Philip Nearing School of Wing Chun

I have read reviews of other martial arts studios in the city and have no doubt that similarly positive environments for studying exist for any martial art. If you are like me and don’t know what style you are looking for before you start, you can take a free semi-​private class here and also observe what a typical class looks like. I checked out two other kung fu schools (I at least knew I wanted to learn kung fu) in addition to this one, and I highly recommend you do the same. Kind of like finding an apartment: one will just speak to you. I imagine it really sucks to invest any amount of time at a place before you realize you would have chosen another environment had you only known.
I’ve been studying Wing Chun with Phil Nearing for close to 6 years, and I look forward to class as much now as I ever have. I approached martial arts in my late 30s knowing nothing but what I had seen in the movies. I didn’t know what style I wanted to learn, but I did have an idea what I wanted the learning experience to be like:
1) A patient but demanding teacher who knows how to guide development
2) A manageable class size where everyone gets some individual attention
3) A culture of respect among the students, where we all look out for each other, pushing each other to do better, working as hard on being a good training partner for each other’s development as we work on developing ourselves, and welcoming anyone sharing those beliefs
4) Enough classes in the week to allow some flexibility in my life
Maybe I didn’t know exactly what I wanted before I started, but this is what I value today, and I couldn’t be happier with the environment here, or more proud to be associated with such a great martial arts family. It doesn’t matter what you look like, how much money you make, how naturally coordinated you are. What bonds this school is the shared enthusiasm for improving ourselves every day, seeing the improvement in ourselves and each other, and discovering a little more about the truth of this art as taught by Ip Man’s sons to Samuel Kwok, by Samuel Kwok to Phil Nearing, and now by sifu Nearing to us.
About the school:
1) Classes Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Saturday; try to attend at least two but the more the better in my book
2) Fully equipped lower level gym and resident professional physical trainer specializing in low-​impact, explosive exercises to increase cardiovascular endurance, speed, agility, and development of power
3) Full contact sparring: after a student has demonstrated an intermediate/​advanced ability in Wing Chun, she will be given the option to spar with safety gear in once/​week session (private to those doing the sparring), but definitely no obligation to do so.
4) Beautiful new (now about 2 years old) studio on Chicago/​Noble. Generous space which is diligently kept clean; as there is some ground work training, no shoes are ever permitted on the mats
5) Students with no experience, small frames, and who have never thrown a punch will excel in this school because the art form works for them, but students here run the gamut of body type and martial experience.
To be clear, my rating for this school is based as much on the generosity, sincerity, and consideration that is consistent among the students who spend any amount of time here as it is on the knowledge of our sifu, and his passion for preserving the art as taught by Ip Man as best he can. I give it five stars because even though it may not be perfect, I can’t imagine any place doing it better.

I have been a student of Philip Nearing for four years and come from a background of 20 years of martial arts, I also worked the doors on rush st for nearly a decade, I like the street effectiveness of the art, the professionalism of teacher and the skill level of his advanced students, and most importantly I like the atmosphere of the gym.

Phillip Nearing as a martial artist is good, as a human being is awful. He has the biggest ego on the planet and completely defeats the spirit of martial artists such as IP man. I studied under him for over a year and during that time, I saw the worst of him often enough to easily be discouraged in his institute and his tenets of martial arts. First let me mention the positive. Sifu nearing is knowledgeable about the craft and is a good communicator — so every word he says is clear and solid.
Now the bad. Nearing is rude, egoistic and has double standards. There were several times he would scream at students for something really innocuous — once a student wore a tshirt inadvertently from a boxing school — he literally screamed at him the second he saw him and barked at him to change with words such as «NOW»! He looks threatening and makes students not feel safe. He also accidentally hit his student — and his hit is well — a solid hit. And his apology was really insincere — he seemed to have done it intentionally. Nearing’s room is very small/​messy and will make anyone nauseous. He suffers from severe favoritism — his favorite students include Josh — a tall rude man with no social skills. Josh has deep anger issues and when you train with him, he will threaten you that if you hit him by mistake, he will hit you back.
His class consists of pot-​bellied wannabe bouncers that talk about beating people up after class on the staircase. It is pretty pathetic. No respect for Nearing and his dingy studio. Avoid at all costs.

