work. It requires considerable strength to carry and animate the lion heads for any length of time. At Yee’s Hung Ga, these traditions have been passed on to our students so that they may carry it on for future generations to enjoy.
The Spring Festival also coincides, roughly, with our birthday at Yee’s, Inverness. This will be the 8th year that YHGInverness has been open on Inverness High Street. In Chinese culture, the number 8 is regarded as the luckiest number. It’s pronunced ‘Ba’ in Chinese, similar to the word ‘Fa’, which means to be prosperous. It signifies prosperity, success and high social status. We hope that this means it will be a good year for us at Yee’s. 2020 is also the year of the rat. The rat is also particularly auspicious for businesses starting new ventures.
We celebrate our birthday and the Spring Festival together by organising the free Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations throughout the city centre, performing lion and dragon dance displays. The lions and dragons are often confused with each other. Both dance traditions date back well over a thousand years. Although neither creature existed in ancient China, both are celebrated as mythical, powerful, and auspicious, especially during Chinese New Year and other important events. The main difference between the two is the number of performers. A lion only has two, a head and a tail performer. A dragon is very long and can have 10 performers operating it. Some of the larger dragon parades can have many many more performers. It also looks like a dragon flying in the air. It is raised up on poles and the performers move the dragon around in spirals, usually above the heads of the audience. The lion performers move around on the ground, using stances based around their style of kung fu.
It should also be noted that the 25th of January is Rabbie Burns Night. Robert Burns was a famous Scottish poet who was born on this day in 1759. Burns Night, also known as a Burns Supper, is celebrated the world over. Rabbie Burns’s poems are very popular in China and have been ever since they were first published for a magazine in the 1920s.
“Gung Haggis Fat Choy” is also a thing! It is an event which began in Vancouver, Canada but has since gained popularity in other countries too. The phrase, “Gung Haggis Fat Choy,” is a fusion of Scottish and Chinese words. Haggis, being our national dish and ‘Gung Hei Fat Choy’ is a traditional Cantonese greeting used during Chinese New Year. The event, which began in 1998, is a celebration of both Burns Night and Chinese New Year which includes bagpipes and lion dances. We are certain that there will be plenty of both this year in the Highlands capital. We would love for you to come and enjoy our celebration so that we may continue to celebrate this wonderful festive experience year after year. As always, we value your feedback so don’t forget to tag us in your photos #yhginverness #invernesscny20. You can also email us and let us know what you thought.
News & Updates 12th Jan 2020
Happy new year! Welcome back to Yee’s Hung Ga and a whole new decade of training with us. A new year begins and some new opportunities come with it! Classes in Inverness have returned to normal after the festive period. We also have some exciting news about classes beginning in Forres. The News section of our website has been organized to find articles a little easier. Our Chinese New Year Celebrations are only 2 weeks away and we have a bumper day planned!
Classes
Classes in Inverness have already returned to our normal schedule. New members are always welcome to attend our classes. Tuesday evenings at 7pm are the best classes to start off with. You can find out more information about joining on the, “How Do I Join?” page of this website.
Private tuition classes, for the week commencing 12th-18th January, can be booked and paid for online via this website. We have full availability on Monday 13th and Tuesday 14th plus a few other evening timeslots. Use the following calendar to pick a day and see availability.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]In the North of Scotland, Yee’s Hung Ga has schools in the Highlands, Aberdeenshire and we are now excited to announce that we will be running classes in Morayshire too. From the 7th of February we will be be running two classes every Friday evening in Forres. There will be one class for kids aged between 8 and 12 at 7-8pm and also a class for ages 12 – adult from 8-9pm. All classes will be held in the boys gymnasium at Forres Swimming Pool. We have a page on this website just for Forres classes and we have also set up a Facebook page to share content. Please feel free to share either or both:
News Section
We have spent a bit of time over the festive holidays compiling all our news reports and featured articles. You can now find a list of them all at the top of the News section of this website. They have all been listed chronologically, with the most recent at the top of the list. We have also split the list into two sections. One for our informative articles and another for the news reports and school updates. Have a browse and let us know what you think. Some great reading to start off with is our “Horse Stance” article or if you’re looking for some motivation to get you going, try our article “Motivation: Hints, Tips and Good Practice.” If you are interested in our grading system and the levels you can expect to achieve at Yee’s Hung Ga, take a look at our article, “Do You Have Belts?”
Qigong
If you registered to receive our Winter Qigong Routine, this has been now been sent out. If you would still like to receive it, completely free, or it didn’t arrive in your inbox, you can still sign up to have it sent out to you with the link below:
The Winter Qigong Routine Workshop was also held on the 4th of January. Notes from this workshop will also be compiled and sent out shortly. This should aid practice and give you further information about the philosophy, theory and practice of our routine.
We will release our Spring Qigong Routine, mid to late February, so keep an eye out for more information regarding this. If you have signed up for our Winter Qigong Routine, you will automatically be sent the Spring Routine too.
We have set up a Facebook page specifically for all our Qigong information and events. Feel free to ‘like’ this page. Any shares are also appreciated:
Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations 2020
The Spring Festival, also know as Chinese New Year, is only two weeks away, literally just around the corner. Our celebrations for Inverness coincides with Yee’s Inverness’s 8th birthday. We have planned to celebrate this by performing lion dance and demonstrations across the city centre.
We start off at Jimmy Chungs Restaurant at 1pm, where we will perform a traditional blessing. We will also perform at the Eastgate Centre from 2pm and we will perform displays and blessings, starting in the food court and encompassing the entire shopping centre. Our next display is at The Victorian Market at 4.30pm where we will perform lion dance displays and blessings there too.
Check out our Facebook event page below. Please share it with your friends to help us spread the word:
Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations Event Page
Hung Sale
Despite all the Hints you dropped over Christmas, you STILL didn’t get the hoody that you really wanted. Don’t stress it! Our sale continues throughout January in our online shop. Pop in to see what bargains we still have available.
- Classes, Courses & Seminars11 products
- Hung Ga Kung Fu Classes5 products
- Qigong Classes & Courses6 products
- Uniforms9 products
- Training Aids5 products
- Accessories19 products
- Hoodies6 products
- T-shirts11 products
- Mens5 products
- Ladies5 products
- Tea & Mugs3 products
Coming Soon…
We have a lot to look forward to this year and a lot of practice to crack on with. We have already kicked the year off on the right foot with our Winter Qigong Routine Workshop. We are planning to introduce our Spring routine around the middle to late February. Keep an eye out for updates on this exciting, and completely free, qigong routine. If you’ve already signed up to our emails then it will be sent out to you automatically. If not, it’s easy to do, just enter your details below.
We will also be hosting a kung fu workshop which will be open to the public as well as regular Yee’s students. If you are interested in martial arts and would like a taster of what the Hung style of kung fu is all about, be sure to subscribe to our emails to ensure that you don’t miss out.
Article Contents
The following list of contents, link to all the articles and news updates of this website. We have listed them all in chronological order with the latest at the top. It is also split into two sections; one for the articles and informative pieces, at the top, and another section for regular news updates on school information. This will be updated regularly when articles and news reports are published.
Articles
Great Grandmaster Frank Yee Visits Scotland
COVID-19 Update ☆Project ‘Yard Shark’☆
Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations 2020
Chinese New Year 20 – Year of the rat.
World Tai Chi & Qigong Day 2017
Motivation: Hints, Tips & Good Practice
Who’s The Guy With The Big Sword Thingy?!
World Tai Chi & Qigong Day 2015
Student Spotlight Jenny Thomas
Hung Kuen – The Great Fist of Southern China
Sifu Hepple Tested By Grand Master Frank Yee
News & Updates
Winter Qigong Routine Workshop
Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee Visits Aberdeen
Chinese New Year Demonstrations & Seminars 2013
Winter Qigong Workshop, Saturday 4th January 2020, 3pm.
Here in Inverness, Winter has arrived. Freezing temperatures, short daylight hours, the stress of Christmas, parties on every corner. It can all take its toll on your mind and body. Luckily our Winter Qigong Routine has also arrived in time to help you relax and refocus. Refresh your mind and body with our qigong routine. We have designed it especially for this time of year.
If you haven’t signed up for our FREE qigong routine yet, simply complete the following form and we will send it to you.
Inside our Winter Qigong Routine email you will find an introduction to the routine, the routine itself with YouTube links to every exercise, a YouTube link to the whole playlist of every exercise and also a description of the physiological effects of the routine on the body. Every YouTube video has a brief description of how to complete each exercise, as well as a description of its purpose and benefits. All this information is completely FREE!! If you are interested in learning about qigong, this information is invaluable.
As well as our FREE qigong routine, we have also set up a workshop to compliment it. In this workshop we will practice the whole routine. It will be an ideal opportunity to ask any questions that you might have, or may have arisen from your practice of the routine. We will discuss the main theories and philosophies behind the routine, the organs and channels involved in each exercise and how they are put together to benefit the entire system in a holistic manner. This workshop will take place on the 4th of January 2020. Ideal to set off the new decade on the right foot. You can keep up to date with this event on our Facebook event page:
Highland Scool of Qigong, Winter Qigong Routine Workshop Facebook Event Page
The workshop costs £15. (£10 for Yee’s students) You wont need any special equipment. Just some comfortable clothing and shoes. If you would like to make notes, bring a notepad and pen with you, perhaps a bottle of water too. Filming is prohibited, however if you wish to take photographs, this is fine. You can buy tickets to this workshop on our website. Ideal for a last minute Christmas present:
Winter Qigong Routine Workshop Tickets
We would LOVE to see you practicing our routine! Follow us @yhginverness and use hashtags #YHGInverness and #HSQInverness to show us your qigong practice.
Our newsletter is still in its infancy! We could use your help getting the word out. If you know someone who would enjoy hearing from us, please forward them this email and share on your social media.
Festive Special News & Updates
Welcome to our final newsletter of 2019. Our Winter Qigong Routine has finally been sent out and we have set up a workshop to compliment it. Our Chinese New Year preparations continue. Only 5 more weeks to go! If you are looking for last minute gift ideas, we have got you covered, with tickets to our Winter Qigong Routine Workshop and Gift Certificates. Although too late for Christmas delivery, there’s plenty of bargains still to be had in our ‘Hung’ sale. Our public classes have now drawn to a close, however the new year beckons. It is a time for reflection and new beginnings. If getting fit and healthy, meeting new friends, getting out and off the settee, learning something new and interesting that could potentially help you in a tricky situation, is high on your agenda, read on to find out how to start your kung fu journey at Yee’s.
Winter Qigong Routine
Here in Inverness, Winter has arrived. Freezing temperatures, short daylight hours, the stress of Christmas, parties on every corner. It can all take its toll on your mind and body. Luckily our Winter Qigong Routine has also arrived in time to help you relax and refocus. Refresh your mind and body with our qigong routine. We have designed it especially for this time of year.
If you haven’t signed up for our FREE qigong routine yet, simply complete the following form and we will send it to you.
Inside our Winter Qigong Routine email you will find an introduction to the routine, the routine itself with YouTube links to every exercise, a YouTube link to the whole playlist of every exercise and also a description of the physiological effects of the routine on the body. Every YouTube video has a brief description of how to complete each exercise, as well as a description of its purpose and benefits. All this information is completely FREE!! If you are interested in learning about qigong, this information is invaluable.
As well as our FREE qigong routine, we have also set up a workshop to compliment it. In this workshop we will practice the whole routine. It will be an ideal opportunity to ask any questions that you might have, or may have arisen from your practice of the routine. We will discuss the main theories and philosophies behind the routine, the organs and channels involved in each exercise and how they are put together to benefit the entire system in a holistic manner. This workshop will take place on the 4th of January 2020. Ideal to set off the new decade on the right foot. You can keep up to date with this event on our Facebook event page:
Highland Scool of Qigong, Winter Qigong Routine Workshop Facebook Event Page
The workshop costs £15. (£10 for Yee’s students) You wont need any special equipment. Just some comfortable clothing and shoes. If you would like to make notes, bring a notepad and pen with you, perhaps a bottle of water too. Filming is prohibited, however if you wish to take photographs, this is fine. You can buy tickets to this workshop on our website. Ideal for a last minute Christmas present:
Winter Qigong Routine Workshop Tickets
We would LOVE to see you practicing our routine! Follow us @yhginverness and use hashtags #YHGInverness and #HSQInverness to show us your qigong practice.
Our newsletter is still in its infancy! We could use your help getting the word out. If you know someone who would enjoy hearing from us, please forward them this email and share on your social media.
Spring Festival/ Chinese New Year 2020
Another event that is fast approaching is the Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations. There are many practices on Chinese New Year that are surrounded by legends. According to one such legend, a monster called Nian (年) would come about every New Year’s Eve and terrorise everyone. People would hide away in their homes from the creature. The legend tells of one boy who was brave enough to fight off Nian using firecrackers. The next day, people celebrated their survival by setting off even more firecrackers. That practice has become, forevermore, a crucial part of the Spring Festival.
In modern times we use firecrackers to make a lot of noise for celebrating and to welcome in the new year. People stay up on Chinese New Year’s Eve and set off firecrackers at midnight. In the morning, firecrackers are used again to welcome the new year and good luck. The most amount of fireworks are set off at this time, more than any other time of the year, anywhere in the world. Due to safety reasons and concerns for air pollution, many Chinese cities have banned fireworks. Over 500 cities also have restrictions in place too. Beijing banned fireworks for 13 years. The ban was lifted in 2006 due to public pressure. If you’re in China during this time, you’ll probably be able to hear and see the explosions for at least 3 nights (and it can go on for weeks).
While we might not have firecrackers with us, we will certainly make a lot of noise at the Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations. Our lions and dragon will be performing demonstrations across the city. You can find out more information and keep up to date with times and locations on our Facebook event page below:
Inverness Chinese New Year Celebration 2020
Chinese New Year Gala Show Aberdeen
Chinese New Year Gala Show Inverurie
Our Lion & Dragon Dance Team will also be performing at gala shows in Aberdeen and Inverurie. The Yee’s North of Scotland Lion & Dragon Dance Team consists of three Yee’s Hung Ga schools that are spread across the North of Scotland. The chief instructors from all three schools are originally kung fu brothers from the same Yee’s school in Aberdeen. This means that we all have the same Sifu, Bruce Clark. We all share the common bond of Hung Ga kung fu and we have all pledged to spread our art, in all its various forms, as best that we can. Lion dance performances play an important roll in spreading our art. We are always looking for keen students who are interested in what we do. You can contact the other two branches below:
Yee’s Hung Ga Ellon Branch
Yee’s Hung Ga Peterhead
Classes
Although our current classes have ended, they will resume on the Monday the 6th of January 2020. We wish all our students and supporters a very merry Christmas and a happy new year. If you are considering starting Hung Ga once our classes resume, we recommend readying our page, ‘How Do I Join?’ If you think it all sound good on paper but need that extra push to get you off the settee, have a read of our article, ‘Motivation: Hints, Tips & Good Practice’ It’s a lot easier and a lot less painful to begin than you think. Just turn up and enjoy the experience. See you in the new decade….
‘Hung’ Sale
If you are on the hunt for something very last minute to give to your kung fu obsessed loved one, but ran out of ideas. We have got you covered. We can email these to you and you can print them out to give in person.
How about tickets to our Winter Qigong Routine Workshop in January. Reasonably priced at only £15‐10.
Winter Qigong Routine Workshop Tickets
Or how about some gift certificates. Gift certificates can be redeemed for Qigong & Hung Ga classes, private tuition, uniforms and clothing, weapons, sparring kit and medicines. Multiple certificates may be purchased and/or redeemed at once. And we have price options from £20‐200.
YHGInverness Gift Certificates
If you’ve dropped all the hints in the world and you STILL didn’t get want you wanted for Christmas, don’t worry. Our sale is still running in our store. You can buy what you really wanted in our online shop. Everything is on sale (excluding uniforms, tickets and gift certificates) so you can finally justify buying it for yourself!
See you in the next decade. Have a great holiday and stay safe!
15th Dec News & Updates
This week should see the launch of our Winter Qigong Routine. We are preparing for Chinese New Year on January 25th. Our sale continues, there’s still time for it to arrive before Christmas, but hurry!! Our class times and online bookings are also updated for the week ahead.
Winter Qigong Routine
We are still working on our Winter Qigong Routine but we should hopefully deliver it to you this week, as promised. If you have subscribed to our email list you will receive the information via your email. If you haven’t signed up yet, now is the time, don’t miss out, do it now!
In this routine we have carefully chosen specific qigong exercises which will keep you fit and healthy. We have targeted specific organs of the body which, according to qigong theory and philosophy, accompany and compliment each other for this time of year.
We will build on the knowledge from our Autumn Qigong Routine, to give you further insight into the benefits and practices of qigong and qigong theory. You don’t need to have read our previous article but if you have then it should compliment the information from it. As always, we would love to hear your feedback. You can either email us directly or contact us via our social media channels.
Horse Stance
Our horse stance article is still available for you to read. It has an explanation of some of the benefits and a short video to demonstrate.
Give it a try and see for yourself. Why not challenge yourself over the festive holidays and see how long you can hold the stance for by the end of them.
Again, we are are always ready to listen to your feedback and we would love to hear from you. You can either email us directly or contact us through our social media channels.
Chinese New Year 2020
Although everywhere is winding down for the festive period and preparing for the holidays, YHGInverness are gearing up for one of the busiest times of year for us, the Spring Festival, also known as Chinese New Year.
The Spring Festival is not a public holiday in the UK, however more and more people are taking part in annual Spring Festival events that focus on many aspects of Chinese culture such as food, calligraphy, decorations, martial arts and parades.
The UK, as a whole, doesn’t have an exceptionally high percentage of Chinese or Asian people living here. Major cities such as London, Birmingham, Liverpool and Manchester have a concentration of Chinese people living there. London’s Chinatown is especially large and quite old. Their Spring Festival celebrations are famous for being very large and colourful.
The Spring Festival is based on the Chinese lunar calendar. The holiday lasts for around 15 days in China and many other Asian countries. The Festival itself is celebrated worldwide in many other countries too, including the UK. On the eve of the Spring Festival, families get together and reunite for a traditional dinner. The last day of the Spring Festival is known as the Lantern Festival. The skies are filled with brightly coloured, paper lanterns.
