Collapse Press Hammer （Beng ya Chuei）

 Hammer Time:  Backfist

By Shifu Andrew Miles

The Chinese word for fist 锤 literally means "hammer".  Let that sink in for a moment.  Think about how a hammer strikes.  Does it resemble the striking we practice?

 Melon hammers.  When they say "fist" they mean this.

One of the eight hammers is 崩锤 beng chui or collapse press hammer.

 Beng chui is more than hitting with the back of the fist.  The purpose of backfist is to crush through the opponent's structure and bounce them off of the ground.  The fist strikes downward and the arm (handle of the hammer) presses against the opponent's body.  Mantis classics say that one should bear down with the weight of a mountain.  Think of the elbow and knee as jaws of life coming together in a pincer movement. 

 

That is also  the way mandibles work.

Li Kun Shan demonstrating beng chui at long distance.

Wei Xiao Tang demonstrating sitting belly posture which makes included beng chuei.  Master Wei was fond of backfist which is why he was called "Thunder fist."

How to practice:

Start swinging a sledgehammer and you will soon notice where your stance is weak and after an hour or so you will have learned a lot about power generation.  Start looking at the fastest ways to knock people to the ground with a large hammer while retaining balance.  Exploring this will give you realistic feel for stances and  empty hand application

The end result is something like this.