By Nic Bartell | May 21, 2017
Do You Want to Learn Jeet Kune Do?
If you are looking for Jeet Kune Do (JKD) classes in Houston Texas, it means that you are interested in the training methods of Bruce Lee. JKD is an extremely interesting and effective form of martial arts that has highly influenced the mixed martial arts movement and impacted the philosophies of many martial artists around the world.
Where Did JKD Come From?
If you are looking for JKD then you probably already know that Jeet Kune Do was developed and taught by Bruce Lee and if you have looked into Bruce’s history you will quickly find out that his teacher was the late, great Yip Man (also known as Ip Man from the movies). Many, if not most, of the ideas found in JKD are those that were taught to Bruce by his life-long Sifu (teacher) Yip Man. The theories, concepts, and techniques that are often attributed to Bruce Lee are without question very heavily influenced by his Sifu.
What Did Yip Man Teach?
Yip man taught “the” Kung Fu; a complete fighting system that withstood the test of time on the streets and in the battle fields. For the last few centuries this system has been known as Ving Tsun (Wing Chun).
So Why do We Have JKD?
The answer to this question is up for debate and depending on who you speak to the reasons vary greatly, so assuming there is not an absolute or correct answer let’s look at the facts.
- Bruce Lee had a teacher - Yip Man
- Bruce Lee’s formal training was Ving Tsun
- Bruce Lee taught Ving Tsun to his closest students.
- JKD was Bruce’s personal expression of the Kung Fu that he knew.
Should You Train JKD or Ving Tsun?
Confession: I have trained both…
Conclusion: Training Ving Tsun makes it possible to understand JKD and makes it obvious that JKD was designed not to fill a hole in traditional Kung Fu training but rather to explore the result of what “the” kung fu allows the practitioner to do. JKD is what Bruce Lee could do with the skill he obtained by training Ving Tsun, but as a system of teaching those skills it is more complicated and less reliably taught. Of course this is my experience but when you look at the history of Jeet Kune Do it makes sense that training Ving Tsun would help you understand the inner workings of a system created by a Ving Tsun practitioner.
What Now?
Luckily there are many schools that teach JKD and many that teach Ving Tsun (Wing Chun) in the Houston area. If you want to develop real fighting skills from a system that has withstood the test of time, then you should consider trying one of our classes.
If you are still on the fence, I highly encourage you to attend both classes and make a decision for yourself based upon which resonates with you and your purpose. You might find yourself, like I did, pleasantly surprised with the simplicity, practicality, and power of Ving Tsun.
Want to Learn More?
The best way to get a feel of what Ving Tsun (Wing Chun) is really about, is to participate in a class at our school. We have an introductory program that includes two classes (one private lesson and one group lesson). Participating in this program will give you a really good idea of what we do and its practicality. You can sign up for that program via the links below.