The Inverness Spring Festival Celebrations coincide with YHGInverness’s 8th birthday. Other schools from Peterhead and Ellon will be joining us in the celebrations. We will be performing parades and displays in the Eastgate Centre, the Victorian Market, the High Street and at individual retailers and restaurants around Inverness City centre. You can keep up to date with times and places on our Facebook event page. Please feel free to like and share the event page. We will also be performing at events in Aberdeen and Inverurie. You can see all event pages here:
Hung Sale
Our sale continues in the Fu-kit section of our website. Everything is on sale including dresses, skirts, leggings, shorts, t-shirts, polo shirts, hats, caps, teaware, beanbags, mugs, hoodies and much more! (Excludes uniforms) If you are thinking of buying a gift for your training buddies or loved ones who have a passion for Hung Ga, there is still time for it to arrive before Christmas if you buy today. We can only keep prices this low for a short time, so get in there quick. Visit our Fu-kit shop for all sale items.
Classes
Our last class for 2019 will be on Thursday 19th December we will then open our doors to a new decade on Monday the 6th of January.
With a new year and the start of a new decade on the horizon, many people start to look at what they would like to achieve. Physical health and fitness is usually high up on the agenda. Mental wellbeing is often not as high on the list but it is becoming more of a priority. At Yee’s you can combine training both your mind and your body together. Take a look at our Horse Stance article to see just one method that we use which incorporates your mind, body and spirit. Our forthcoming Winter Qigong Routine is another excellent way to improve your overall health and mental wellbeing. Make sure you have subscribed to our email list to receive this information in your inbox!
Beginning classes at Yee’s is really easy. Take a look at our “How Do I Start?” Page. In short, just come along to a Monday or Tuesday evening class at 7pm, it is that simple. No money needed. Just a bottle of water and some comfortable clothes to exercise in. If you need some inspiration to help you take that first step, read our “Motivation, Hints & Tips” article. Nobody can make that first move for you but we’ve tried to make it as easy and painless as possible for when you do. Once you do it, you’ll wonder why you didn’t do it years ago when we first told you!
If you prefer a more personal touch, you can arrange for a 1-1 training session with Sifu Hepple. An hours session will cover the basic warm-up and stance training exercises. It includes a section of your first form and basic principles of our training methods. For this coming week we have full availability on Tuesday 17th Dec. There are also a few 1-1 tuition slots left in the evenings too. Use the timetable below to book an available slot. You can even pay for it all online, that way there’s no backing out. Just turn up at the right time and we’ll take it from there.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Coming Soon
We have a few plans that we are working on at the moment. As mentioned earlier, we are putting the finishing touches to our Winter Qigong Routine to send out to all our email subscribers this week. We are also busy preparing for the Spring Festival next year on 25th of January. We also have some exciting workshops that we are hoping to bring to you in the new year. To avoid missing out on details of these exciting opportunities, make sure you enter your email below. If you would like to register your interest in any of these workshops, please email us directly.
8th Dec. News & Updates
We continue our preparations for the Chinese New Year, Spring Festival. Our sale continues on our Fu-kit online store. Our latest article is still available for you to read. There are updates to our private tuition and class schedule for this week. We also have more info on our future articles and workshops coming soon.
2020 Spring Festival, Chinese New Year.
We are busy preparing and practicing for the Inverness Chinese New Year Celebrations next month on the 25th of January. You can see our Facebook Event here. This year we have the continued support from The Eastgate Centre and The Victorian Market as well as independent retailers across the city centre.
The Spring Festival coincides, roughly, with our birthday at Yee’s, Inverness. This will be the 8th year that YHGInverness has been open on Inverness High Street. In Chinese culture, the number 8 is regarded as the luckiest number. It’s pronunced ‘Ba’ in Chinese, similar to the word ‘Fa’, which means to be prosperous. It signifies prosperity, success and high social status. We hope that this means it will be a good year for us at Yee’s. 2020 is also the year of the rat. The rat is also particularly auspicious for businesses starting new ventures.
We celebrate our birthday and the Spring Festival together by performing displays to the public. We perform lion dance, dragon dance and kung fu displays. The lions and dragons are often confused with each other. Both dance traditions date back well over a thousand years. Although neither creature existed in ancient China, both are celebrated as mythical, powerful, and auspicious, especially during Chinese New Year and other important events. The main difference between the two is the number of performers. A lion only has two, a head and a tail performer. A dragon is very long and can have 10 performers operating it. Some of the larger dragon parades can have many many more performers. It also looks like a dragon flying in the air. It is raised up on poles and the performers move the dragon around in spirals, usually above the heads of the audience. The lion performers move around on the ground, using stances based around their style of kung fu.
You can keep up to date and find out more information about our Spring Festival display on our Facebook event page. Please feel free to like and share the event.
Hung Sale
Our sale continues in the Fu-kit section of our website. Everything is on sale including dresses, skirts, leggings, shorts, t-shirts, polo shirts, hats, caps, teaware, beanbags, mugs, hoodies and much more! (Excludes uniforms) If you are thinking of buying a gift for your training buddies or loved ones who have a passion for Hung Ga, now is the time! We can only keep prices this low for a short time, so get in there quick. Visit our Fu-kit shop for all sale items.
Classes
Our classes run right through December but we take a short break over the festive period. Our last class will be on Thursday 19th December 2019 we will then open our doors to a new decade on Monday the 6th of January.
With a new year and start of a new decade on the horizon, many people start to look at what they would like to achieve. Physical health and fitness is usually high up on the agenda. Mental wellbeing is often not as high on the list but it is becoming more of a priority. At Yee’s you can combine training both your mind and your body together. Take a look at our Horse Stance article to see just one method that we use which incorporates your mind, body and spirit. Starting at Yee’s is really easy. Take a look at our “How Do I Start?” Page. In short, just come along to a Monday or Tuesday evening class at 7pm, it is that simple. No money needed. Just a bottle of water and some comfortable clothes to exercise in. If you need some inspiration to help you take that first step, read our “Motivation, Hints & Tips” article. Nobody can make that first move for you but once you do it, you’ll wonder why you didn’t do it years ago.
If you prefer a more personal touch, you can arrange for a 1-1 training session with Sifu Hepple. An hours session will cover the basic warm-up and stance training exercises. It includes a section of your first form and basic principles of our training methods. For this coming week there are a few private 1-1 tuition slots left. Use the timetable below to book an available slot. You can even pay for it all online, that way there’s no backing out. Just turn up at the right time and we’ll take it from there.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Coming Soon
We have a few plans that we are working on at the moment. As mentioned earlier, we are preparing for the Spring Festival next year on 25th of January. We also have some exciting workshops and a brand new Winter Qigong Routine that we are also preparing for. To avoid missing out on details of these exciting opportunities, make sure you enter your email below. If you would like to register your interest in any of these workshops, please email us directly.
1st Dec News & Updates
We have a new article available for you to read this week. We also have Black Friday deals throughout our Fu-kit store. There are updates to our private tuition and class schedule for this week. There’s also more info on our Chinese New Year celebrations in Inverness and future articles and workshops coming soon.
Horse Stance
If you’ve trained in any martial arts, it is likely that you have come across the horse stance, or a version of it. It is a basic stance used for training. Many who subscribe to modern training methods may question its relevance. The horse stance is good for training the legs but is it not better to do some leg weights or squats instead of spending time sitting in one position? The length of time training this stance, especially in Hung Ga, doesn’t warrant its usage in a fight, so why not spend the time training something which will be more beneficial?
Read our insightful article on the horse stance and find out more about this, often misunderstood, training method. Try it for yourself and let us know what you think. Our article has an explanation with a short instructional video. As always, we would love to hear your thoughts in the comments or on our social media channels. You can always email us your thoughts too.
Black Friday/Cyber Monday
Our sale has now been extended further still. From t-shirts to accessories and teaware. Now everything is on sale! (Except our uniforms as these are already as low a price as we can get them!) We have dresses, skirts, leggings, shorts, t-shirts, polo shirts, hats, caps, teaware, beanbags, mugs, hoodies and much more! If you are thinking of buying a gift for your training buddies or loved ones who have a passion for Hung Ga, now is the time! We can only keep prices this low for a short time, so best get in there quick. Visit our Fu-kit shop for all sale items.
Classes
You may have noticed that we have made a slight change to our website so it is now more mobile friendly to navigate. All our features are there as normal, just the pages should be a little easier to find on your mobile or tablet device. Let us know what you think.
We have private 1-1 tuition available all day on Monday 2nd Dec this week. You can book and pay for these by clicking on a day and timeslot on the following calendar.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Public classes are as per normal. Beginners are welcome to attend on Monday or Tuesday classes at 7pm. There are plenty spaces available in our kids classes for little ones to start too. We have 2 different age groups. 5-8 year olds are on Mondays at 6.15-7pm. We also have a class for 8-13 year olds on Thursday at 6.15-7pm. All are welcome to attend these classes. Sifu Hepple has an Enhanced Disclosure with the PVG Scheme, so you can rest at ease that your little ones are in safe hands. We have a lion dance class on Tuesdays at 6.15-7pm, before our main beginners class at 7pm. Why not come along and try both?
Chinese New Year
The Spring Festival, or Chinese New Year, is not too far away. Our students are busy preparing in our Lion Dance class. Lions play an important role in Chinese mythology, and represent joy and happiness. It symbolizes power, wisdom, and superiority. The lion dance is one of the most important traditions in the Spring Festival. They are performed with the accompaniment of percussion instruments such as drums, cymbals, and gongs, synchronised to the lion dance movements and actions. People traditionally used to perform lion dances to bring luck and to get rid of the evil spirits. It is performed nowadays to bring prosperity and good luck, for instance at a shop opening, celebration or wedding. It is also a great way to create a festive atmosphere, bringing happy times and good memories. Kung fu schools have kept the traditional lion dance alive over the years. It is a great way to showcase the strong stances of the students at the individual schools. Lion dance can be quite hard work. It requires considerable strength to carry and animate the lion heads for any length of time. At Yee’s Hung Ga, these traditions have been passed on to our students so that they may carry it on for future generations to enjoy. If you are interested in our Spring Festival displays or would like to contact us regarding a private display or demonstration. You can email us directly or ‘like’ our special Facebook group, Yee’s North Of Scotland Lion & Dragon Dance Team.
Coming Soon
We have a few plans that we are working on at the moment. As mentioned earlier, we are preparing for Spring Festival next year on 25th of January. We also have some exciting workshops and a brand new Winter Qigong Routine that we are also preparing for. To avoid missing out on details of these exciting opportunities, make sure you enter your email below. If you would like to register your interest in any of these workshops, please email us directly.
The Horse Stance
The Horse stance, feared by some, celebrated by others! What is it, what’s the point? Let’s take a look…
The horse stance (Ma Bu in Chinese), also known as the Four Point Great Stance (Sai Ping Dai Ma). It is not unique to Hung Ga, by any means, however it is of particular importance to practitioners of the Hung style. It is a basic stance for training the foundation. The foundation is the fundamental elements that support the three pillars. The fundamental elements being the strong body, including the bones, muscles ligaments, fascia and tendons. Ma Bu lowers the centre of gravity which helps the practitioner have a stable base. Practicing Ma Bu improves the structure of the body and the body’s alignment. Holding the stance can increase the stamina and determination of the practitioner, far beyond what they ever thought possible. With the correct posture, one can then focus on the breath. Having a regulated slow, deep breathing cycle has many calming benefits. It has been proven to reduce the heart rate and relax the body. With the relaxed, yet stable structure, one can then improve further with the circulation of fluids and the transportation of oxygen to the vital organs and the efficient removal of toxins, improving performance. With regular practice, the body can then heighten its performance further with the circulation of vital energy or Qi. Circulating qi around the body can have a huge benefit to physical, emotional and mental wellbeing, as well as increasing longevity, boosting energy levels and creating a barrier against diseases. This encompasses the three pillars we mentioned earlier. They are the body, the mind and the spirit. The physical body is trained by using the mind to focus and hold the static posture for a period of time. When the mind and body are synchronized in this way, over time, the spirit can elevated to higher levels.
Standing in Ma Bu takes time. It is hard. It is not the kind of practice for someone who is looking for quick results. At Yee’s, students train Ma Bu, it is a requirement for their gradings. As students advance through the system to higher levels, they must have a bigger and bigger foundation. They therefore need to train Ma Bu for longer periods of time. This is not just to pass a test but also to build the three pillars and to protect themselves from harm. This can be the downfall for many students who neglect to train Ma Bu. As students progress through he Hung Ga system, they learn more and more forms and techniques. Training Ma Bu often takes a back seat in favour of the other types of training. It can often be overlooked as it is so simple. Because it is simple, that doesn’t mean that it is easy. In fact it can be very difficult to maintain the stance for a long period of time. This is the nature of kung fu however, hard work and perseverance to achieve results. In today’s fast paced world, there are a select few people who wish to take this path. Most people try to take shortcuts or look for easier methods. For many practitioners the Ma Bu is a love/hate relationship. To succeed, you must enjoy the challenge and you must persevere through hardship.
Are you ready to step up to the challenge? Think you can master the Ma Bu? Do you want to rise to the levels of previous kung fu masters throughout history? Good. Let your training begin….
• Stand with your feet together. Hands by your sides.
• Lift your arms up in front of you, palms up, and take a nice deep breath.
• Once you have breathed in, make fists and place them at the chamber (the groove above the hip and below the bottom rib) as you breathe out.
• Pivot on your heels and turn your toes out at an angle, creating a V shape. Pivot on the ball of the feet and turn the heels out. Pivot on the heels again to turn the toes outwards and then once more so that the toes are now pointing forward. Your feet should be fairly wide apart. Roughly the length of your lower leg.
• Next, bend the knees and ‘sit’. Push your knees out so that they are above the feet. Keep your back straight and head up, with your fists in the chamber, elbows squeezed towards each other. The thighs should be almost parallel with the ground, at a slight angle. You can use a mirror to check your posture.
• Focus on your breathing. Place your tongue on the roof of your mouth and breathe through the nose. Take long, slow, deep breathes. Aim for 4-5 complete breathes in and out per minute.
• Great job. You’re now in the Ma Bu. You are practising an art which every Hung Ga master before you has also practiced, for centuries.
• Comfortable?
• Time how long you can maintain this stance for, without getting up. Every time you practice, try to beat your best time, even if it’s just a few seconds.
How did you get on? How long did you manage before you had to get up? Let us know in the comments below. Send us an email or give us a tinkle on our social media channels.
If you like this article and would like to see more, subscribe to our email list below.
24th Nov News & Updates
This week we’re preparing for a few future articles and events. We have some exciting workshops, Chinese new year and a Winter Qigong Routine all in the pipeline for students and the general public to take part in. We have extended our sale on the Fu-kit section of our website to include all t-shirts and now all accessories, including tea paraphernalia, beanies & hat, mugs, beanbag chairs and our famous dit da jow is now almost half price. There are also updates to our private tuition & class schedule for the week ahead.
Hung Sale Extended Further
Our t-shirt sale has been extended even further. We’ve added all our accessories, including all beanies, hats, mugs & beanbag chairs. Even all our tea paraphernalia and famous dit da jow is included. You can browse all sale items on the Fu-kit section of our website. We can ship worldwide, making ideal gift ideas for kung fu martial artists, wherever they might be, at amazing prices!
Chinese New Year
One of the biggest events in the Chinese calendar is the Spring Festival, commonly known as Chinese new year. It is the longest holiday of the year. The national holiday begins on the first of the Lunar Calendar and lasts until the 15th of the first month. In 2020, the Spring Festival begins on January 25th and ends February 8th. All stores are closed during the first five days, with some not opening until the very end. Throughout the festival there are specific activities and traditions for each day which vary between regions. We’ll update you on some of these traditions as we get closer to the dates. The main day is on January 25th, which is the 1st day of the lunar calendar. It is a day for greetings and blessings. A day spent celebrating. There is an ancient Chinese practice where the weather, stars and moon are analyzed to predict the fortunes of the year. It is called zhàn suì (占岁). On this day it is forbidden to sweep or clean. It is symbolic of sweeping away the good fortune that the new year has brought in. Similarly, when the lion dancers ‘eat the green’, the leaves of the lettuce are strewn by the lion’s mouth, spreading good fortune. It is seen to be especially auspicious if the leaves land on you. Sweeping the leaves away, is seen to be sweeping away the good luck, so one must pick the leaves up carefully to dispose of them. To find out more about our plans for the 2020 Spring Festival or to book a lion dance for yourself or place of work, you can follow our special Facebook page: Yee’s North of Scotland Lion & Dragon Dance Team. Or you can email us directly for information.
Autumn Qigong Routine
Our Autumn Qigong Routine is still available for you to try out and practice. Just follow the link and give it a go. Don’t forget to let us know what you thought. We are in the process of developing a Winter routine for you to practice too. This will further develop the theory from our Autumn Qigong Routine. If there is anything specific that you would like us to cover, just let us know, send us an email or message us on our social media channels.
Classes
Private 1-1 tuition this week is available all day on Monday the 25th. We also have some evening slots available too. Just check the following calendar for available times on specific days.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Our public classes will be running regularly, right up until Christmas. If you are looking to join our classes, or just want to see what it’s like to train at Yee’s, you don’t need to be super fit or have loads of energy and stamina. These are some of the benefits that you gain from training. If you fancy joining us, it’s really easy and your first class won’t cost you a penny! Have a read of our How Do I Join? article. If you are thinking of joining but still not sure and would like to motivate yourself to make it off the couch, have a look at our Motivation Hints and Tips article. Whatever your reason for training, whether it’s to learn how to defend yourself; gain confidence; get fit and healthy; to get out of the house more and meet new people or you would like to learn something new, anytime is a good time to start. Right now is a great time to start though. The sooner you start, the sooner you receive the benefits.
Coming Soon….
We have a few plans that we are working on at the moment. As mentioned earlier, we have over 2 weeks of preparations for Chinese new year to get ready. We also have some exciting workshops and a brand new Winter Qigong Routine that we are also preparing for. To avoid missing out on details of these exciting opportunities, make sure you enter your email below. If you would like to register your interest in any of these workshops, please email us directly.
17th Nov News & Updates
After our gradings and seminars last week in Peterhead, it’s back to the grindstone. Practicing, preparing and sharpening those skills. We are hoping to conduct future gradings again, next year in the Spring. Students who have reached the necessary standard can attempt to take on the challenge then. In the meantime, training resumes. We have a lot to prepare for too, with the festive season and Chinese new year just around the corner.
