Tan Tui: Northern Shaolin's "Snapping Legs"
from the British Council for Chinese Martial Arts

Practical, efficient, and deadly. They're all qualities to be admired in a martial art. But Tan Tui offers more; it's the foundation upon which many Northern styles rest. One not only learns a formidable way of fighting, but simutaneously develops the body control and coordination required for many advanced styles of kungfu. And that's why Chin Woo uses Tan Tui as its main style. Shaolin kungfu is generally divided into Northern and Southern styles. The Southern style emphasizes the mechanics of close range fighting, relying on the development of strong, short-hand techniques.

The Northern style, in the other hand, relies on the development of speed and great emphasis is placed of leg techniques. The Northern style of Kungfu has been renowned for ages because of its long-hand and advanced kicking techniques. Modern Wushu stylists in fact derive their major mechanics from Northern styles like Changquan (Long Fist), Eagle Claw and Drunken Fist among others. The more sophisticated, lethal kungfu kicks are also from the North, and among these are the Butterfly Kick, the Flying Front Kick and so on. These kicks belong to the advanced category of practice and before attaining proficiency in these, one must have a good foundation, good basics.

In this aspect, the Tan Tui (Snapping Legs) serves that very purpose. The Tan Tui is so popular that it has been integrated into the basic course for such Northern styles as Praying Mantis, Eagle Claw, and Changquan. It is because of this classification as part of the basic course that practitioners often disregard TanTui's importance and practicality. Students, more often than not, merely look upon Tan Tui as being just a requirement to pass before proceeding onto higher learning. But as in all kungfu styles, the basics are the key to the end result.

The Benefits of Tan Tui:

Beginners in kungfu are often concerned with the burden of drilling in the horse stance, which may appear to them at times, arduous and boring. No matter which particular style of kungfu is practiced, the horse stance is a must; a basic requirement which makes the practitioner stable and rooted to the ground. In this aspect, Tan Tui plays a dual purpose; drilling in the horse stance while practicing leg techniques at the same time. Actually, in practicing leg movements of the Tan Tui, one is unconciously drilling in the horse stance simultaneously. This is because the leg movements are practiced in the horse stance position with certain variations from the standard, upright position; a routine leg movement may require one to bend the supporting leg 45 degrees at the knee and kick lower part on the other leg with toes pointed, knee unbent, and with all concentration on the toes. This movement in itself, actually a drill on the horse stance, perfecting your rootedness to the ground. In the other movements, concentration is not on the toes but on the heels or the soles, but nonetheless, all serve dual purpose of drilling in leg movements and perfecting the horse stance.

Before one concludes that Tan Tui is all legwork, we must delve deeper into its essence. Tan Tui has very abundant and diverse tactics. The essence of the art lies in its four 'works': handwork, legwork, bodywork, and footwork. Each is combined tactically to deliver an explosive force. Though the style boasts of legwork ranging from springing to treadin, stamping, sweeping, kicking and hooking, it also contains a bounty of handwork like thrusting, grappling, chopping, squeezing, pushing and crooking to complement its legwork. Each legwork has its own rules, its own handwork and its own bodywork to complement the movement.

The techniques of Tan Tui also consists of various kicks found in the Northern Shaolin styles like the inch kick, side kick, front kick, and shin kick among others. Thus, practice in this style is a good warm-up to the other leg techniques of the Shaolin fighting arts.

Tan Tui also has techniques wherein the student is required to crouch low and twist the waist in blockign down, so it serves as good flexibility exercise for the legs and waist. It should be noted that flexibility and agility are of great importance in the more advanced Northern styles and in the practice of Tan Tui, aside from acquiring a good foundation, the student is also prepared, flexibilitywise, to go on further.

The Tan Tui routines also make full use of stretching and extending in their legwork and handwork like punching and kicking, resulting in a more agile practitioner. The movements of Tan Tui should be very brisk and nimble. Practice on these exercises should be consistent and regular to achieve the best results. Tan Tui is very good in improving one's strength and leaping abilities. Flexibility and tenacity are highly required in the execution of the various movements. In Tan Tui a harmonious co-ordination between the hands, eyes, body, steps and breathing is a must, making the nerve centers active and alert at all times. Whilst practicing the exercises, one should find the blood circulation speeding up and inner energy releasing out, thus providing the body with a good drill for the cardiovascular system. In general, Tan Tui can be highly recommended, not only for it's superb fighting and drilling qualities, but for it's health-nourishing effects on the practitioner.

In addition to this, the Tan Tui routines contain body shifting techniques, which can be used to evade attacks and hand and foot movements which can be utilized in order to close the gap between the fighter and the opponent, as well as sweeping and trapping techniques, also useful in a combat situation.