But if you're talking about restricting as in fighting against other styles? Then you should check out "master wongs" youtube videos. He talk alot about this and give some examples as well.
http://www.youtube.com/user/138mws
Not me to tell you the truth. If you are talking about the main training stance that everyone is learning at the beginning, that is also in order to train your legs at the beginning. Tips if you are feeling uncomfortable....Keep on mind that in a while that stance will feel very natural.
Your knees should be behind your toes and not the opposite. People that do not feel comfortable with this stance many times is due to that. So when you look down better be able to see your toes. The knees should not be exceeding more forward than the toes.
Many stances in martial arts are uncomfortable and even restrictive in the beginning. I had several issues with a couple of Karate stances and lots of issues with Shaolin Kung Fu stances. It does get better in time though as you get more flexible and more relaxed and now the Karate stances are not an issue anymore and the Kung Fu stances are getting better too. Some stances in some martial arts too are not meant for fighting and are done to strengthen the legs. In the end it's all what you train.
"Stances" are not for you to "get into" when you're going to have a match.
Stances are techniques. When you are in a stance, it is teaching you a technique you have to learn to apply against an attacker.
So, no. Wing Chun stances are NOT restrictive.
You are thinking about it from a sport perspective. If you stand in a toes pointed inward stance in a sport arena, you will be destroyed. Stances are not used for that... or rather, that is NOT what they were intended for.
Stances are more training methods than ways you are expected to stand. so you are judging something that you are neither qualified to judge nor understand. Stances are applications or body shifting methods. They are not static postures that you are supposed to assume to fight.
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