Chinese New Year 2020
The Chinese New Year of 2020 falls on January 25th (Saturday), and the festival will last to February 8th, about 15 days in total. 2020 will be the Year of the Rat according to the Chinese zodiac. The Rat is the first of all the zodiac animals and represents the beginning of a new day. In Chinese culture, rats are seen as a sign of wealth and surplus. Because of their reproduction rate, married couples also prayed to them for children. People born in the Rat years are likable, charismatic and energetic.
In China, you’ll hear it being called chunjie (春节), or the Spring Festival. It can still be very wintry, but the holiday marks the end of the coldest days. People welcome spring and what comes with it: planting and harvests, new beginnings and fresh starts.
At Yee’s Hung Ga, we celebrate with lion dance parades and martial arts displays. Yee’s displays in New York Chinatown are world renowned. Here, in Scotland, our displays gain ever increasing popularity and media coverage. We travel all over the north, performing at galas, highland games, weddings, festivals, special occasions and events. Chinese new year is a big deal for kung fu schools the world over. It is a chance to demonstrate the skills of the students and promote the school, raising awareness and interest. It is a great honour for kung fu students to be involved in these celebrations. It shows a high level of commitment to the school and also that their skills are worthy of such demonstrations.
Make sure you sign up for our email updates below to find out more about our plans over these festivities. If you wish to get involved or would like us to perform for you or your business, you can contact us through our social media channels or email us directly.
Hung T-shirt Sale Extended
Our ‘Furious Five’ t-shirt sale has been extended to now included all our t-shirts. This includes our embroidered polo shirts, now down to only £12.99, and all-over print t-shirts, such as our ‘Tiger Stripe All Over Print T-shirt,’ now only £21.99 or our ‘Ladies All Over Leopard Print Crop Tee,’ down to just £17.99.
You can also find our new kids uniform t-shirts and new adult uniform shirts on the Fu-kit section of our website under the uniform menu. They can also be purchased, in the school, from Sifu Hepple.
Autumn Qigong Routine
Our Autumn Qigong Routine has had a great response from people of all ages and backgrounds. It is a gentle, low impact, form of exercise which has a huge impact on physical and mental health & wellbeing. It is easy to follow and shouldn’t take too long to complete. Best of all, it’s completely free and won’t cost you a single penny. You don’t have to subscribe or give away any personal details. There’s a description of the exercises, a YouTube video to follow along to and a detailed description of the main benefits and theory behind the exercises. The background knowledge and theory is a great way for interested beginners to find out more about qigong and its benefits. It should also be an interesting read for more advanced practitioners who are looking to further their studies and personal development with qigong. We would like to introduce more of these practical guides and would love to hear your input. If there’s anything in particular that you are interested in or would like to find out more about, we would be delighted to hear your thoughts. You can message us on our social media sites or email us directly.
Classes
If you are interested in learning more about qigong or kung fu, or would like to get fit and healthy, perhaps drop a dress size before the christmas party, why not book a private tuition timeslot that suits your own schedule. You can book on the schedule planner below or on our homepage, Facebook or Instagram pages. This week we have availability all day on Monday 18th & 19th of November, as well as in the evenings on the other available days. Just check the calendar for specific times on certain days. Private tuition is a fantastic way to improve on your qigong & kung fu practice; whether it is learning new form, theory, meditation or a mix of everything. Whatever your goals, we can arrange a training plan to suit you.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Forthcoming seminars & Workshops
We are planning to host two practical seminar workshops at Yee’s Hung Ga in Inverness. These will be open to the public as well as Yee’s students. If there is enough interest, we may also host a Winter Qigong Routine Workshop. This will be similar to our Autumn qigong routine but specific for the winter season and the theory which goes along with it. The two planned workshops should take place before the festive period and they will be an exciting opportunity to learn the theory and practical application of the five elements. One workshop will be based on qigong and the other on kung fu applications. To avoid missing out on details of these exciting opportunities, make sure you enter your email below. If you would like to register your interest in any of these workshops, please email us directly.
10th Nov News & Updates
It has been a bumper week this week at YHGInverness. We have had students gradings in Peterhead with Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee. He also conducted some amazing seminars for junior and senior students. Our ‘Furious Five’ t-shirt sale continues. We have updated info for private tuition and public classes this week. Chinese New Year draws closer, it will soon be time to dust off our lions. There are uniform updates for our kids t-shirts and adult shirts.
Gradings & seminars in Peterhead
On the 5th of November, students from three of our North of Scotland branches congregated in Peterhead for gradings and seminars. Yee’s Hung Ga is an international association with branches all over the world. Inverness is one of three across the North of Scotland, along with Ellon and Peterhead. The Northern schools often collaborate together. We join forces for displays such as Belladrum and Chinese New Year, as well as fund raising events and also for gradings and seminars.
Our students train for a long time to prepare for their gradings. It can take a year or longer to achieve the standard necessary for the first grading. At Yee’s Hung Ga, we pride ourselves in the fact that we have a high standard set for the different levels within our system. Students need to train consistently with focus, passion and determination to succeed. For each grading every student is tested individually on form, knowledge, technical ability and foundation & endurance.
The form is a pattern, or routine, of fighting applications. It consists of various stances and methods to train the body and mind for combat. It creates awareness of surroundings, co-ordination, develops speed and different power applications, breath control, accuracy, endurance and confidence. It is the basic building blocks that we use to train ourselves with. Each student is asked to demonstrate the form for their level and is judged by a panel on how well it has been executed.
Knowledge is assessed by asking the students questions on the fighting applications contained within the forms. This can be tricky as there is often more than one application for any particular section within the form. Students are also asked question about philosophy, the history and development of the forms and the Hung Ga system, language, different ways to generate power and the students own personal development through their training. If the student is grading on one of the many weapons of the Hung Ga system, they are also asked about the weapon itself, its uses and limitations.
To understand how each student can use the knowledge and physical applications that they have learned practically, they are paired off with another student of the same level. They are then asked to spar with each other, using techniques of their level and ability. This is to gauge how well the students have grasped the basic principles, applications and concepts of their level.
The foundation and endurance of the students are really put to the test during the last part of the grading procedure. All students are asked to perform the basic stance, ‘sai ping dai ma,’ or ‘four point great stance.’ This stance is sometimes known as, ‘ma bu,’ or ‘horse stance.’ The length of time required to sit in this stance depends on the level the student is grading at. Jo Gow gradings, or our equivalent of black belt, can be half an hour or more. The stance can be difficult to master and the students must really focus to regulate their breathing. They must use their mind to overcome the physical limitations of the body, elevating the spirit above what is perceived as possible. This can only be done with regular and consistent practice. A break in practice, due to injury or personal circumstances, could set a student off course for years. We will discuss the ‘Horse stance’ in a future article and you can test your own endurance and stamina.
As we also have a pre-testing stage, it makes it a little easier on our students nerves when gradings come around. All our students did very well at handling their nerves though and this was reflected in their results.
Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee also conducted two seminars whilst he was visiting. One for junior and senior students and another for senior students only. The junior seminar explored the devastating elbow techniques of the Hung Ga System. The applications learned in this seminar utilised ‘inch power,’ to generate a lot of power in a small space and concentrated at the point of the elbow. This can be very explosive. It can cause serious injuries or knockout. These techniques are only shown to loyal students who have demonstrated the restraint necessary to use them if a life threatening situation arises and not to abuse the knowledge frivolously. The senior seminar was to review key points on Grand Master Tang Fong’s famous form ‘Ngauh Gwat Sin’ or ‘The Beef Bone Fan.’ This form was created by our Great Grandmaster Tang Fong. It utilizes close range concealed techniques, locks, and pressure point strikes to disable an opponent. There are many practical applications for this unique weapon.
Chinese New Year
Chinese new year is just around the corner and we have already begun our preparations for this busy time of year. Chinese New Year officially begins on January 25th 2020, and ends on February 4th. It will be the Year of the White, Metal Rat. Chinese New Year is celebrated by more than 20% of the world. It’s the most important holiday in China and to Chinese people. There are lots of festivities everywhere. Yee’s Hung Ga are no exception, we perform lion dance displays, parades and demonstrations. If you would like to get involved, promote your business or would like us to perform a lion dance, please email us directly or get in touch through our social media networks
Hung
All of our ‘Furious Five’ 5 animal t-shirts are now on sale in the Fu-kit section of our website. The prices have been discounted to give you some amazing deals such as our ‘Eye of the Tiger’ design. It comes in 14 different colours and is reduced from £20.50 down to £13.99.
You can also find our new kids uniform t-shirts and new adult uniform shirts on the Fu-kit section of our website under the uniform menu. They can also be purchased, in the school, from Sifu Hepple.
Autumn Qigong Routine
If you haven’t tried it already, we highly recommend that you give our Autumn Qigong Routine a shot. It is a gentle, low impact, form of exercise which has a huge impact on physical and mental health & wellbeing. It is easy to follow and shouldn’t take too long to complete. Best of all, it’s completely free and won’t cost you a single penny. You don’t have to subscribe or give away any personal details. There’s a description of the exercises, a YouTube video to follow along to and a detailed description of the main benefits and theory behind the exercises. The background knowledge and theory is a great way for interested beginners to find out more about qigong and its benefits. It should also be an interesting read for more advanced practitioners who are looking to further their studies and personal development with qigong.
If you’ve already tied out our routine, perhaps you’ve practiced it every day, we would really love to hear your feedback. Have you noticed any benefits? Did you enjoy the experience? Did you adapt the routine? You can email us your thoughts or leave your feedback in the comments section of our posts or on the YouTube video.
Classes
If you fancy taking on the challenge and think you have what it takes to pass our rigorous grading system or perhaps you are interested in learning more about qigong or kung fu? Why not book a private tuition timeslot that suits your own schedule. You can book on our homepage, Facebook or Instagram pages. There is also an appointment scheduled below. This week we have availability all day on Monday 11th & 12th of November, as well as in the evenings on the other available days. Just check the calendar for specific times on certain days. Private tuition is a fantastic way to improve on your qigong & kung fu practice; whether it is learning new form, theory, meditation or a mix of everything.
[CPABC_APPOINTMENT_CALENDAR]Forthcoming seminars & Workshops
We will be releasing details of two practical seminar workshops taking place at Yee’s Hung Ga in Inverness. These will be open to the public as well as Yee’s students. They will be an exciting opportunity to learn the theory and practical application of the five elements. One workshop will be based on qigong and the other on kung fu applications. To avoid missing out on details of these exciting opportunities, make sure you enter your email below.
3rd Nov News & Updates
We have some awesome deals for you in our shop this week. Our students are in the final stages of prep for their gradings in only a few days time. Our Autumn Qigong Routine is still available for you to try completely free. There’s updates for classes and private tuition schedules for the week ahead. We have new uniforms for students and there’s news on upcoming qigong and kung fu seminars.
Hung
Our October promotion for £5 off a hoody and beanie has sadly ended. There are some awesome new bargains in our store though. All of our ‘Furious Five’ 5 animal t-shirts are on sale in the Fu-kit section of our website. The prices have been discounted to give you some amazing deals such as our ‘Eye of the Tiger’ design. It comes in 14 different colours and is reduced from £20.50 down to £13.99.
Or if you are a fan of winged creatures, our ‘Crane in the Rain’ design has been reduced to the same price, from £18.50 down to £13.99.
There are lots of unique, exclusive designs to choose from. Just visit the Fu-kit section to grab yours while the prices are still as low as this! They would make some great gift ideas for the martial artist in your life or a well deserved treat for yourself!
Gradings & Seminars
This week our students have been training really hard for their upcoming gradings in Peterhead. The gradings and seminars are on Tuesday the 5th of November, so only a few days left of final preparation.
Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee will be overseeing the test procedure and leading the seminars. Sifu Pedro Yee is a 9th Dan Sifu of Hung Ga. He is the eighth Senior Yup Sut (In the Room) Disciple of Master Frank Yee (Yee Chee Wai), as well as one of the first Americans to be accepted into the Yee’s Family Lineage at the New York Chinatown’s Yee Fong Toy Association and their world headquarters. At present Sifu Cepero Yee teaches and practices Hung Ga Kung Fu and Tuina as well as conducting ongoing workshops in the United States and the UK. He is also a well published author on Hung Ga Kung Fu. His article, “Hung Ga from Canton to New York”, is permanently on display at the Huang Fei Hong (Wong Fei Hung) Museum, the ancestral home of the style, in Foshan, China. He is the first non- Asian person to appear on the Cover of the Hong Kong Magazine, “New Martial Hero” (Fall 2005), in its 35 year history. He is also featured on the cover along side his Sifu in “Kung Fu Tai Chi Magazine” (May/June Issue 2006).
There will be lots of photos from the day of the gradings and seminars. Look out for our future posts to find out how everyone got on at the gradings.
Autumn Qigong Routine
If you haven’t tried it already, we highly recommend that you try our Autumn Qigong Routine that we published last week. It is a gentle, low impact, form of exercise which has a huge impact on physical and mental health & wellbeing. It is easy to follow and shouldn’t take too long to complete. Best of all, it’s completely free and won’t cost you a single penny. You don’t have to subscribe or give away any personal details. There’s a description of the exercises, a video to follow along to and a detailed description of the main benefits and theory behind the exercises. The background knowledge and theory is a great way for interested beginners to find out more about qigong and its benefits. It should also be an interesting read for more advanced practitioners who are looking to further their studies and personal development with qigong.
If you’ve already tied out our routine, or perhaps you’ve practiced it every day, we would really love to hear your feedback. Have you noticed any benefits? Did you enjoy the experience? Did you adapt the routine? You can email us your thoughts or leave your feedback in the comments section of our posts or on the YouTube video.
Classes
If you are interested in learning more about qigong or kung fu. You can book a timeslot that suits you on our homepage, Facebook or Instagram pages. This week we have availability all day on Monday 4th November, as well as in the evenings on the other available days. Just check the calendar for specific times on certain days. Private tuition is a fantastic way to improve on your qigong & kung fu practice; whether it is learning new form, theory, meditation or a mix of everything.
Please note that due to gradings and seminars in Peterhead, there will be no public classes or private tuition on Tuesday 5th November.
Uniforms
We have new uniforms for kids. Please contact Sifu Hepple with your sizes. These will replace the black t-shirts for kids that are currently available on the website shop.
Our new uniform shirts are also available to purchase on the Fu-kit section of our website under the uniform menu. They can also be purchased, in the school, from Sifu Hepple.
Forthcoming seminars & Workshops
We will be releasing details of two practical seminar workshops taking place at Yee’s Hung Ga in Inverness. These will be open to the public as well as Yee’s students. They will be an exciting opportunity to learn the theory and practical application of the five elements. One workshop will be based on qigong and the other on kung fu applications. To avoid missing out on these exciting opportunities, make sure you enter your email below.
27th Oct News & Updates
This week we are excited to publish a brand new article which has been specially designed for you at this time of year. Our Free Autumn Qigong Routine has been tailored to give your immune system a boost during the colder months. A forthcoming series of seminar/workshops is currently in development for qigong and kung fu practitioners too. We also have updates on our private tuition and public classes. There’s news on new uniforms for kids. It’s also your last opportunity to benefit from our £5 off ‘Hung’ hoodies and beanies. Our students are also in the final preparation stages of their forthcoming gradings next week in Peterhead.
Autumn Qigong Routine
It’s almost the end of October. The clocks go back. The darker nights and the colder temperatures are creeping in. Are you prepared?Don’t worry, Yee’s Hung Ga in Inverness has got you covered…
Our latest article is a Free Qigong routine that we have specifically designed for this time of year. We’ve created a video for you to follow along to as well as a detailed description of the exercises, their benefits, the theory involved and what you can expect. Just follow the link below to go to the article and see how our Autumn Qigong Routine can help protect your body against all sorts of illnesses and diseases which are associated with this time of year.
https://www.yhginverness.com/2019/10/25/autumn-qigong-routine-to-boost-immunity/
If you enjoy this Qigong routine and would like to learn more, please let us know in the comments section below or send us an email. We would be delighted to create future posts similar to this. Make sure you also sign up to our email alerts below too. We have an exciting seminar/workshop, on the five elements, in the pipeline. If you like our Autumn Qigong Routine, and wish to develop your knowledge further, this will be a fantastic opportunity.
Classes
We also have private tuition classes available for qigong and kung fu. You can book a timeslot that suits you on our homepage, Facebook or Instagram pages. This week we have availability all day on Monday 28th and Tuesday 29th of October, as well as in the evenings on the other available days. Just check the calendar for specific times on certain days. Private tuition is a fantastic way to improve on your qigong & kung fu practice; whether it is learning new form, theory, meditation or a mix of everything.
Our evening classes run throughout the week so if you are looking for something to keep you occupied on the darker nights, lose weight for Christmas or just try something new, kung fu is an excellent choice. Not only will it keep you fit and healthy but you will also meet some great people, learn something interesting that could potentially save your life, or that of your loved ones. We also have kids classes on Mondays for ages 5-8 and on Thursdays ages 8-13.
Lion Dance
We even have a lion dance class on Tuesdays which is suitable for all ages. Our collective Northern schools (Inverness, Ellon & Peterhead) often collaborate together to perform all over Aberdeenshire, Moray and the Highlands. We have performed at weddings, festivals such as Belladrum, shop openings, galas, Highland games and Chinese new year celebrations. You can find out more about our collaborative events, or book us for your own event, on this seperate Facebook page: Yee’s North of Scotland Lion & Dragon Dance Team.
Uniforms
Our new uniform shirts are available to purchase on the Fu-kit section of our website under uniforms. They can also be purchased, in the school, from Sifu Hepple.
We have new kids uniforms that have also been ordered. These should hopefully arrive this week. Please contact Sifu Hepple with your sizes. These will replace the black t-shirts for kids that are currently available on the website shop.
Hung £5 Off Promotion
This is the last week to take advantage of our £5 off promotion in our online shop. Keep warm during the colder months ahead with £5 off any hoody and beanie together. Simply follow the link below then head to the Fu-Kit section of our website.
https://mailchi.mp/1389a6a4be6f/yeesautumnpromo
Forthcoming Seminar Workshops
Ensure that you sign up for our email alerts below to find out how our students get on at their gradings. They are training hard during this final week before their gradings on November the 5th. Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee is travelling to Scotland to conduct gradings and seminars for Yee’s students. This is a fantastic opportunity for all students to accelerate their learning to a whole new level. All students are encouraged to attend the seminars that are available, regardless as to whether they are being graded or not. It is an opportunity not to be missed.
