July 12th, 2025

The Stillpoint, the place where Chu Shong Tin and Alexander Technique meet

When people first see internal Wing Chun as taught by Chu Shong Tin, they often say the same thing: “He’s hardly doing anything… but they’re can't stop him.”
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It’s true. What we see in his movement—and what we feel when training in this method—is not brute force or technique in the usual sense. It's something subtler, quieter, more intelligent. It doesn’t fit into conventional martial categories. And yet, it's undeniable. This is also what drew me to the Alexander Technique..

The Common Thread: Interference
​Both Chu Shong Tin's Wing Chun and the Alexander Technique are not about adding more—more effort, more control, more tension. They’re about removing interference.

Alexander called it “inhibition”—the ability to pause, to prevent the automatic habits from jumping in. Only when we stop doing what we always do can something new and more functional appear.

Chu Shong Tin didn't say it in those words, but you see it in his practice. He focused on “thinking” movement rather than doing it. Not by mentally commanding the body, but by establishing a clear intention—say, to rotate the spine—and allowing the rest of the system to reorganize around that.

In both systems, coordination is not imposed. It emerges.

​Stength Without Tension.
Both traditions challenge the assumption that tension equals power.. n Alexander lessons, you discover that tightening your neck or bracing your legs doesn’t help you stand or move—it actually gets in the way. You learn to trust the body's natural support system. Gravity, not muscle, becomes your ally.

The same in Sung Wing Chun: the more we try to create strength by force, the more we disrupt our own structure. Real power comes from deep alignment—what CST called “nim lik,” the mind-force that travels through a properly organised body.

Use of the Self
Alexander spoke of “use”—how we use ourselves in action. Not just posture, but the quality of attention and coordination we bring to everyday movements
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Wing Chun is not separate from this. In fact, what we do in Siu Nim Tao, in standing, in partner work, is a continuous refinement of “use.” Not only learning how to punch or defend, but how to sit, to walk, to exist with less strain.
Chu Shong Tin didn’t teach Wing Chun as a set of techniques. He taught it as a way to change the way you use yourself in every moment. And that, to me, is Alexander work.
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Non-Doing, Real Change
The deepest commonality is this: real change doesn’t come from doing more. It comes from doing less—and doing it consciously.
We stop.
We listen.
We notice.
And in that pause, the system resets. Movement becomes clearer, simpler. The punch lands not because we forced it, but because we allowed it.

Final Thought
If we approach martial arts the way we approach life—through force, speed, and will—we’ll only reinforce what’s already broken.

But if we follow the direction offered by Chu Shong Tin and Alexander, we might find another way.
One that doesn’t fight ourselves.
One that listens.
One that changes everything.