Changquan

Changquan
長拳

A man doing cekongfan (侧空翻; "side somersault"), a common move in Changquan.
Also known as	Long Fist
Focus	Striking, weapons training
Country of origin	China
Creator	Zhao Kuangyin
Famous practitioners	Han Qing-Tang
Parenthood	San Huang Pao Chui, Chāquán Fanzi, Huaquan, Taizu Changquan, Hongquan
Descendant arts	Chen-style t'ai chi ch'uan, Sanshou
Olympic sport	Wushu (sport)

Chángquán (simplified Chinese: 长拳; traditional Chinese: 長拳; pinyin: Chángquán; literally: "Long Fist") refers to a family of external (as opposed to internal) martial arts (kung fu) styles from northern China.

The forms of the Long Fist style emphasize fully extended kicks and striking techniques, and by appearance would be considered a long-range fighting system. In some Long Fist styles the motto is that "the best defense is a strong offense," in which case the practitioner launches a preemptive attack so aggressive that the opponent doesn't have the opportunity to attack. Others emphasize defense over offense, noting that nearly all techniques in Long Fist forms are counters to attacks. Long Fist uses large, extended, circular movements to improve overall body mobility in the muscles, tendons, and joints. Advanced Long Fist techniques include qin na joint-locking techniques and shuai jiao throws and takedowns.

The Long Fist style is considered to contain a good balance of hand and foot techniques, but in particular it is renowned for its impressive acrobatic kicks. In demonstration events, Long Fist techniques are most popular and memorable for their whirling, running, leaping, and acrobatics. Contemporary changquan moves are difficult to perform, requiring great flexibility and athleticism comparable to that of gymnastics.

Long Fist's arsenal of kicks covers everything from a basic front toe-kick to a jumping back-kick, from a low sweep to a tornado-kick. Specifically, typical moves in modern Changquan include: xuanfengjiao (旋风脚; "whirlwind kick"), xuanzi (旋子; "butterfly jump"), cekongfan (侧空翻; "side somersault"), and tengkongfeijiao (腾空飞脚; "flying jump kick").

The traditional Long Fist had a very small amount of techniques that were learned quickly once one had mastered the three common Long Fist stances of Horse, Dragon and Snake. With the Winding Roundhouse Punch, Meteor Fist Punch, Long Uppercutting Punch, Reverse Fist Punch and the Twin Gorilla Punch all the hand techniques were covered. Adding the Winding or Whirling Roundhouse Kick the original style was complete. The only variation on this allowed Long Fist practitioners to also strike with their fore-arm and shins, not just feet and fists, though still using the same techniques and movements. There are no blocks in Long Fist, although the execution of Long Fist techniques allowed the 'brushing' aside of attacks whilst delivering the powerful techniques.