We will also be releasing details of two practical seminar workshops taking place at Yee’s Hung Ga in Inverness. These will be open to the public as well as Yee’s students. They will be an exciting opportunity to learn the theory and practical application of the five elements. One workshop will be based on qigong and the other on kung fu applications. To avoid missing out on these exciting opportunities, make sure you enter your email below.
Autumn Qigong Routine to Boost Immunity
The change in seasons at this time of year also brings with it changes to the physical, chemical, biological and energetic systems of the body. As the hats and scarves are dusted off to protect you from the cold, it is also important to protect yourself in other ways too. This simple, easy to follow, qigong routine does exactly that. The seasonal change can effect the body in many ways. When the weather changes from Summer to Autumn, the Lungs are the first to sense the change. If they can’t adjust to the change properly, then you will be more susceptible to common diseases which can manifest as coughs and colds. The cooler temperatures can constrict the muscles and cause tension in the body. This can have a knock-on effect causing stagnation which, in turn, can cause aches and pains in joints. This can then pull your structure out of alignment causing further discomfort. Sciatic nerve pain is common at this time of year due to muscle contraction that puts pressure on the nerves around the hips, buttocks and thighs.
We have created this Autumn qigong workout specifically to boost your immune system and develop resistance to the ailments that are common at this time of year. The first three exercises help to loosen the joints, stretch the muscles and tendons and aid fluid transfer along the spine. The 4 main qigong exercises then build on the benefits of the previous exercise. The first opens the meridians and draws clean, fresh, Autumn energy into the body. It helps loosen joints around the lower back and hips. The second helps to mobilize any stagnation and further develops energy movement. The third draws on five element theory to work on the lung and large intestine channels which are synonymous with the autumnal season. It also boosts energy levels and the immune system. The fourth exercise cleanses these channels and balances energy throughout the body. At the end we smooth excess energy around the head, arms and torso, gently stimulate the kidney function and drive excess energy to the bone marrow, aiding blood cell reproduction. Lastly we ‘close the gate’ and centre ourselves at the end of the routine. You can follow along with the the video below. There is a more detailed description of the excersises underneath.
The following is a general guide to the exercises performed in the Autumn Qigong Routine. Practise is key. The exercises should be performed with the tongue on the roof of your mouth, and breathing through your nose with your lips closed. Pull down the diaphragm as you breathe in by expanding the tummy. It is best to follow the order of this set because they have been chosen to build upon the benefits of the previous and lead naturally to the next. Practise slowly and intentionally, bearing in mind the main purpose of each exercise.
Warm up
- Stand with feet a shoulder width apart. Relax shoulders, arms by sides and knees slightly bent. Lift arms to shoulder height and turn to look behind you, breathing in. Bring arms back to the start whilst breathing out. Do the same for the other side and repeat 12-24 times. (6-12 each side)
- Widen stance to roughly twice that of your shoulders. Place hands on waist or above knees. Keep head up and back straight. Squat down slowly, as far as you can without causing discomfort, breathing in and then rise back up again, breathing out. Repeat 6-12 times.
- Stand with your feet about a shoulder width apart. Raise palms up, above your head, as you breathe in. Lean to the side as you breathe out again. Breath in again as you return to the centre and out as you lean to the other side. Do the same as you bend forward at the waist and as you arch your back. Repeat 12 times on each side.
Main Practice
Always try and keep good posture and alignment during these exercises. Try to maintain concentration throughout and not let your mind wander. These exercises drive stagnant energy out, draw in clean, fresh energy, circulate and store the energy in the reservoirs and in the eight extra-ordinary channels, distribute the energy throughout your entire system and balance it in the centres. There is an explanation of how to complete the exercise and then a brief description of what the exercise does and it’s benefits.
Exercise one:
- Stand with your feet just wider than a shoulder width apart and hands by your sides.
- Inhale fully through the nose using your belly to breathe and raise your hands up above the head. Raise your heels off the floor as you stretch upwards.
- As you exhale, lower the heels to the floor then bend forward slowly until you are bent right over with your arms dangling in front.
- With your lungs now empty, inhale deeply as you raise your head up so you can look in front of you.
- Exhale and then lower your head back down again.
- Lower the hips first, inhale again and raise your body up to the original position.
- Repeat 6-12 times.
This exercise stimulates and balances energy flow within the body. It stretches and tones the spinal column, stimulating the production, flow and distribution of spinal fluids and secretions. It also massages and tones the kidneys, stimulates the adrenal and thymus glands. Flexion of the diaphragm enhances correctness of breath and purges carbon dioxide. Bending forward at the waist promotes good circulation and brings fresh oxygenated blood to the brain.
Exercise two:
- Stand with your feet about twice the width of your shoulders. Place your hands on your thighs or above the knee with the fingers pointing towards each other. Lean forward and support your upper weight with your arms.
- Inhale deeply through the nose, raise the head up and back, arch the back and stick the buttocks out as far as you can.
- As you breathe out, bring the head back down and tuck the buttocks in, arching the spine in the other direction, curving the spine as much as you comfortably can.
- Repeat 6-12 times.
This is an exercise from the Eight Pieces of Brocade set. Alternating the arching of the back aligns the vertebrae of the spine and helps to strengthen the muscles along it. It also stimulates the nerves along the spinal cord and stimulates the thymus and adrenal glands. The stresses of modern living and poor diet can cause chronic degenerative illnesses, this exercise is designed to draw out and expel excessive Fire energy through the lungs and energy gates. At the same time it stimulates the adrenal cortex, this releases hormones which can be used to cool the excessive Fire with Water energy. This increases immunity and resistance to disease. The deep breathing tones the diaphragm and increases the lung capacity to enable the intake of more oxygen.
Exercise three:
- Stand with your feet slightly wider than the shoulders. Make light, hollow fists with your hands.
- Breathe out as you sink down into a low squat, pushing your fists behind you, as if you are skiing.
- As you come back up in your stance, breathe in deeply.
- The interphalangeal (first) joint of your thumbs should gently strike just under the clavicle (collar) bone.
- Repeat 6-12 times.
This exercise is excellent for boosting your energy levels. As you sink into the squat position, it aids mobility around the hips, knees and ankles. This can loosen muscles causing sciatic pressure. The muscles in the legs are given a workout, acting as a pump to move blood and fluids. This can reduce stress on the heart and remove any stagnation or blockages throughout the body. Gently striking below the clavicle bone, with the thumb, activates and clears the lung meridian. The kidneys are toned, from the pumping action, balancing fluids and clearing the blood.
Exercise four:
- Stand in a wide stance, about twice the width of the shoulders. Begin with the right hand above the left, as if you are holding a ball in front of you.
- Twist your waist to the left hand side and push out with the right hand. Your left hand should slide to the left hip, with the palm up.
- Next, fold in the hand you pushed out, so again the interphalangeal joint of the thumb presses just under the clavicle bone. The opposite hand makes a wide sweeping arc from the hip to above the shoulder at the same time.
- Twist the waist to the right hand side and push out with the opposite hand. As you push out with one hand, the other draws diagonally across the body, back to the waist. When it passes the solar plexus, turn it over so the palm is facing up when it gets to the hip.
- Try to rotate the hips fully on each side and feel the stretch on the back leg.
- Repeat 12-24 times (6-12 times each side)
The final exercise of the main practice draws further on the Five Element Theory for this time of year. Those students familiar with our Ng Ying Qi-Gong (Five Animals) may recognise the similarities in this exercise with the first part of the ‘Leopard’ section of this Qi-Gong. As we mentioned earlier, the lungs are particularly sensitive at this time of year. We have purposefully chosen this exercise for its specific benefits. According to Five Element Theory, the element associated with the lungs (yin) and large intestine (yang) is metal. The animal associated with the metal philosophy is also leopard. The lungs take Qi into the body from the air and are responsible for the energy state of the body. Deep breathing is also a technique which can be used for leading Qi around the body. When you can regulate your breathing properly, you can generate a protective bubble of Qi around the body, similar to a shield. This is one of the main aims of this exercise. It balances the energies throughout the whole body, in particular the lung and large intestine, clearing out the meridians and replenishing with fresh, clear, Autumn Qi to revitalize and rejuvenate your body. This will boast your resilience as well as your immune system.
Cool Down
These movements are particular important to collect and store the energy that you have brought into the body, so that it does not dissipate so easily once you have finished. Headaches, dizziness, insomnia, irritability, restlessness and erratic behaviour can result from having too much energy lingering around the head and upper body. These exercises are designed to collect and store the energy in the centre of the lower abdomen and marrow of the legs.
- Place palm on top of forehead and sweep over the top, down the back and the neck and over the shoulder, collarbone and chest. Sweep with the other hand and alternate.
This sweeps excess energy from the head and neck and brings it back into circulation to settle in the lower energy centre. - Rub your palms together to charge them. Use one hand to sweep down the inside, then the outside of your other arm and then do the same on the opposite. Repeat 3-4 times. Charge your hands again and then sweep down the front of the torso and then the sides. Repeat 3-4 times
This brings excess energy back into circulation so that it can return to the lower energy centre. It also stimulates circulation and enhances the body’s energy field. - Charge your palms again and place them on the kidneys. Rub gently in a circular motion.
This draws energy into the kidneys and adrenal glands and condenses it there. It stimulates and boosts immunity. - Tap your legs up and down with the palms of your hands.
This drives energy into the meridians of the legs and also into the marrow of the leg bones. Marrow produces red and white blood cells. Fresh energy will help purify and stimulate the production of new cells. - Place one hand over the top of the other and place over the belly button. Gently rub in small circles.
This draws energy down to the lower energy centre for storage and also helps to create an awareness of this centre.
Have a go and see what you think of our Autumn Qigong Routine. If you have any questions or would like to discuss things further, you can leave a comment below or email us directly. If you wish to develop your understanding of qigong further, we also offer private tuition and public classes. Both can be live-streamed on Zoom so you can take part from anywhere around the world. You can find more info here:
-
Qigong Classes£5.00 – £30.00
If you like our video, please give it a thumbs up. 👍🏼You can subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell to get notifications of new videos. You can also find us on Facebook, Instagram, Google & Twitter. If you’re not really into the socials, you can still get notifications of our updates, news and articles by entering your email below.
20th Oct News & updates
As the end of October approaches, we also come closer to the change of the clocks, the darker nights and the colder temperatures. Don’t worry, Yee’s Hung Ga in Inverness has got you covered to make the seasonal change as pleasant as possible. We have evening classes to keep you occupied in the darker nights and clothing from our sister company ‘Hung’ to keep you warm. This week we will also be releasing our Autumn Qigong Routine to boost your immune system. It’s an easy to follow routine with some simple movements that will help to protect you from the elements, inside and out. To keep in the loop and to make sure that you don’t miss out, make sure that you subscribe to our email list below.
Testing and seminars
Thanks to Sifu Ian Rose from the Peterhead branch of Yee’s Hung Ga, our students have undergone the pre-testing stage of the forthcoming gradings with Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee at the beginning of November. On Saturday the 19th of October our students, who were put forward for the gradings, underwent the pretesting stage for the first time. We have added this stage to our testing procedure to ensure that the level of knowledge and practical ability is of the high standard that you would expect from Yee’s Hung Ga. A fresh pair of unbiased eyes can also see technical issues which will help students to progress further. It was a very insightful afternoon and a welcomed experience by the students taking part.
Hung £5 Off Promotion
To make it even easier to dress in style and keep warm during the colder months we have an ongoing £5 off promotion, during the month of October. Simply follow the link below to gain £5 off a hoodie and beanie combo on the Fu-Kit section of our website.
https://mailchi.mp/1389a6a4be6f/yeesautumnpromo
Forthcoming Seminar Workshops
Ensure that you sign up for our email alerts to find out how our students get on at their gradings. We will also be releasing details of two practical seminar workshops taking place at Yee’s Hung Ga in Inverness. These will be open to the public as well as Yee’s students. They will be an exciting opportunity to learn the theory and practical application of the five elements. One workshop will be based on qigong and the other on kung fu applications. To avoid missing out on these exciting opportunities, make sure you enter your email below.
13th Oct News & Updates
Gradings & Seminars
Our students have been busy preparing for the forthcoming grading tests with Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee next month. We have pre testing on Saturday the 19th, to ensure that everyone is ready and to relieve any anxious students of their abilities. In the meantime, lots of training and studying!
Mental Health Awareness
Mental Health Awareness Day was on Thursday 10th October. Practicing kung fu is an excellent way to improve your overall mental health, as well as your physical health, for many reasons. There have been many testimonies towards this fact, some of which are Yee’s students who have managed to turn their lives around due to the positive effects of Hung Ga kung fu. If you would like to know more about how Hung Ga can help you too, or would just like to talk to someone about the way you are feeling, please feel free to contact us at your nearest branch.
Classes & Tuition
This week there are private 1-1 tuition slots available all day on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. They are really easy to book from our website or Facebook and Instagram pages. You can pay directly on the website or we accept cash & card in the school. 1-1 tuition is a great way to boost your training needs, if preparing for gradings or just want to accelerate the pace at which you learn. Perhaps you’ve had a wee break from training and looking to get stuck back into Hung Ga, 1-1 tuition is an excellent way to get back up to speed.
All our public classes are still running throughout the October break. If you are interested in coming along to give it a go, theres no better time than now. We still have lots of spaces in our kids classes on Mondays and Thursdays too. These are lots of fun. They are only £4 and there’s a variety of different components to each class, so your kids won’t get bored. The class on Monday is for 5-8 year olds and Thursday’s class is for 8-13 year olds. You can drop them off, do some shopping and pick them up at 7pm or sit in and watch, if you prefer. We also have a mixed ages lion dance class on Tuesdays too.
Hung Promo
Our sister company ‘Hung‘ are running their £5 off hoody and beanie promotion until the end of October, so there is still some time to sign up. Just follow this link:
https://mailchi.mp/1389a6a4be6f/yeesautumnpromo
They have some great items in the Fu-kit section of our website, to keep you warm and cozy during the cold, chilly months ahead. They are continually updating with new designs and items to help you perform, as well as chill out, on a regular basis. This week they’ve released a selection of beanbag chairs, so you can relax in style. There’s also new Dragon Scale Capri Leggings for ladies and Athletic Long Shorts for men.
Coming soon….
Don’t forget that we have an Autumn qigong article coming soon. To make sure you don’t miss out, sign up to our mailing list below and we’ll deliver it straight to your inbox once we’ve finished it.
News and updates 6th Oct
This week we recieved shipment of our brand new student uniform shirts. They are made from a durable, yet breathable, cotton twill. There’s extra room under the arms to enable dynamic movement. We’ve designed the buttons on the front to be an interlocked loop system, which is the same as the black Sifu shirts. The shirts also have double frog button fastenings on the cuffs. These look great and give you a secure fitted feel around the wrist. They are available for students who have the trousers, sash and t-shirt already and can be purchased in the school, from Sifu, or in the Fu-Kit section of our website under ‘uniforms.’
We released our latest article this week too. The main focus of it is the Sun-Toi (or ancestral altar) which is a dominant feature within the training area of the school. If you haven’t read it already, it is highly recommended if you are interested in traditional martial arts. It is a rare insight into some of the traditions that are practiced. Some of these traditions have been observed over many generations and passed down from Sifu to student. We also have another article which will shortly be released. This is centred around qigong exercises to boost your immune system for the Autumn season. Be sure to sign up for our email alerts below to make sure that you don’t miss it.
There are private tuition time slots available all day on Monday and Tuesday this week. It’s easy to book private tuition classes and these are hugely beneficial if you wish to progress through the core curriculum at Yee’s Hung Ga. You can book and pay for them, all on the homepage of our website or on our Facebook and Instagram pages. You are also welcome to come along to our public classes. Your first class is free and the best one to start with is Tuesday evenings at 7pm. Our kids classes are on Mondays and Thursdays. Mondays for ages 5-8, starting at 6.15-7pm. Thursdays for ages 8-13 at the same time. Tuesdays from 6.15-7pm, is our mixed ages Lion Dance class, which anyone is more than welcome to attend.
Our sister company, “Hung,” are still running a £5 off promotion. You can redeem this when you buy a hoodie and a beanie together from the Fu-Kit section of our website. There are also some really cool beanbag chairs which have some fantastic designs that they’ve just released, perfect for your hard earned chill-time. You can find these under ‘accessories’ in the Fu-kit section.
The Sun-Toi (Ancestral Altar)
The Sun-Toi is the ancestral altar in the Mo-Kwoon (Kung Fu School). Kung fu martial artists bow to the Sun-Toi when we enter and leave the training space using the traditional ‘sun and moon fist.’ We light incense and place it in censers on the Sun-Toi. On special occasions we pour wine in the cups and put vegetables and/or meat on the Sun-Toi. It can be a small table or it could be the whole side of a wall. They can be ornately carved wooden masterpieces or a simple shelf-style structure.
Why do we bother? What is the point? Is it religious or specific to Chinese culture or just some bizarre, esoteric kung fu ritual? In this article we’ll answer these questions and address the necessity and value of the Sun-Toi in modern Chinese martial arts schools.
The Sun-Toi serves as a place that we can connect with the previous masters of the Hung Ga lineage. It is somewhere that we can show respect to our ancestors and keep their memory alive. We are thankful for the opportunity to practice an art form which they laid the foundation to. As practitioners, students, teachers and masters, we all hope that we will do our forefathers proud as we steer the art through modern times. We all share the common aim of making Hung Ga Kuen as relevant today, and in the future, as it was in the time of the people who passed it on to us.
The Sun-Toi is placed in a prominent position within the Mo-Kwoon, so it is visible as soon as one enters the training space. They are uniquely personal to each individual school. Even in branches of the same school, such as Yee’s, you may find many differences from school to school. Despite there being so many differences, almost every Sun-Toi has a few common items that you may find upon it, regardless of kung fu style. General Gwan (Gwan Di, Gwan Yu) is a frequent figure which you will not only see in traditional Mo-Kwoons but also in police stations, restaurants, casinos, shops and even some family homes. His figure symbolises loyalty, trust, honesty and respect. He was known for his martial arts excellence and loyalty to his sworn brother. His figure is usually placed at the top of the Sun-Toi, to show the greatest respect. The Gwan Dao (The Spring Autumn Great Knife) is a traditional weapon named after General Gwan. Whilst performing with the weapon, there are many gestures which represent General Gwan. For example you may see the practitioner galloping as if he is riding his horse or perhaps composing his long beard in preparation for battle. It is also common to see miniature weapons, such as the Gwan Dao, on a traditional Sun-Toi. You may also see other figurines such as ‘Shishi’ or ‘foo-dogs,’ which guard the physical structure of the kwoon as well as the people who are part of it.
