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This is the second page of the interview that Mike Chen did at the end of 2005 with Lu Yan.
Due to the size of the interview it has been split over 4 pages thus:
- Part 1: Advice for students and Coaches
- Part 2: How to improve your Wushu
- Part 3: The Beijing and other international teams
- Part 4: Compulsory forms and other interest
On this second page Mike asks Lu Yan about how she started Wushu, and also what the optimum age to start training is. Lu Yan also explains how she gets her
students to improve their skills.
Mike: When did you begin training in Wushu?
Lu Yan: 1972, in March, at the age of 8. I was in elementary school, 2nd grade. Li Junfeng came to my school to choose 4th, 5th, and
6th graders for Wushu. Even though I was too young, my schoolteacher knew that I was good at dancing and singing, and recommended me to Li Junfeng, who gave me
a chance to try out. The ten chosen 4th, 5th, and 6th graders along with myself were sent to Shi Cha Hai Sports School for training after school.
We had no idea what we were in for. That's how we started. Then there was an elimination process. Students were eliminated through trials and tests.
In the end I was the only one left from my school.
Mike: When did most of your students begin training in Wushu?
Lu Yan: The youngest are 5 or 6. 8 to 9 years is the idea age range. Kids who are younger than that tend to be too limited in their
understanding of physical education and other things in life. You need students to understand complex moves. The 8 to 9 range is best.
Eleven is too late, as they stiffen up and are not as flexible, so it takes more effort to move well. Their ability to understand is greater, but some of their
bones/ability to stretch is lost. That's not to say they can't do it. It's just that it would be harder for them at this age or above. It is best to start Wushu
at 8 or 9.
Mike: How do you get students to improve in training?
Lu Yan: When teaching, the instructor must understand each student’s personality, specialties, and skills. Find each student's unique
points and cater to them. If everyone gets the exact same teaching and face the same questions, it wouldn't be good. What’s useful to one is not of any use to another.
If originally they had the potential to score an 8 in a tournament, they may score no better than 7.5 due to the monotonous training you give them. You must deal with
each student's unique problems. Only then can you get each one to reach a score of 8. This is hard. It's a matter of intuition. Not all instructors are the same.
My feeling is that you need a period of time to adapt. No one can guarantee from the beginning that they can reach a certain level of proficiency within one month or
any other set amount of time. This would be lying. It is not possible. You must study this student, come to understand this student, as you get to know each other.
Come to understand the student's body's specialty, unique points, and habits.
Students in turn adapt to you. They can't instantly get used to your teaching methods. It takes time to adapt to each other. It could take maybe 3 months, 1/2 year,
or one year. It depends on each person’s physical limits, ability to comprehend, unique problems, and how the instructor goes about finding these points.
All of this takes time. It’s hard to say how long it'll take.
Some relatively less talented athletes have more obvious problems that are easily identified, but not easily fixed, such as tilted head or extruded hip. You know
quickly what the problem is but it's not as easy to fix it because the problem may have taken root. If they've gotten used to it, it'll be hard to change.
Better skilled athletes have less obvious problems. But when you face a time when they seem unable to exceed a certain score, there's a problem and it's not obvious
what the problem is. You want to help them to improve but here you're dealing with very small, nitpicky details. It's not always just problems of physical movements
but also of thinking and feeling. Fixing a move can take as little as two days. After a certain point, it's no longer an issue of fixing their movements, but a matter
of adjusting their thinking.
Some instructors are best at teaching children, some are good with lifting talented students higher, and some best at making champions out of top level students.
You can't truly say you can teach them all equally well. Different methods are needed in teaching each age group. Help them overcome their unique hurdles. At a time
when they hit their hurdles, help them, push them and suddenly you get them over the obstacle. This is most important for instructors to accomplish.
You mustn't hit students. All these years, from experience, you have to be strict but hitting is only good in the short run. Particularly, some young boys are naughty
and tend to misbehave. The more you hit them the more devious they become. Kids learn from adults. If the children see adults hit and yell at people, the children
themselves will learn to hit and yell. Children have a sense of reason too. If you hit them they surely won't respect you as an instructor. Hitting can make the
student panic and create a situation in which seeing the instructor puts them in a worried state, which makes them work hard in the presence of the instructor but not
elsewhere. It's impossible to follow the student around every day. It's impossible to watch them every minute. When you're not there, what happens? If they do it
just so you don't get mad, they’re doing it for the wrong reason. Have them know for their own sake what they're doing wrong, and in turn become willing to receive
the instructor's guidance. This way they get to do what they should on their own accord without you breathing down their necks.
If you go the other way to motivate students, you will keep on doing so. You’ll get used to a forceful mode of teaching and then have a very hard time changing. It
becomes a habit. It’s better to have the student become personally willing to come and train, and personally willing to put effort into learning.
Long ago, the previous generation of Chinese hit students. This is a traditional parental role and is not good. Original instructors did it to make students respect
as well as fear them. This is an original Chinese cultural method. Times have changed. Kids are exposed to more. For them to respect you, don't rely on force,
use virtue.
Mike: Why did you decide to practice Wushu especially? Why not something else?
Lu Yan: At that time, we had no choice. It’s not like nowadays, with all sorts of choices for students. Back then I really didn't know what
was going on. But if I were to do it all over again I would still choose Wushu. I think Wushu is really a good form of exercise. It strengthens the body, has physical
education qualities, and includes traditional Chinese culture, so why not learn Wushu? There's still more for me to learn. I’m very willing to help students and share
Wushu with them. It is very good especially for people who have an interest in Wushu and Chinese culture. Wushu has depth. The more you learn the more you like it.
Wushu brought me happiness.
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Want to learn more about Lu Yan's Wushu Career? Visit the
Wushu Career pages
Want to learn more about training with Lu Yan? Visit the
Train with Lu Yan pages
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