I have now been studying on and off with Sifu Philip Nearing for about 3 years. I have learned quite a bit, but it is still a mere drop in the bucket compared to what the school and the art itself have to offer — and I am absolutely hooked on this school, my teacher, my fellow students, and the art of wing chun.
Without getting too deep in detail, some of the benefits I have enjoyed through study are improved health, speed, confidence in my ability to defend myself and my loved ones (or get out of a sticky situation), and confidence in my ability to attack with force and intent if necessary.
All that said, the thing I value most about my time at the school are the relationships I’ve developed with my teacher and classmates, all of whom train hard, help each other, have fun, and provide a challenge. Many of my classmates study other martial arts along with wing chun, and are adding it to their repertoire, while others (like me) have never studied other arts.
Over the time I’ve studied at the school, Sifu Nearing has tirelessly invested in building and growing the school… moving to a larger studio, adding a gym with a personal trainer, and conducting quarterly seminars with guest instructors on varying topics such as street defense, edged weapon use and defense, and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, among others. He is a patient, detail oriented teacher who ensures his students have good solid foundational skills to build on; he personally works with new students to ensure everyone’s on the right track, and advances each student along the learning curve based on their personal progress.
I have found wing chun to be a very challenging art which forces you to stay relaxed and rely on the opponent’s energy to guide you to the proper defense and counterstrike. Since size and brute force are not necessary to be an effective practitioner, wing chun is a great martial art for anyone to learn — large or small, male or female, child or adult.
I would give the Philip Nearing School of Wing Chun the highest possible recommendation for anyone of any size, age, skill, or experience level, wanting to learn the valuable skills and confidence that come with studying martial arts.

I come from a large and diverse family of martial artists. The kind where family party dinner discussion involves people shouting across the table animatedly (albeit friendly) about their experiences or bias to their native arts be it Karate, Jiujitsu, or Wing Chun. Beyond all of our differences it’s beautiful to see that we all are interested in intelligent exchanges and improving ourselves and each other respectively. Truly the purest exchange.
This same friendly attitude is one that Master Phil Nearing instills in his all of his pupils. Master Phil holds a tremendous amount of respect for his friends in the Martial arts community whom are even more diverse. As a second generation student (after my father) I am proud to call this gym my home. The students at the school are not only my friends, but they have become my second family. It’s an environment where everyone looks out for each other selflessly and douchey/​arrogant attitudes are not tolerated.
Phil is truly a world class martial artist and a historian. He always shows tremendous respect for Wing Chun and sees the art as bigger than himself, trusting the map that Ip Man left for his disciples to cultivate as well as the invaluable guidance from his teacher Grand Master Samuel Kwok. Sifu Nearing’s skills are unquestionable. Not even a little bit. Has been compared to witch craft. I am lucky to have access this family of Wing Chun. There is truly nothing like it.

First of all a little background on me for perspective… I am a second degree black belt (Nidan) in Isshinryu Karate. I studied for 10 years, and taught for my last 3 years.
I joined Philip Nearing School of Wing Chun with the hopes that I would find a seasoned instructor who had a total grasp of the art, but had the common sense to address the modern world of martial arts. I was not looking for a school in the ground and pound.
I have been so pleasantly surprised that not only have my expectations been met, but far exceeded. I have never trained under a better instructor. He is multi-​faceted, charismatic, and good at what he does. I really enjoy every class.
The students are diverse, welcoming like a family, and ready to learn. This is one of the gems of the martial arts community. I would highly recommend you observe a class if you are truly looking for something to integrate into your life, something that is effective, challenging, and fun.
All fitness levels should feel comfortable in the class as there is a beauty in the art in and of itself that lends itself quite well to anyone willing to invest time and effort into their mind, body and spirit.
As you can tell, I can not say enough great things about this school. Phil is a fantastic master of his art, and is very capable of teaching that to others.
Sincerely,
Marty