Almost every Sun-Toi will also have at least one incense holder. You may see censers for every level of the Sun-Toi or in front of pictures of the ancestors. Normally the biggest censer is placed in front of the central General Gwan figure. Many of the Hung Ga ancestors are excellent roll models, especially in today’s fast paced lifestyle of excess. They lead heroic, righteous, noble lives. Wong Fei Hung is almost certainly one of the most familiar. Their example has set a very high standard for modern martial artists to follow. Smoke from the incense is meant to cleanse the air of toxins that cannot be seen. It symbolises the connection between the ancestral spirits and our lives in the modern day. By lighting the incense we invite the essence of their positive character to motivate us in the proceedings of the present day. The smoke carries the thoughts, prayers and aspirations of the practitioner to the ancestors, or whomever they may be thinking of. As such, lighting incense can be an art form in itself. Martial artists treat the incense very respectfully and carefully, as if it were the ancestors themselves. The number of incense sticks can vary depending upon the proceedings but a common number is three, or a multiple of three, such as nine. The incense is carefully lit and fanned gently with the hand, rather than blowing or waving the sticks in the air. Two hands are always used to handle the incense and to place it in the censer. It is held above the height of the head as the practitioner bows, as if to elevate it above oneself. All these things are perceived as demonstrating awareness of the present moment, respect for tradition and appreciation of the ancestors endeavours.
Fruit, such as oranges, are often placed on the Sun-Toi along with cups filled with water and also chopsticks. These are seen as symbolic gestures or offerings to pay reverence to the ancestors. The fruit represents the results of the hard work of the school. When you work hard, you gain the fruit of your labour. This is the basic principle of kung fu, to train hard and become good at what you practice, through the practice itself. Symbolically, water represents the cleansing of any wrongs. Many cultures apply the same meaning to water, to wash away sin. Water also benefits the whole world, we could not survive without it. The heart should be like the water, clear and clean. The traditional martial artist aims to be the same in their thoughts and actions. Similar to water, you may also see candles or oil lights. The light drives away the darkness and any pesky evil spirits. It represents the good in everyone. The righteous path that all traditional martial artists attempt to traverse.
During special occasions, such as Chinese New Year; flowers, vegetables, dishes of rice, fish, chicken etc can also be placed on the Sun-Toi as a way to mark the occasion and celebrate the achievements of the Mo-Kwoon. Similar to fruit, flowers on the altar represent the hard work that accomplishes a goal or task. When you work hard your flowers will bloom. They symbolise the hard work itself, rather than the results, which the fruit represents. Wine can also replace water in the cups to signify the happy, cheerful mood of the proceedings. You may also see two chairs on either side of a traditional Sun-Toi. The right hand chair is reserved for the Si-Gung or visiting Sifus of the school. The left hand chair is for the Sifu, or Dai Si-Hing/Jai should the Sifu be away.
The Sun-Toi is not meant to be for religious purposes. As mentioned, they vary quite considerably from school to school. You may find that some schools have religious figures on their Sun-Toi if they have religious roots. For example a Shaolin school may have a figure of the Buddha because Shaolin kung fu originated in a Buddhist temple. There are many components to the Sun-Toi which can still be seen as worthwhile, without being seen as worshipping another faith. The fundamental purpose of the Sun-Toi is to pay respect to the origins and founders of the complete martial art system that we enjoy practicing daily in modern times.
If you enjoyed this post, please give it a like and share on your social media. If you wish to be notified of future articles, like our forthcoming Autumn qigong article, as well as other notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also follow our journey on social media. Like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
News & Updates 28th Sept
Wow, it’s the end of September already! How did that happen?! The nights are drawing in and its starting to get darker a lot earlier. Be safe and be seen. Motivation for getting off that cosy sofa can be tough this time of year. Make sure you read our previous article about motivational hints and tips to beat the spiders at their own game and blast out the cobwebs! 🕸
As the temperature starts to drop, illness and injuries become more common. Make sure you sign up for email alerts at the bottom of this post to find out about our simple qigong workout that can help boost your immune system. We will be releasing it soon so that you’re functioning at peak performance this Autumn. Stay hydrated to make sure there is the right balance of fluids in your body too. Wrapping up warm can also help protect your muscles from injury before and after training. We have a range of hoodies and beanies, to keep you cosy, from our sister company ‘Hung’. You can find these on the Fu-kit section of our website. We’ve just updated the security on our website too, so it’s now even safer for you to buy on our website. You can even get £5 off when you buy a hoodie and beanie together with this magical code:
Our kids classes on Mondays and Thursdays kicked off this past week. We had an interesting visitor to our Monday class. This little fella turned up to try out for our 6.15pm 5-8 year old class. We only took the one photo, which isn’t that great, but if anyone recognizes him/her they’re now being safely looked after by the SSPCA. If you would like your child to learn some essential life skills and gain confidence, all whilst having a lot of fun, bring them along to our Monday or Thursday kids classes. They both start at 6.15-7pm. Mondays is for kids aged between 5 and 8 and Thursdays is for between ages 8 and 13.
Likewise, if you fancy giving it a go yourself or would like to get fit and healthy during Stoptober, we also have classes for adults too. Tuesday evenings at 7pm are the best classes to start off with. If you prefer the more personal touch, we have 1-1 training sessions available through the day on Monday and Tuesday this week. You can book & pay for these on the homepage of our website or on our Facebook and Instagram pages. There is also a handy guide on how to get started here. If you have any questions, you can always email us and we would be happy to help.
We are also excited to announce a forthcoming article which will be released this week. It is a fascinating insight into traditional kung fu. The main focus of this article is the Sun-Toi (Ancestral Altar). Keep an eye out for links on our Facebook, Instagram & Twitter page, or sign up for our email updates below so you’ll never miss out on our updates, articles, discounts & news.
News and updates 22nd Sept 2019
This week we announce all the winners to our Freshers competition. There are also kids classes and lion dance classes beginning this week and some exciting news for the beginning of November.
HISA Freshers Fayre 2019 Competition Winners.
Congratulations to our winners of our freshers fayre competition. There was one winner of our main prize which was a whole month of free training at YHG Inverness and four prize winners who won one of our exclusive t-shirts, thanks to our sister company ‘Hung.’ Dont worry if you didn’t win a prize, you can still receive a free introductory class at YHG Inverness. Our beginners classes are on Tuesday evenings at 7pm. You can also buy our exclusive ‘Hung’ t-shirts and merchandise on the Fu-kit section of our website. You can also follow ‘Hung’ on FaceBook & Instagram to find out their latest designs, offers and discounts.
Kids Classes
Our kids classes and lion dance classes are added to our timetable this week. We have ages 5-8 starting on Monday the 23rd September at 6.15-7pm. Ages 8-13 is on Thursday at 6.15-7pm and our mixed ages lion dance class starts on Tuesday at the same time, 6.15-7pm. The first class is free for new students and then all kids classes after that are only £4 per class. Sifu Hepple has a PVG Disclosure Scotland certificate, so you know that your kids are safe. We are also fully insured through the British Council For Chinese Martial Arts. Here you can see all our classes on our current timetable.
November Visit
We are also excited to announce a planned visit from Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee early in November to the UK. This will be an excellent chance for students to meet one of Yee’s most spirited and charismatic characters. Sifu Cepero Yee is a 9th Dan Si-Tai Gung of Yee’s Hung Ga and has a wealth of knowledge, not only in Hung Ga Kung Fu but also in Chinese medicine and Qigong too. This will be an excellent opportunity for students to participate in grading tests and awesome seminars!
If you haven’t done so already, make sure you sign up for our email updates below. You’ll be the first find out about all our updates and changes to our classes as well as offers and other goings on at YHGInverness. You can also follow us on FaceBook, Twitter and Instagram for even more info.
Yee’s Hung Ga Inverness Updates
HISA Student Freshers Fayre 2019
Did you catch us at this years HISA freshers fayre? We had a huge response from our competition to win t-shirts and a whole month worth of training. Winners will be announced shortly. There’s still time to enter to win this great prize. All you have to do is send us your name and email address. You can also sign up for emails on the website. Winners will be announced next Monday (23rd Sept. 2019)
If you can’t wait to see if you are a winner and just want to get stuck into some authentic kung fu training, then don’t forget that our Tuesday evening class at 7pm is the best to start off with. Your first class is free and our student rate is only £4 per class after that, so there’s no reason not to give it a shot.
Finding the school is easy. We are on the High Street (the pedestrianised street between Marks & Spencer’s and McDonalds) between The Tourist Information Office and The Phone Clinic. We have a big orange doorway and a new flashing ‘Kung Fu’ sign.
Kids Classes and Display Team
We will also be starting kids classes on Monday 23rd of September. Ages 5-8 every Monday at 6.15-7pm and Thursdays at the same time for 8-13 year olds. We will also be running a mixed age lion dance and display team class on Tuesday evenings from 6.15-7pm. If you have children, or know someone who does, and would like to build their confidence and learn self defense skills, as well as many other benefits, send us an email to register interest.
Future Seminars & Workshops
We will also be running some workshops and seminars in the near future, so stay tuned for updates on those. In the meantime you can keep up to date with all the goings on at YHGInverness by following us on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. Don’t forget to like and share. You can also sign up to our email list for updates, exclusive offers, discounts and events.
Kung Fu Names & Terminology
All kung fu schools are very much family oriented. They are set up like a family and try to instil family values to their members. Family names are used to show respect to instructors and other students. At Yee’s Hung Ga we have many branches so it can be difficult to keep track of who is who and what the proper name should be. The following are the family names and meanings that you will commonly hear at a Yee’s Hung Ga school.
| English | Cantonese | |
| Male | Female | |
| Door Man or Founder | Jeurng Mun Yahn | Jeurng Mun Yahn |
| Lineage Holder | Si-Jo | Si-Jo |
| Great Grandmaster | Si-Tai Gung | Si-Tai-Poa |
| Grandmaster | Si-Gung | Si-Poa |
| Senior Kung Fu Uncle | Si-Bahk | |
| Senior Kung Fu Aunt | Si-Guma | |
| Junior Kung Fu Uncle | Si-Sook | |
| Junior Kung Fu Aunt | Si-Guje | |
| Teacher/Instructor | Si-Fu | Si-Fu |
| Teacher’s Husband/Wife | Si-Jeong | Si-Mo |
| Most Senior Brother/Sister | Di-Si-Hing | Di-Si-Jeh |
| Senior Brother/Sister | Si-Hing | Si-Jeh |
| Junior Brother/Sister | Si-Dai | Si-Mui |
| Student | Toh-Dai | Toh-Dai |
If you are a student at Yee’s Hung Ga in Inverness, anyone who has been training longer than you at the school, depending on their gender, you would call Si-Hing or Si-Jeh. Anyone who begins at the school after you would be your Si-Dai or Si-Mui, depending on their gender. They would call you Si-Hing or Si-Jeh. Sifu Hepple would be your Sifu and his wife would be called Si-Mo. Sifu Bruce Clark would be your Si-Gung. Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee and Sifu Yee Chi Wai would be known as Si-Tai Gung. Si-Jo is another name which Sifu Yee Chi Wai may also be known as. This means lineage holder.
If visiting another local Yee’s school, the students of that school would be your cousins. You would address them just as if they were training brothers or sisters at Inverness, Si-Hing, Si-Jeh if more senior and Si-Dai or Si-Mui if junior. The Sifu of that school would be your uncle. You would call them Si-Bahk or Si-Guma if they were Sifu Hepple’s Si-Hing or Si-Jeh. If they were Sifu Hepple’s Si-Dai or Si-Mui, you would call them Si-Sook or Si-Guje.
This might seem rather complex and difficult to learn but it is important to maintain the traditions of the kung fu school so that we can pass on our heritage for future generations. The important ones to remember are your Sifu and Si-Mo/Si-Jeong. Showing further respect to their teacher, Si-Gung/Si-Poa, and their teacher, Si-Tai Gung/Si-Tai Poa is also expected. Everything else can be worked out and nobody else is likely to take great offence if you call them the wrong name. If you are unsure, it is always best to ask, just like anything else that you may be uncertain of.
It is also worth noting that a senior uncle/aunt/brother or sister are senior only by the length of time practicing and not necessarily of a higher rank. Your Si-Hing is, and always will be, your Si-Hing. Just as an older brother can never be demoted to a younger brother, no matter how much you may wish for it to happen.
Other important terms that you may hear is the Kwoon or Kung Fu School itself. We shall look at the etiquette within and around the Kwoon in a future post. Suffice to say though, that it is important to remain respectful and uphold composure whilst in and around the Kwoon. Inside the Kwoon is the Sun-Toi or ancestral altar. We will also discuss this in a future post too. To show respect to the ancestors, who have passed down our art from generation to generation, we bow to the Sun-Toi. We use the traditional ‘sun and moon fist’ to bow to the ancestors, whilst entering and leaving the main training area. You may also hear your Sifu or instructor counting punches or kicks etc in Cantonese. The following table will help you to learn numbers 1 to 10:
| English | Cantonese |
| One | Yat |
| Two | Yee |
| Three | Saam |
| Four | Sai |
| Five | Ng |
| Six | Luk |
| Seven | Chat |
| Eight | Baat |
| Nine | Gau |
| Ten | Sahp |
Perhaps you have heard a term that you are unsure of that is not listed here. Please feel free to let us know and we can discuss. If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
What is Shaolin Hung Ga Kuen?
The Shaolin Monastery, or Shaolin Temple, is a Buddhist temple in Dengfeng County, Henan Province, China. The name ‘Shaolin’ refers to the location of the temple. It is situated in the forests of Shaoshi mountain, one of the seven peaks of the Song mountains. It literally means “Temple of Shao[shi Mountain] Forest”.
The Shaolin Temple is known, not only as the birthplace of Chan, or “Zen,” Buddhism, in China, but also where kung fu martial arts originated. The temple is steeped in myths and legends. (More about these in future posts) Shaolin became a renowned centre for extremely powerful martial arts. As the teachings of Shaolin grew, other Shaolin monasteries appeared across China. From a Southern monastery came the lineage of the Abbot Gee Sim Sim See. He is recognised as the first person to bring Shaolin martial arts out of the temple and to the people of Southern China.
Gee Sim taught five founding fathers of “Southern Shaolin.” The five families of martial arts from the Gee Sim lineage became Hung Ga, Choy Ga, Mok Ga, Lau Ga and Li Ga. The “Ga,” or sometimes “Gar,” means family, in this case the Hung family. The founding father of the Hung family was Hung Hei Guen and therefore it is named after him.
“Kuen” means fist, but in this case “fist” refers to the art or system of fighting, not just the hand shape. Therefore “Shaolin Hung Ga Kuen,” means, “The fighting art of the Hung family from the temple in the forest of Shaoshi Mountain.”
In general terms, the Hung Ga art is renowned for very strong, rooted stances and extremely powerful arm movements. Training concentrates heavily on stance work, body and arm conditioning, qigong, and practicing the forms or set routines. Yee’s Hung Ga run classes for you to specifically train each of these key areas. The forms are a way of practicing fighting techniques as well as a tool for developing a strong mind and body. One of the most famous forms in the world is the Tiger Crane Double Fist (Fu Hok Seung Ying Kuen). This form is at the core of the entire Hung Ga art.
If you have a question that you would like to ask us, why not send us an email or get in touch via our social media? Just search for YHGInverness.
If you like our blog posts, you can also sign up for notifications of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
Ceremonies in Edinburgh
On Sunday 9th June 2019, the World Headquarters of Yee’s Hung Ga International Kung Fu Association appointed new governing positions to the UK & European Headquarters. These new positions will help in overseeing the numerous branches that have descended from the expansion of our disciples in the UK and across Europe. They are charged with maintaining the quality, philosophy and direction of our Association. In a ceremony in Edinburgh, UK, Grandmaster Yee Chee Wai (Frank Yee) presented certificates, the appointees took oaths of office for their positions in the organization.
Another important ceremony which took place on Sunday the 9th June was the Bai Si. The Bai Si ceremony is often referred to as the “discipleship ceremony” or “tea ceremony.” It is not often seen in many western martial arts schools. At Yee’s Hung Ga, we feel that it is important to preserve our art in all its forms, this includes official ceremonies such as these, so that we can pass on the complete art to future generations. It is perhaps the most important ceremony a martial artist, in kung fu, could ever be invited to participate in.
In China, many of the kung fu systems were passed down through the generations to family members only. The higher levels were considered private and secret. Traditionally a Sifu would agree to teach students out-with the family, but with caution. General classes, available to everyone, were often held in public areas, parks or inside the courtyard of the Sifu’s own home. When a student first began their training, and were not well known to the Sifu, they weren’t trusted enough to actually be taught inside the Sifu’s house. These were known as, “outside students.” Once the student earned the trust of their Sifu, a Bai Si ceremony took place. This made the student an “indoor student.” It meant that the student had gained the complete trust of their Sifu and would be taught the whole martial arts system. The Bai Si ceremony also confirmed the relationship between a Sifu and the student. If you completed a Bai Si ceremony the student was given a name in the Sifu’s family and they were treated like a son or daughter.
After almost 19 years of diligent practice and loyal conduct, the great honour of performing this ceremony was bestowed upon Sifu Hepple by his Sifu, Bruce Clark. Other highly trusted martial artists were also given the privilege at the same time. It was witnessed by Sifu Ian Rose, in front of a small group of people. After the ceremony, speeches were given. It was a great chance to celebrate together by sharing some food and drinking a toast after the proceedings.
If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
Student Spotlight
In our Student Spotlight series, our students have the opportunity to tell you about their training in their own words. Allan Poko has been training for a little under 10 months, (6/5/19) he has participated in lion dance displays for our Chinese New Year Celebrations and is a committed student, trying to take part in as many classes as he can make it along to. He is currently training for his Yat Cup Junior level (1st test of 1st level) Here Allan tells you about his experience training at Yee’s Hung Kung Fu Academy in Inverness.
What made you want to train in martial arts?
I was lucky enough to see the shoalin monks perform at Eden Court with my daughter. Since then I’ve been very inspired to learn more about Chinese martial arts and culture.
How did you hear about the school?
I was walking past the school one day and I picked up a flyer at the door.
What was your first class like?
I remember going up the stairs feeling very nervous but at the same time I felt the calmness of the school which made me very excited to learn and find out more about the school.
