Siu Nim Tao (小念頭, Pinyin: xiao3 nian4 tou2 (or tou5); Yale (Jyutping): siu2 nim6 tau4; lit. little thought/idea) is a practice routine of Wing Chun, its first "form".
It is practiced following five major principles:
- kim sut ("knees in")
- lok ma ("lower the stance")
- ting yu ("tuck the hips under")
- dung tao ("head erect")
- mai jahng ("elbows in")
The form trains many things:
- keeping the center line
- keeping the body still while moving the arms correctly
- providing a stable state to return to while executing wing chun
- applying the elbow energy correctly
- Breathing correctly