Did it live up to your expectations?
Yes very much so.
How did you feel after your first class?
I won’t forget how calm and relaxed I was after my first class. It was like an energy boost. Also, for me, all I wanted to do from that point on was to train and learn more.
What do you think of your training so far? Is there anything you’d change?
My training so far has been excellent! I try to go to all of the classes now as I enjoy the training so much. What I like the most is I can train and learn at my own pace. Personally I don’t think there is any need for anything to be changed.
What are your hopes for your future in martial arts?
My hopes for the future is to learn as much Kung fu as possible. For my health and fitness, for my own personal safety and protection and to learn and understand the Chinese philosophy and culture of Kung fu.
Anything else that you wish to add?
I would like to say, prior to me joining our school, my life was at a very low point. Yee’s Hung Ga Inverness saved me. I was struggling mentally and physically. Since joining the school it has given me focus and done wonders for my confidence and self asteem. Joining Yee’s Hung Ga Inverness is one of the best things I have ever done in my life so far. I feel very humbled to be part of the Inverness branch community, so big respect to my sifu and all of the other students whom train along with me.
If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
Do you have belts?
A common question asked about Yee’s Hung Ga is, “Do you have a grading system or belts, like in other martial arts?”
There are many martial arts which have a grading system. As the student passes through the different grades and attains a higher level of skill, they also obtain a different coloured belt to show the practitioner’s rank within the system. Normally a white belt is given to a novice and a black belt is given to a proficient or skilled practitioner. It is said that originally all novices started off with a white belt and over the years of training the white colour turned to a dark grey/black, which is where the coveted black belt stems from. All the colours in between have been added in recent years, varying in degrees of brightness, from white to black (i.e. yellow, orange, red, purple, brown etc) to portray the idea that the student has trained hard enough for the belt to change colour. There are many other martial art systems that don’t have coloured belts but still have gradings. There is also a lot of tradition and etiquette surrounding the different belts of each martial art, for instance how they are tied, which side of the body the knot is tied on, how they are stored and looked after etc. These traditions are usually specific to the individual martial art system.
At Yee’s Hung Ga we have a grading system where student’s skills are tested regularly. The student begins with a black sash and as they pass through the different skill levels, a red stripe is added to the end of the sash to display the student’s rank.There are 3 main levels. Each level has 2 tests, a junior and senior.
When the student completes all 3 levels, they may then begin their ‘Jo Gow’ (black belt) training. Once the Jo Gow has been attained, a red stripe is attached all around the black sash.
Attaining this level is cause for a big celebration. It demonstrates that the student has mastered the basic skills of the Hung Ga system, which is a notoriously difficult level to reach. At the Jo Gow level, a student is considered an Assistant Instructor. To become a full-fledged Instructor (Sifu), 2 years of additional intensive training is required. Training does not end with becoming a Sifu. Sifus must continue their training and testing to progress through the 10 Dan (Levels) if they wish to understand the full depth of the Yee’s Hung Ga art – a feat that requires great dedication, loyalty and passion for the art.
Through these rigid training and testing protocols, Yee’s Hung Ga is able to preserve the highest levels of quality and integrity of the Hung Ga style passed down through its lineage, while simultaneously and uniformly advancing the art itself. Very few martial arts systems go to such lengths to maintain quality instruction.
If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
Card Payments
So picture the scene:
You’ve worked hard all day and you’re tired. Despite this you’ve dragged yourself off the couch, on a chilly winter evening, to make it to class. You’re psyching yourself up in the changing room whilst getting ready. You suddenly remember that you forgot to go to the bank on the way.
How are you going to pay for the class? You could get changed again and nip out to the cash machine? Maybe just run out in your uniform? Class is about to start though and you daren’t turn up late! Perhaps one of your training brothers or sisters could lend you….. Nobody has any spare cash on them either though!
Don’t stress it, we can now accept contactless and card payments from all major credit and debit cards.
Phew, that’s a relief! One less thing to worry about.
You can also use all major credit and debit cards to pay for items on the Fu-kit section of our website via PayPal. Even if you don’t have a PayPal account.
If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
Black Friday 40% Off!! YHGBF17
To celebrate our new shop update and Black Friday weekend, we are offering you the chance to gain 40% off all orders until the end of the month.
Use this promotional code at the checkout to get your discount: YHGBF17
The offer is not available on sale items, Dit Da Jow, Gift Certificates or training uniforms.
If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
World Tai Chi & Qigong Day 2017
World Tai Chi & Qigong Day 2017 #WTCQD17
In honour of the World Tai Chi & Qigong Day, Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy, Inverness will be hosting a FREE workshop on The Silk Reeling Exercise, beginning at 10am on Saturday the 29th of April. This will be the fourth time that YHGInverness has hosted a free event for WTCQD.
The Silk Reeling exercise is a set of repetitive spiralling movements with the arms and hands. The gradual opening and closing movements create inner energy circulation. The silk reeling exercise not only improves one’s spinal alignment but it can increase one’s flexibility, joint movement, and balance. It is also an exercise for internal power training.
The Silk Reeling exercise is easy to learn and suitable for beginners as well as people of all ages and skill levels. The exercise will be taught in easy to learn steps by Sifu Simon Hepple, chief instructor and owner of Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy in Inverness.
After the workshop The Silk Reeling exercise will be added to the comprehensive qigong curriculum at Yee’s Hung Ga, Inverness, so don’t miss this fantastic opportunity to learn this set absolutely FREE!
For updates on the event you can check out our Facebook Event or you can contact Sifu Hepple with the following form:
[contact-form subject='[Yee%26#039;s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy, Inverness’][contact-field label=’Name’ type=’name’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Email’ type=’email’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Website’ type=’url’/][contact-field label=’Comment’ type=’textarea’ required=’1’/][/contact-form]
If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
Student Spotlight
This is a picture of Sifu Hepple and John Weaver. John has been practicing for 3-4 years now and is currently training towards his Yee Cup Jr (1st test of the 2nd level) Grading. Here John tells, in his own words, of his experience training at Yee’s Hung Ga Academy in Inverness.
What made you want to train in martial arts?
I previously trained in Jujitsu when I was about eight years old. When I reached twenty four, I became very interested in practising meditation, healing arts and focusing (balancing) my mental/physical energies. I read books, became Reiki attuned and watched videos to increase my knowledge on the subject. This led me to learn versions of qi gong, from some new age teachers and other kung fu personalities. I think I was the ripe old age of thirty one before I attempted to do kung fu work out drills; I was completely exhausted and realised I knew nothing of the hard work and discipline that was required to achieve what I wanted. It was then I started looking for a teacher.
How did you hear about this school and why did you want to train there? What were your expectations before you started?
Kung Fu was the obvious choice for me based on my interests. I did a little research on the different styles, and thought about what may suit my body type. I knew already I would prefer something that would be powerful and balanced, but more hand based rather than the flippy-flappy leg kicks. I saw some videos of the Hung style online after finding out that a new had school opened up in Inverness. I contacted Sifu to see if he would accept me as a student, and the rest is history. My expectations were realistic; having tried to keep up with drills on dvds and failed, I was open to whatever lessons Sifu had for me in order to progress.
What was your first class like?
I was slightly nervous and wondered what the other students would be like. At that very first class, I mentioned some of the things I had been doing and Sifu responded “this may be a little different to what you’re used to!” He proceeded to show us Tiger techniques, specifically how to break an opponents arm. After that class, I was aching all over. My legs felt like jelly, and I thought it would be very hard to build up my fitness to an acceptable level to continue. However, I stuck with it and after a further four or five lessons I got used to doing the warm up exercises! It is quite invigorating once you have built up the stamina and I am glad I have continued with my training. My life has changed considerably in the last two years and I now have a young family and a home to maintain. I haven’t had as much time as I would have liked to train recently but as my understanding of Hung Ga grows, so does my desire to push myself further.
What do you think of your training so far? Is there anything that you would change?
So far I have learnt the full Gung Gi Fuk Fu form and am now learning Fu Hok. I have also learnt about the theory of Hung Ga and some of the additional exercises that can be done to unlock potential skills; fighting and some softer skills like balance, conditioning and strengthening. I have attended seminars in Aberdeen with Grandmaster Yee Chi Wai and our Sifu’s teacher, Si Gung Bruce Clark – both are very well respected Martial Artists. It is hard to start with, but if you try and push through it is very much worth your while. Our Kwoon (school) is very friendly, and Sifu obviously loves Hung Ga; showing us how it becomes a solid foundation in life. I would change nothing about the training given but if I could give advice to other beginners it would be to put three times as much effort in to practising at home, as you do in class. Basic drills, form and practising stances – but also looking at the ways in which Qi Gong and breath exercises can improve your general well-being.
What are your hopes for your future in martial arts?
My hopes for the future are to continue training, and to push myself further. My aim at the moment is to improve my stances, transitions between movements and get more sparring practice to apply what I have learned. I enjoy the traditional Lion Dance practice and would like to do more of that for the school in the coming years.
Anything else that you wish to add?
While studying for the Fuk Fu test, I wrote this down. ‘Kung Fu is something that cannot be bought or stolen; you cannot cheat or make it easier as it is what it is. You get out what you put into it via training – body and mind with a strong spirit.’ I am beginning to understand more on the concept of ‘martial virtue’ and can say that with Kung Fu, actions speak louder than words – so come join us.
If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
Motivation: Hints, Tips & Good Practice
Whether you’re just starting out or you’re a seasoned warrior, it can sometimes feel difficult to keep yourself motivated, especially with the cold weather, dark nights, the hectic partying over the festive period taking its toll on the body. It can be a bit of a slog getting yourself back into a routine and keeping that routine going. If one of your New Years Resolutions is to get fit and healthy, like many other people, you might be thinking about attending one of our classes. If you are serious about taking it past the thinking stage and really want to attend, (obviously we would highly recommend that you do and you would be most welcome.) what steps can you take to ensure that your first class isn’t also your last? What if even your best intentions aren’t good enough and you run out of steam before you even get up and running? Well we’re not going to lie to you, there’s no magic wand. You still have to actually make it to class (on time!) and you still have to do the work but here’s our top 10 hints & tips on keeping yourself keeping going.
-
#1. Patience is a virtue.
It takes time, don’t be put off if you don’t see results straight away. Looks can be deceiving. You may not see results for a while, especially if you are just starting out. It takes time to learn and to build muscle memory. You may hear claims that you can be a master in a short time, “Learn Kung Fu in 3 Months,” “Become a master in only 2 weeks.” There are some things that you can learn and use straight away but to be a master you first need to learn and that can take time, patience and lots of practice.
Just because you’re not seeing results it doesn’t mean that you are not getting any. You are better today than you were yesterday, try to remember that. Your brain will get better at sending messages to your body and your body will get better at receiving and understanding them. You will actually be able to activate a higher percentage of your muscle fibers, commonly referred to as neuromuscular efficiency. Your coordination will improve, reflexes start to become faster, your breathing and focus will increase. It is a slow process because you are bound by your body’s limitations, just be patient. Don’t look in the mirror after two weeks and wonder why you’re not looking like Bruce Lee or why you’re not managing to quite get the results that you are looking for. Be patient and put in the work, the results will come.
-
#2. Enjoy the journey.
Try not to think of your goals as the soul purpose for training, that’s just a destination. Enjoy the process and get excited about what you are learning. If you enjoy what you are doing you are more likely to keep it up. Get excited. You have to want to do it. If you force yourself, it could have negative results. Instead of looking negatively at things that you are not so good at or find difficult, try and turn your thinking around. Be positive about it and see if you can work at those things, bit by bit, to get better at them. Chip away a little bit every day and they will soon become less of a problem.
-
#3. Don’t rush!
Arrive early, give yourself time. If you leave things to the last minute it gives your mind one more excuse to back out of it. If you have plenty time and are well prepared then you are less likely to change your mind at the last minute. Make sure you have your kit ready the day before. Write a list of all the things that you need to take with you and make sure you check your list every time you get yourself ready. Plan your trip, where you’re going to park the car, how long will it take you to get there? Allow extra time in case of slow traffic or for events beyond your control. If you think ahead and plan in advance you will put yourself in the right frame of mind and it will give you less excuses to not go through with it.
-
#4. Are you keeping track?
Keeping records can help you to remember what you have learned. What did you get out of class today? Did you just go through the motions or did you pick something up? Were there any “light-bulb moments?” Keeping a training diary can help you to remember information and focus on learning. It can also help you to look back and see how far you have come in your training. You can also see what went wrong, should you get injured, and learn from any mistakes.
If you can only make it to the occasional class, it is down to you to make the effort to practice between those classes. Your Sifu will give you advice on what and how to practice. If you just practice bits of what you remember, it may be that you are not paying attention to the right things or worse, practicing them the wrong way. You should know it inside out and back to front.
-
#5. Stick to a plan
Remove the randomness from your training. This is the best way to improve your speed, strength, focus, body weight…. any of your goals in fact. For a beginner it can be tempting to try out all the different classes that are available to you at Yee’s but it is better to pick one or two which you can definitely, regularly make, every week. Stick to them and make them part of your routine. When you feel more confident in what you have learned and you have time available to try out the other classes, then give them a go. Too much, too soon is a recipe for failure.
-
#6. Do it for yourself.
Do it for yourself, not because of anyone else. Come with friends but don’t stay at home just because they decided that they couldn’t be bothered. Their excuses will turn into your excuses. You must do it because you want to do it for yourself. Similarly, try not to compare yourself to others. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses so whilst you might not be as good as the one you are comparing yourself to, they might not be as good as you at other things. They may also be further ahead in their training or have practiced more or many other reasons. If you practice, you will become better. If you practice a lot, you will become a lot better. Sometimes it takes longer for some people so just relax and enjoy the ride.
-
#7. Prevention is better than cure.
Be sensible about how you train. An injury can set you back months, perhaps even years. It may stop you training altogether. It is important in the beginning to take things slowly until your body gets used to it. If you push too hard, you can injure yourself. Ensure that your body is warmed up gently and muscles are stretched before you do your main practice. You will have to do this every time and you will have to factor the time it takes into your practice. Similarly, a cool down routine can help to bring your body back to normal. Again gentle stretching can be useful. After your training your muscle fibers will be warmed up and loose. The sudden shock from the cold outside, especially in the North of Scotland, can cause them to constrict. Problems may result from over tension such as muscular cramps and pain, twisting and knotting of the muscle fibers. Be sensible and have an extra layer of clothing to put on before you head out into the cold. Our training hoodies are perfect for this purpose.
-
#8. If you don’t make time, you’ll never have time.
You need to factor time into your daily routine or weekly schedule. If you don’t have one, make one! Fit it into your lifestyle. It is difficult juggling everything in your life but the bottom line is that if you don’t do it, then you won’t do it. Spare time can seem to be a rarity in modern life and if you really want to do something, you will have to make the effort to make it happen. With kung fu this means making time to practice. In the same way though, if you do nothing but practice then you will not have time for anything or anyone else so you need to find a balance. Make it happen!!
-
#9. Rise to the challenge!
Treat it like a test. Everything that you find hard is an obstacle to you becoming better and achieving your goals. If you clear the obstacle then you are one step closer. If you don’t quite make it then it’s no big deal, just try again. It may take you many attempts. Many, many, many attempts in fact. This is the challenge that you face. Give up, find an easier way or just keep chipping away until you get it. The nature of kung fu means that you kind of do all 3. You try until you get it, you understand the movement. You then find an economy in the movement, simplify it, make it easy. Then, when you get it, you leave it. It’s there now until you need it. You just need to maintain it. Great skill obtained through hard practice.
-
#10. Don’t beat yourself up
You’ve all seen the motivational memes on social media, “Failure is not an option!” “Winners never quit!” ” You haven’t failed until you quit trying!”
Jeezzz….. Give yourself a break, we are only human. Circumstances might mean that you have to put things aside for a while. You might have to give yourself some time to focus on other areas of your life. Family, work, friends, commitments. You know what that is? That’s life! (That’s what people say, You’re riding high in April, Shot down in May) It doesn’t mean that you’ve failed. If you falter or can’t remember or didn’t practice or took the day off, it doesn’t matter. Everyone needs a break. In fact it is advisable to take a break every once in a while. “All work and no play makes Jack a very dull boy!” Have you never seen ‘The Shining’ before?!? It only becomes a problem if you let it. You gave it a shot, you turned up for class and you trained really hard. That’s more than a lot of people ever do. A lot of people never get further than giving it a whimsical thought. “Wouldn’t it be amazing to be able to move like that?” “I wish I was as strong or graceful as that?” But you actually made the effort. That is amazing in itself. (a round of applause please!) If you need a breather, that’s not failing, that’s being realistic. Just don’t let it get to you. Get back in the saddle again and own it!! Take your training to the next level and achieve what you set out to do.
See you in class…
If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
Who’s the guy with the big sword thingy?
The guy with the big sword thingy goes by a few names, Guan Yu, Guan Gong, Guan Di, General Gwan, amongst many others. In the ancient times of the East, there was a great war between Three Kingdoms. Guan Yu, and his friends, Liu Bei and Zheng Fei, swore an oath of brotherhood in the mystical Peach Garden, vowing to create a new, righteous world. Together they fought countless battles against the warlords Cao Cao and Sun Quan. Guan Yu grew famous for his combat prowess and unwavering honor.
Cao Cao captured Guan Yu and at the time, Liu Bei’s fate was uncertain. He agreed to fight for Cao Cao under specific terms, chiefly that he would abandon Cao Cao if ever he learned the whereabouts of his sworn brother. Despite Cao Cao’s gifts and promises of wealth, when Liu Bei resurfaced, Guan Yu immediately went to his side. Years later, Guan Yu again faced Cao Cao on the battlefield as the warlord fled from his defeat at Red Cliffs. Guan Yu cut off Cao Cao’s retreat and obliterated his forces. He spared Cao Cao, however, and released him, as an act of honor.
Guan Yu is one of the best known historical figures in ancient history. Part of the reason for this is that he appears in popular comics and movies, even modern video games. He is also a major character in The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, a semi-historical novel said to be written by Luo Guan Zhong at the end of the Yuan Dynasty period (1279-1368). This novel is one of China’s four greatest classic novels. Partly because of fictional portrayals in The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, his reputation has only increased over the years. A famous tale about Guan Yu is that he was once injured in the left arm by a stray arrow, which pierced through his arm. Although the wound had healed, he would experience pain in the bone whenever there was a heavy downpour. A physician told him, “The arrowhead had poison on it and the poison had seeped into the bone. The only way to get rid of this problem is to cut open your arm and scrape away the poison in your bone.” Guan Yu then stretched out his arm and asked the physician to heal him. He then invited his subordinates to dine with him while the surgery was being performed. Blood flowed from his arm into a container below. Throughout the operation, Guan Yu feasted and drank wine and chatted with his men as though nothing had happened. In some accounts of the tale he sits calmly and plays a game of weiqi (Chinese chess)
In the Western world, Guan Yu is sometimes called the God of War, probably because he is one of the most well-known military generals revered by the Chinese people. This is a misconception of his role, as, unlike the Greco-Roman deity Mars or the Norse god Týr, Guan Yu, as a god, does not necessarily bless those who go to battle, but rather people who observe the code of brotherhood and righteousness.
The big sword thingy that he can be seen with is the Spring/Autumn Great Knife. It is often named after him, some legends say that he invented it. The Guan dao, or kwan dao, is a large halberd which was used by the general during combat on horse-back. It is a heavy weapon with a sharp edge on one side for cutting and slicing. On the other side is a jagged edge with a hooked point which is used to maim and stab as well as for catching the opponent’s weapon to disarm them. The weapon is balanced with a pointed counterweight at the other end of the central shaft. Guan Yu’s “guan dao” was called “Green Dragon Crescent Blade” which weighed 82 Chinese jin (estimated 18.263kg or around 40lbs, there are tales of it being over 300lbs) and that he was extremely proficient with it on the battlefield.
If you enjoy our posts and wish to be notified of further posts, notices, discounts and events, pop your email address in the box below and we’ll give you a shout when new posts are added. You can also like and share on Instagram, twitter & Facebook
Flooring Facelift
Almost 2 years ago at YHGInverness, we did some major work in the school. We took down a wall and put new flooring down to make the training space bigger and level out the floors.
From the above photos you can see the changes that we made.
We recently gave the flooring another facelift, just to spruce it up a bit. you can see from the following photos how they have been transformed.
We are very proud of the finished result. It makes the training space look a lot more spacious and better to train on too. 🙂
Grading 15/Nov/15
Congratulations to everyone who passed their gradings at the weekend. 4 Students from YHGInverness went through to Aberdeen to be tested at the Yee’s Hung Ga European Headquarters. All students passed with flying colours and did their school proud. Congratulations and keep training! 🙂
School Garden
After a lot of hard work, our school garden/training space is slowly taking shape. All the organic waste from the school (paper, card, tea bags, banana skins, weeds old oranges from the altar etc) gets turned into compost. At this time of year we collect all the leaves from the sycamore tree in the garden too, and turn those into leaf mold.
We use the compost and leaf mold to grow specific plants. One of them is Jing Jie, sometimes called Japanese Catnip or Schizonepeta Tenuifolia. This medicinal herb has many uses including the treatment of the common cold, sore throats, nettle rash and skin disorders like eczema. We grow the plant because it relieves body aches and it has hemostatic, antibiotic and anti-inflammatory properties. All of which mean that it is excellent for treating bruises. It is one of the plants used in our famous Dit Da Jow recipe.
Keep an eye out for future updates about our garden/training space and our Dit Da Jow medicine.
Oranges
A common question from new students is, “What’s with all the oranges on the altar?”
Oranges are a common sight on Chinese shrines and altars. You may also see flowers or cups of tea as well as other types of food with incense burning nearby and statues or figures of deities. During Chinese New Year tangerines and oranges are given as a symbol of good fortune and riches because of the golden colour and their round shape which are both seen as auspicious. Tangerines represent wealth where oranges are a popular symbol of good luck. The associations come from a similarity between the Chinese words for tangerine and gold, as well as a resemblance between the words orange and good luck.
Hung Ga Kuen is also a style of kung fu derived from the Shaolin Temple. Shaolin is a Buddhist temple and in Buddhist culture, fruit symbolizes enlightenment, the ultimate goal of all humans. Offerings are not made to please Buddha, since he is seen to already possess universal love and compassion. Instead, the altars and offerings promote positive energy for the ancestors of the family or tradition.
World Tai Chi & Qigong Day 25.4.15
The last Saturday in April every year plays host to World Tai Chi & Qigong Day. It is part of a global effort to promote the healing aspects of Tai Chi and Qigong within our society. For the second year running YHGInverness participated in this global celebration by hosting a free Qigong seminar/workshop. Sifu Hepple, Chief Instructor at YHGInverness, conducted the seminar on the Yi Jin Jing, (Muscle/Tendon Changing Classic) which is a Qigong set or ‘form’ thought to have been developed by the Indian Buddhist Monk Bodhidharma, the legendary monk who began the physical training of the monks at the Shaolin Temple and thus credited as the originator of Shaolin Kung Fu.
The set was taught step by step until complete. Once the whole set had been learned, the key points of each exercise and how they work with the meridian channel system of the body was discussed. During Qigong exercises Qi, or internal energy, within the body is manipulated for specific health purposes. This can be achieved by moving your body in a certain way to stimulate specific organs of the body or using your mind’s eye, will or intention to lead Qi around your body or through certain meridians of the body. Using your mind and body together with coordinated breathing increases the function of many systems of the body. It also reduces stress and fatigue, calms the mind, improves circulation and many other documented health benefits. Qigong can be practiced by anyone and although it originated in China over 2000 years ago, it is still practiced today by people all over the world, from all walks of life.
The seminar ran over the scheduled time by quite a bit, so thank you to everyone who attended and managed to focus for the whole seminar. Also thank you to everyone who helped make this a successful event, including anyone who shared our Facebook posts and helped to spread the word. Hopefully YHGInverness will continue to make this a regular event every year and continue to preserve the art for future generations. Special thanks to the organisers of World Tai Chi & Qigong Day who help to promote this art worldwide. Without their efforts we would never have all come together at the same time for their common vision of health and healing on a global scale.
If you are interested in finding out more about Qigong or would like to attend one of our Qigong classes, please visit our Qigong page: https://www.yhginverness.com/qi-gong-classes/
FREE Qigong Seminar/Workshop for World Tai Chi & Qigong Day
In honour of the World Tai Chi & Qigong Day, Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy, Inverness will be hosting a FREE seminar on the Yi Jin Jing or Muscle-Tendon Strengthening Qigong. Beginning at 10am on Saturday the 25th of April.
The Yi Jing Jing is a qigong set, thought to have been developed by the Indian Buddhist Monk Bodhidharma, the legendary monk who began the physical training of the monks at the Shaolin Temple and thus credited as the originator of Shaolin Kung Fu.
The exercises in the Yi Jin Jing set feature soft even movements which will invigorate the limbs and organs of the body. Practice of the set will improve your flexibility and balance, muscle tone and strength. It is particularly beneficial to your breathing and has many documented health benefits.
The Yi Jin Jing set is easy to learn and suitable for beginners as well as people of all ages and skill levels. The set will be taught step by step by Sifu Simon Hepple, the chief instructor at Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy. Once the complete set has been learned, we will discuss the key points of each exercise and how they work with the meridian channel system of the body.
After the seminar, The Yi Jin Jing will be added to the comprehensive qigong curriculum at Yee’s Hung Ga, Inverness, so don’t miss this fantastic opportunity to learn this set absolutely FREE!
This seminar is open to all members of the public, you do not have to be a member of the school to join in. If you would like to attend, you only need to turn up on the day. The seminar begins at 10am so please arrive in good time for the beginning. Participation is mandatory so please do not turn up expecting to be able to sit and watch. If you would like to make your attendance known then here is a link to the Facebook Event page:
https://www.facebook.com/events/1593102387624817/
You should wear loose comfortable clothing and flat shoes or trainers. Bring a drink with you. If you wish to make notes, bring a notepad and pen with you too. There is no strict age limit to the event however please exercise common sense if you are thinking of bringing very young children. You can always contact Sifu Hepple beforehand, via the Contact Us page of this website, if you are at all in any doubt.
Gradings & Seminar 22/02/2015
Congratulations to everyone who sat, and passed, their gradings last weekend (Sunday 22nd Feb 2015)
Branches from Aberdeen, Inverness, Ellon and Peterhead assembled to test the skills of some of the students. It’s always great to get together and see old friends and new faces from Yee’s Hung Ga, pass on knowledge and learn new skills. On this occasion Sifu Bruce Clark conducted a great seminar on elbow techniques and fighting applications after the gradings had finished. Here are a few photos from another great day of practice and training at our UK Headquarters in Aberdeen.
Hung Ga: Iron Family
Here is a pretty cool video, from our relatives across the ‘wee pond.’ It embodies the essential elements of Yee’s Hung Ga which, I’m certain, are pretty much the same wherever you go. Yee’s Hung Ga is synonymous with Hard Work, Practice and Family. If you are looking for a way to live your life…. Watch the video already!!!
Student Spotlight
This is a recent photo of Sifu Hepple with Jenny Thomas, one of the senior students of YHGInverness. Jenny has been training for almost 3 years now and is currently at Yee Cup Senior Level. Jenny occasionally helps teach some of the classes at the school and will also teach some Qigong classes in the new year. (Find out more details here: NEW CLASSES)
Here Jenny describes, in her own words, how she found out about the school and her training so far:
About 8 years ago, maybe more, I watched a documentary about a disillusioned priest…
On his journey through life he had lost his vision,lost his passion for life, lost his reason to be alive,even lost his faith and finally lost his family.
He had given up his secure,safe ,well paid yet now meaningless job in the clergy and was seeking. Seeking a refuge, seeking to fill the endless void, seeking a new life, seeking to end that dull painful ache inside, seeking a reason, seeking to find the answers to the questions he didn’t even know…
And all this he found in Martial Arts. He travelled extensively , visiting monastery’s, retreats, Martial establishments, government Martial groups and displays in the far east .He spent time in mist enshrouded mountains and beautiful lands…yet it was one day when he was sweeping a dirty floor that it suddenly clicked into place and his peace flowed from within. I can’t tell you how he found this peace, he didn’t know himself….but he found it inside himself through lengthy practice and meditation.
A true story and exactly what brought me to Yee’s Hung Ga! I felt exactly the same as that priest and I wanted exactly what he had found. And if he could do it so could I!
And so my journey began…I had done a bit of karate in my younger years but had moved away and never took it up again. I tried a few different styles which worked for a while but then I grew restless again. The self defence was good but the fitness was lacking…or the style was good but the egos were too big…or the fighting was great but the spirit was dead….I finally feel I have “come home”…in Hung Ga I am continually learning; it is a constant in my life amongst the ups and downs of every day life; I am strong, physically, mentally and spiritually ;I have met wonderful people and have lovely training brothers and sisters…the list goes on. I can truly say that walking up those stairs to meet my Sifu for the first time was the best thing I’ve done!
Speaking of those stairs…after my first lesson I could hardly get down them! My legs were shaking so much from using muscles I had never used before. But I knew straight away I had found what I was looking for …Lazy legs however soon learn the stances and you’d be surprised how soon your muscles get stronger and you can do things you never thought possible. Practice, perseverance and patience is what you need. And if you don’t have them you can learn them too! Anything is possible if you go for it. We train our minds with horse stance…you’ll just have to come to a class to find out how! We do patterns, techniques, applications and drills, sparring,body conditioning….and just when you think you’ve sussed it, then you develop on what you’ve already learned and it suddenly makes sense as to why you had to twist that hand in that direction in the first place!
And Qi gong, Hung Ga’ s gentle twin…or rather the yin of the two: the internal, the subtle, the gentle, the dark …Compared to yang: the external, the extrovert, the vivacious, the fire…..Hung Ga is a hard and soft style, without one you cannot balance the other and both should be trained. Qi gong trains the use of the internal energy, the bodies Qi. It also nourishes the spirit , trains the breathing, balances the bodies organs and helps the body remain in a healthful state. Regular practice can help increase your spiritual awareness, develop perception; you learn to use and lengthen that gap between stimulus and response, to act but not react…. It is slow, gentle and relaxing yet still powerful. (Qi Gong is trained during Hung Ga classes and as its own class. It is suitable for all ages, we currently have age 10 to age 75!)
Of course we also learn to fight, to defend ourselves and our families if the need arose, and to spar amongst ourselves and also in competitions. But if you only know how to fight then you are a fighter, not a Martial artist. Our Grandmaster Yee Chi Wai says: “To be a martial artist you must learn Martial virtue, Martial knowledge, Chinese medicine and Chinese philosophy.
And that you shall! All of this and more at Yee’s Hung Ga …like the priest, I too have found my peace, I don’t really know how either. It just happens!
Come and find out for yourselves! Enrich your life!
Tests and seminars September 2014
There was a large turnout for the recent tests and seminars at our headquarters in Aberdeen. Sigung Pedro Cepero Yee and Sifu Bruce Clark oversaw the tests of a range of different levels from Yat Cup Junior to Jo Gow and Dan level. Sifu Simon Hepple completed his 4th Dan test too. Many students from the Inverness branch completed their tests too. Congratulations to everyone who passed. 🙂
The beginner seminar, conducted by Sigung Pedro Cepero Yee was on the internal power applications of fighting with the tiger, which was very interesting and informative. Lots more to practice and learn from.
Here are a few photos of the day.
And our survey says….. Qigong!
A massive big thanks to everyone who completed our survey last month. People from all over the world were generous enough to give YHGInverness a couple of minutes of their time to help us out. We had people respond from a huge range of different sports and martial arts ranging from running and cycling to touch rugby and Jiu Jitsu.
60% of all people who responded had trained in their chosen pursuit for 10 years or over. Most, if not all, responders combined different types of training together such as swimming and yoga or stance work and body conditioning. Only one person recognised ‘breathing’ as a form of training though. I thought that this was quite remarkable. Surely greater breath control would result in a better performance? A marathon runner, who runs out of breath, is not an efficient runner. A fighter, who can’t control his breathing, is sure to lose the fight. This seems to be a fundamental of training which is so often overlooked.
How can you train your breathing? There are many different breathing techniques in qigong, most focus on long, deep, diaphragmatic breaths which draw oxygen and nutrients to the base of the lungs. This, in turn, results in a greater concentration of oxygen and nutrients within the blood and a greater efficiency of the organs overall. If the body is running more efficiently, then it shouldn’t need to work as hard to pump the nutrients it needs around the body to the muscles and organs.
There was quite a range of responses, when asked what you thought your biggest hurdle in training was. Some people said that their physical location was a problem. Others smoked or drank too much. Some people recognised that they over-thought things too much and were their own worst critic, some were not satisfied with the consistency of their teachers. Others had physical problems such as recurring injuries, Reynaud’s Syndrome and old(er) age. Almost everyone said that time was a factor in their training and that they would like to spend more time training and less doing paperwork or working.
Believe it or not, Qigong can help with most, if not all, of these problems. Physical location isn’t a problem because Qigong can be done almost anywhere, at any time. You can do it in a park, underneath a waterfall or on top of a mountain, as you might imagine, but you can also do it at your desk at work, while waiting for the kettle to boil or the microwave to ‘ping’. You can do it in the shower, on the train, whenever you’ve got a spare minute in fact.
Drink or smoke too much? Wish you could quit or cut down and spend more time training or just being that little bit healthier? Qigong does so much more than helping to recover from addiction with exercise and meditation. Research has shown that prolonged drug and alcohol use leaves a build up of toxins within the tissues of the body. Qigong helps release toxins that have built up over time, helping your body to heal itself faster. It gives your mind something to focus on when distracted by cravings and, through added treatment methods, individuals are given a better chance to focus on their recovery.
Over-thinking things is surprisingly common. Sometimes it is just difficult to switch off and unwind. It is a product of our society, everyone seems to be walking around stressed up to the eyeballs with work, family, commitments or money problems. It really doesn’t have to be like that though. By simply taking a few minutes each day (perhaps a few more for some people 😉 ) to consciously relax, focus your mind and switch off, you can save yourself from just about any disease that you can think of. Modern medical science relates stress to 70-90% of all illnesses that you would go to see your G.P. for. That is a HUGE amount. Stress is a killer, make no mistake. Stress can also lead to the release of harmful hormones, such as cortisol, that break down the body. Anxiety also interferes with the production of beneficial hormones, which are already in decline as people reach their mid-40s. Qigong and Tai chi counteracts this by calming the mind, slowing the release of stress-related hormones. Next time you find yourself over-thinking something, try a couple of Qigong exercises and see the difference it makes to yourself.
Qigong has been known to help recurring problems and training injuries too. The gentle, low impact movements of Qigong and Tai Chi help to strengthen joints and bones within the body, aiding recovery. The increased efficiency of the bodily organs helps to remove toxins and promotes new growth. The immune system is also given a boost which can heighten the effects even further.
Many people practice Qigong well into their old age. The exercises are easy to do, you can practice them at a rate that is comfortable for you and you don’t need a huge amount of time or space. You can even do them lying down or in a seated position. Getting older happens to everyone though, it’s a simple fact of life that nobody escapes. In a study sponsored by the NIA (National Institute on Ageing) Dr. Steven L. Wolf, Ph.D., and colleagues at the Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Ga., found that older people taking part in a 15-week Tai Chi program reduced their risk of falling by 47.5%. Qigong has also been known to slow the ageing process. Research at Baylor Medical School has found that some cells from the bodies of long-term Qigong practitioners live five times longer than the same cells from ordinary test subjects. Other research from The Shanghai Institute of Hypertension looked at several aspects of ageing. They determined that Qigong is an effective measure in preventing and treating geriatric diseases and delaying the ageing process.
Reynaud’s Syndrome is fairly common and affects about 5 million people in the UK. I actually suffer from Reynaud’s Syndrome myself and I have found a huge improvement since I first started practising Qigong. I find the Fu Jow (Tiger claw) Qigong, that i teach at YHGInverness, of particular benefit. Improved circulation is just one of the many benefits of Qigong.
Time? Surely Qigong can’t help you change time?! No, of course not, that’s ridiculous. What Qigong can do is help you manage the time that you do have a little better. When you practice Qigong and your blood is oxygenated to a higher degree, the organs in your body perform better. This includes the brain. The brain is a highly sensitive organ and when it is functioning better it can perform some incredible tasks. This gives you the potential to improve your life unimaginably. You will easily be able to understand the work load that you have and factor in extra time for training without compromising either. It sounds simple but that’s because it is! Qigong is very simple. Some of the exercises are so easy that you would never guess the exceptional effects that they will have on you, your body and your life.
The last question of the survey was to gauge who, in your life, inspires you to achieve better results. 90% of everyone who replied said that it was someone that they knew personally and only 10% said someone famous who they were unlikely to meet. This shows how we can all affect one another on a much personal level than you probably realise. Just by being who you are and doing what you are doing, you will meet people and change the way that they might think and act. Can Qigong help with that?
Give it a go and YOU decide.
The last Saturday in April (26th April 2014) is World Tai Chi And Qigong Day. To celebrate this, YHGInverness will be hosting a FREE Qigong class in the morning. Anyone can attend and take part. For more details contact Sifu Hepple
or just come along on the day,
Practice a sport?
Do you practice a sport or physical discipline? It doesn’t matter if you are a professional, semi professional, amateur or just do it for a laugh. We’d love to hear more about it with this short survey that we’ve created. Please help us out by completing it 🙂
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/G9GS6GJ
Hung Kuen – The Great Fist of Southern China
Here’s an interesting Chinese documentary video on the various styles of Hung Kuen
Cubicles
Whilst YHGInverness was closed for the festivities, we were also busy doing some work inside the changing room. With the help of Graham, Kenny, Davis and Seamus, Sifu constructed three new changing cubicles for students to have a little more privacy whilst they are getting changed and psyching themselves up for their classes throughout the coming year ahead. Any new or interested students who would like to come along and see what Hung Ga is like should have a look at THIS PAGE
Here are a few photos taken during the process.
New Year, New Start
We would like to wish everyone a happy new year. 2013 was amazing for YhgInverness and we are hoping that 2014 will be even more memorable.
To kick off the new year we have re-introduced the Qi-gong and Tai Chi classes at a more user friendly day and time. They will begin on Saturday the 4th January at 3.30-4.30pm. As always, the first class is free. You can find out more information HERE. Qi-gong is great for your mind, body and spirit and these classes are suitable for most people of all ages and abilities.
Gift certificates will still be available throughout the year, so if you know someone who wants to train but lacking in motivation, this would be the perfect gift for them. You can find out more info HERE.
If your new year’s resolution is to get fit, have fun, lose weight, make new friends, learn something new, or just to be able to defend yourself, Yee’s Hung Ga has everything for you. To begin your new journey, it’s a lot easier than you might think. You can find out what to do HERE.
Let there be light…..
The hours of daylight are getting shorter and the weather is getting colder but at Yee’s in Inverness we can now make good use of the light that we do get with the new windows that Sifu has renovated in the stairwell.
From this…..
To this….
It’s just like ‘Changing Rooms’ 🙂
Special thanks to Seamus for your help installing them.
Gift Certificates
Know someone who wants to train but haven’t managed to get themselves off the sofa yet? Here is a great way to get them motivated and a perfect Christmas present for any budding Hung Ga enthusiast.
Certificates are available for:
- Monthly class subscriptions at £30 (£25 Students)
- Private one-one tuition classes at £20 for a one hour session (£15 for students)
- Or even a mix of the two, all classes and a private one-one session every week for a whole month for £75 (£60 for students).
A fantastic way to get fit and healthy in 2014! 🙂
Seminar August 17th
YHGInverness will be hosting a seminar on the 17th of August for all students. The seminar will cover body conditioning theory, drills and routines. We will also cover techniques and applications from the form Gung Ji Fuk Fu Kuen. The seminar will start at 11am and is open to all students for only £20.
There will also be an intermediate seminar, shortly after, which will cover more advanced training. This seminar is for senior students only.
All enquiries should be directed to Sifu Hepple at: enquiries@yhginverness.com
Please make sure that you also note the changes to times and classes in our class timetable.
Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee Visits Aberdeen
Students of Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy in Inverness have been invited to attend a very special test and training day in Aberdeen on the 19th May 2013.
Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee will be visiting from America to oversee tests
and to pass his extensive knowledge and skills on to further generations with a series of seminars.
Sifu Pedro Cepero Yee is a 7th Dan Sifu. He has demonstrated all over the world and is a well published author on Hung Ga Kung Fu. He is also an accomplished therapist, experienced in Tuina-Chinese Bodywork Therapy and Swedish massage therapy as well as Traditional Dit Da (Traumatology Medicine). He is the eighth Senior Yup Sut (In the Room) Disciple of Master Frank Yee (Yee Chi Wai), as well as one of the first Americans to be accepted into the Yee’s Family Lineage at the New York Chinatown’s Yee Fong Toy Association and their world headquarters.
The forthcoming tests and seminars will further enhance students skills and hopefully inspire them to continue to train hard in their chosen art. Keep an eye out for updates on their progress.
Chinese New Year 2013, Year Of The Snake
Yee’s Hung Ga Inverness has been busy over the Chinese New Year Period. The festivities started off with a traditional Lion dance, right outside the front doors of Yee’s, on Inverness High Street.
Sifu Hepple demonstrated the Chun Choy Dai Do (Spring Autumn, Great Knife), or Kwan Do, before a screening of a Jackie Chan film, as part of the Forres Chinese New Year celebrations.
There was also a seminar on the legendary Chinese folk hero, Wong Fei Hung. This seminar focused on Wong Fei Hung and what made him famous. Snake techniques were used to demonstrate the martial skill which made him renowned throughout China and the rest of the World. Here are a few photos from the seminar:
Chinese New Year Demonstration and Seminars
Yee’s Hung Ga Inverness students were invited to attend an insightful day of seminars and introductions to other martial arts, last weekend, by the Scottish Fighting Arts Society.
The event was organised by Alan Mitchell from the Smithton Kempo School and seminars were hosted by instructors from Hapkido, Kempo, Ju-Jitsu and also from Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy.
The seminars were very insightful, giving students and instructors a glimpse into the world of other styles and systems which they may not have been introduced to before. There were many similarities between the various arts which demonstrates the common bond that we share. It was refreshing to see the differences in similar techniques and the thought processes behind them. “We all have similar goals but go about it in different ways.” Sifu Hepple, from Yee’s Hung Ga, stated during his seminar. “We are all part of the same family, yet have different paths.”
Here are a few photos from the day:
Sifu Hepple has also been invited to host a free seminar and kung fu demonstration in his home-town of Forres, for the coming Chinese New Year celebrations.
Sifu Hepple will be performing the Chun Choy Dai Do (kwan do) on Friday the 15th of February, in the Forres Town Hall shortly before the martial arts film at 6.30pm.
Sifu Hepple will also be hosting a free seminar on Saturday the 16th of February in Forres House at 2pm where you can find out about the legendary Chinese hero, Wong Fei Hung and try your hand at some Hung Ga Kung Fu fighting techniques.
Crane
This scroll was bought for me by my students as a gift. It is made of silk and, as you can see, it depicts two cranes.
Christmas 2012
It is believed that the White Crane can live for a very long time because it knows how to conserve and protect its essence (jing). The Crane trains you to recognise proper timing and patience. It teaches perfect control and balance. When it is necessary to be slow (stillness), then be slow, have patience. When it is necessary to be fast, act fast, do not waste time or the opportunity will pass you by and you may never get it again.
In Chinese 5 Elements Philosophy, the element associated to the crane is wood. It is also paired with the liver and the gall bladder organs in the body. The gall bladder and the heart are responsible for making decisions, which will help you know when you need to have patience and when to act fast. The liver is also associated with the mind. Strengthening these organs will give you confidence to act on the decisions that you make.
Hung Ga Kung Fu is centred around the attack and defence patterns of the tiger and the crane. They balance each other and compliment each other. The combination of the two produce extreme, hard and soft power. At Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy in Inverness you can learn about these two animals and the philosophies associated with them. In the Qi-Gong classes you can learn how to regulate and balance the associated organs within the body in correspondence with these philosophies, helping you to live a fulfilling and healthy life. New students are always welcome and if you have any further questions or would like to attend a class please email Sifu Hepple enquiries@yhginverness.com
New Year, New School! :)
Yee’s in Inverness have now opened the school for 2013 classes. We have successfully upgraded the training area over the holidays. Special thanks to Charlie, Jenn and Graham for all your hard work and effort. We now have plenty of space to train in and to take on new students too.
If you are a beginner thinking of coming along to Yee’s to learn Hung Ga Kung Fu, the best days to begin with would be Tuesday evenings at 5.30pm or Friday evenings at 6.30pm. If either of them are unsuitable then Saturday evening at 6.30pm would also be a good time.
There have also been a few changes to the timetable and prices with regards to Qi-gong practice. This should hopefully engage students more in their practice and give them a better idea of how Qi-gong works and the benefits of practising it.
The new year should hold some exciting opportunities, including seminars and Chinese New Year celebrations. Look out for future blog updates on those.
In the meantime, here are a few photos of the new training area taking shape and we hope to see you all soon at your new Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy in Inverness.
Delayed School Re-Opening
The school is currently undergoing some refurbishment to enlarge the training space. The work is taking slightly longer than anticipated and has delayed the re-opening slightly. We aim to be back up and running for next Tuesday. (15th January)
In the meantime, here are a few photos to whet your appetite and hopefully motivate you to come back to school and see how the school has changed over the holidays. Stand by for more updates over the coming week.
Success for students
Congratulations to the 3 students from Yee’s Hung Ga, Inverness who passed their grading tests in November at the Aberdeen branch.
Jenny Thomas, one of the students from Inverness said, “It was such a fantastic experience to visit The Granite City, train in such a renowned school and learn from such a well respected Master, Sifu Bruce Clark. Even if I had failed the tests I would do it all again, just for the experience.”
Davis Anston, another ecstatic student from Inverness said, “I’ve never trained so hard or wanted anything so badly in my whole life. I was incredibly nervous and now that it is all over, I feel a huge relief.”
Sifu Simon Hepple, the Chief Instructor at the Inverness school, said, “I am incredibly proud of my students. They have trained very hard for a long time to get to this level and they all did very well on the day. This is just the first step of many though, they will have to keep up the good work to keep the standards high.”
The Inverness kung fu school, located on the High Street, opened earlier this year and has already managed to grade its first students. “It has grown from strength to strength,” said Sifu Hepple, “Since we started accepting students, earlier this year, we have expanded the premises and built the school up a bit at a time. We plan to do further work to the property next year which will include a courtyard where the students can practice outside. 2013 should be an exciting year for us in Inverness. We also have plans to host some free seminars for anyone to come along to, so that they can see for themselves what we do and what our martial art is about. This would be an ideal opportunity for anyone thinking about taking up a martial art or getting fit and healthy in the New Year to try it out and get involved.”
New students are always welcome. Please email for details: enquiries@yhginverness.com
Shishi (Foo Dogs)
On a recent trip to Glasgow, I bought these wee guys in a Chinese supermarket. They are called Shishi, which means Stone Lion. Sometimes they are called Imperial Guardian Lions, Chinese Guardian Lions or Foo Dogs in the West. It is common to see them in front of important buildings such as temples, Imperial Palaces, Government buildings etc. They are also classed as a kind of status symbol because they are traditionally carved from marble or granite or sometimes even cast in bronze or iron. The rich and famous often place them outside their homes as a symbol of their social status or wealth. Mine are of slightly more modest design and are made from resin. It is common to see Foo Dogs like this in Chinese restaurants, supermarkets and in normal family homes.
There is always a pair of Foo Dogs, a male and a female. The female representing yin and the male yang. The female’s paw restrains a cub whilst the male’s paw sits on top of an embroidered ball. This is to symbolize the female lion protecting the people inside the structure, that the lions protect, and the male protecting the structure itself. Looking in the same direction as the lions, the male should be placed on the left and the female on the right.
These Foo Dogs are placed upon the top of the alter at Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy in Inverness. Although we are not a religious organisation, we bow towards the alter at the start and end of every class to show respect for all the masters who have passed on the Hung Ga knowledge through our lineage.
Yee’s are always happy to take on new students, so if you are thinking about getting fit and healthy for the New Year, Hung Ga could be perfect for you. It is great for strengthening the mind as well as the body. Your first class is free so you have nothing to lose. Email or phone to arrange your first class:
email: enquiries@yhginverness.com
Phone: 07545460743
Levitation
Here is something that you don’t see every day, a woman levitating in the middle of the street!
This photo was taken right outside Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy on Inverness High Street, Sunday 19th of August 2012.
It is, of course, a clever trick. I was asked by one of my students when they will be shown how to do this. I laughed at the time but it made me think of clever techniques that we use in Hung Ga, like the shadowless kick, which uses distraction to hide a kick. Other techniques that might seem remarkable, to people outside of kung fu circles, might include the power of the mind over the body, the ability to block out pain which,amongst other training methods, is taught through long periods of diligent Horse Stance practice. The explosion of force in a small area is another technique which can seem to be an almost impossible feat, however this is taught through inch power training. An example of this, made famous by Bruce Lee, is the one inch punch. Many people comment on the unnatural gripping strength that many Hung Ga practitioners have yet this is developed through practice and hard work, conditioning the muscles and tendons of the arms, hands and fingers through Fu Jow Qi-gong.
Someone very close to me gave me this scroll when I first opened my school.
It says that ‘to overcome a challenge requires 30% talent and 70% hard work. You need to love a challenge to be able to win.’
My Sifu instilled this ethos into all of his students. Hung Ga is not about illusions or weird phenomena, it is about hard work and practice. That is the only way to gain the skill required to perform such powerful techniques.
Practice hard and you will win, whatever your challenge.
Locker Hire
Never forget your training kit by hiring out a locker in the changing rooms at YHGInverness. We have large lockers for only £4 per month*, that’s less than £1 per week, and a few small lockers left for only £2 per month*.
For more information contact Sifu on: 07545460743 or email on: enquiries@yhginverness.com
* plus key deposit.
Extra Qi-Gong Classes Added To Timetable
The qi-gong classes at the Inverness branch of Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy are proving to be very popular. New classes have been added to give students more flexability. There are now classes on Sunday 2-3pm, Tuesday mornings 10.30-11.30am and also Tuesdays & Thursdays 6.30-7.30pm.
Qi-Gong (pronounced Chee Gung) are gentle relaxing exercises, designed to bring energy into the body and calm the mind. Typically a qi-gong class involves rhythmic breathing, coordinated with slow movements or static postures and a calm mindful state. Qi-gong is a great form of gentle exercise and can be practised by everyone, young and old. It is great for improving health as well as concentration levels and focus.
In this class you will also learn the Ba Duan Jin (8 Pieces Of Brocade) Qi-Gong set. This set has been handed down for centuries. It has been attributed to legendary Chinese General Yue Fei who taught the exercise to his men to help keep their bodies strong and well-prepared for battle. The set consists of 8 sections. Each section contains a specific qi-gong exercise which can be practiced repeatedly for certain health benefits, or as part of the qi-gong set.
To find out more or to enquire about classes, email or phone Sifu Hepple.
07545460743
Scottish Country Dancing Display, Outside Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy Inverness
Here is another fine display of traditional Scottish entertainment, filmed on the doorstep of Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy tonight. (12/7/12)
www.yhginverness.com
Changing Rooms
Here’s a wee update on the changing rooms of the Inverness branch of Yee’s.
The flooring has now been laid and the lockers will soon be added.
Ideally cubicles will be added for students to change in. It does still need some work and a bit of a paint but you can see from this photo that progress has been made. Students will soon have access to their new changing rooms. 🙂
Pipe band play outside Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy, Inverness.
This is a regular sight outside the Inverness branch of Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Academy. You can often hear pipers play whilst training. Many buskers play on the High Street during the day but this pipe band practise every Tuesday night.
Hung Ga Iron Ring Training
Here’s a photo of some military webbing which i recently purchased. Its pretty tough stuff, used to hold cargo onto lorries etc. I wasn’t particularly interested in the webbing itself, more the rings on it. These rings can be used around the forearms to add extra weight for training and help condition the muscles, bones, skin and tendons. They help strengthen the whole arm and fist.
This is a link to The 36th Chamber of Shaolin, arguably one of the greatest kung fu films ever made, certainly up there amongst them anyway. It was made by the Shaw Brothers in 1978. In the opening credits you can see Gordon Liu practicing a version of the Hung Ga form “Tiet Sien Kuen” or “Iron Wire Form” using iron rings.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lrDdfybFhw
Sifu Hepple Tested by Master Frank Yee
It was smiles all round this weekend (26th-27th May 2012) as 30 students from the Aberdeen branch, the European headquarters, of Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Association passed their gruelling tests in front of the watchful eye of 10th Dan Great Grand Master Frank Yee (Yee Chi Wai.)
Master Frank Yee filmed some of the occasion specifically to broadcast on Chinese television. He has previously filmed a four part documentary which reached critical acclaim in China. He hopes to repeat this success with his new documentary featuring the many branches of Yee’s Hung Ga Kung Fu Association Worldwide. Master Frank Yee said, “We have many branches, the headquarters being in Guangdong Province, China but also throughout America and we are also branching out into Europe. Our European headquarters are in Aberdeen but we also have schools in Peterhead, Edinburgh and a new one has just opened up in Inverness, as well as new ones planned for Berlin, Prague and possibly even London too. This demonstrates a trend in martial arts students favouring more traditional styles all over the world.”
A large portion of the tests were completed at an advanced level. Chief instructor of the newly opened Inverness branch, Sifu Simon Hepple, passed his 3rd Dan black belt and was also a judge on many of the tests. “The level of skill and determination over the weekend was fantastic to witness. There was a lot of nerves and tensions were high but the passion illustrated by all the students was very obvious. They all worked extremely hard to achieve their goals and all deserved to achieve them.” On receiving his certificate another student said, “I’ve never trained so hard or wanted anything so badly in my whole life. I was incredibly nervous and now that it is all over, I feel a tremendous relief. The hard work never stops though and my black belt is only just the beginning.”
Training Area
Master Yee Chi Wai To Visit Aberdeen
I was very happy to hear the news of Master Yee Chi Wai‘s welcomed return to Aberdeen this coming May. Master Yee will be conducting seminars and tests at the Yee’s Hung Ga European Headquaters in Aberdeen, where I trained with Sifu Bruce Clark.
Here is a video of Maser Yee which aired on Chinese television a few years ago. It shows many sections from some of the Hung Ga forms, some drills and some fighting applications. It also stars Master Pedro Cepero Yee.
Plans for the Mo-Kwoon
The Mo-Kwoon (school) on Inverness High Street is currently going through planning application procedures with the Highland Council. Various renovation work will be carried out to transform it from a disused shell on the High Street into a practical, usable space.
There will also be a small gardened area, to the rear of the property, which will be used as an outside practice area, when favourable weather decides to grace us!
Keep an eye out for photos and progress updates of the work.