I am interested in developing ease in my training and in my life in general. It is said that Ease is not always Easy. To develop ease in movement and power generation requires diligent practice of Wujifa standing and other internal movement exercises such as side to side see this wujifa post for more on side to side.
Ease in a larger sense in life comes from a combination of the way one notices, responds, one's emotional states, etc. Learning to develop more functional ways of interacting with yourself, others, and the world requires diligent practice and is directly related to this concept of Ease.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Friday, March 19, 2010
Forcing Issues
Tonight while practicing Wujifa standing meditation I noticed some things about force vs. allowing.
When I tried to force an alignment or posture I noticed I would get uncomfortable and/or upset in some manner - and distracted. I felt constricted.
When I relaxed my body and allowed it to . . . it almost felt like I let my body grow into the proper alignment (wujifa's 1234, 1234) I felt like I had more space for my joints, organs, etc. Breathing was easier, I was comfortable and practice felt great.
So long story short notice HOW you are practicing stance and do not just put your body into what you think the correct alignment should be. Allow your body to unwind, and gently move toward proper alignment. It isn't a damn competition or a race, and trying to force it will only slow you down on the path to developing internal gongfu.
So be cool, relax, and be gentle with yourself. Practice diligently but not by forcing yourself.
When I tried to force an alignment or posture I noticed I would get uncomfortable and/or upset in some manner - and distracted. I felt constricted.
When I relaxed my body and allowed it to . . . it almost felt like I let my body grow into the proper alignment (wujifa's 1234, 1234) I felt like I had more space for my joints, organs, etc. Breathing was easier, I was comfortable and practice felt great.
So long story short notice HOW you are practicing stance and do not just put your body into what you think the correct alignment should be. Allow your body to unwind, and gently move toward proper alignment. It isn't a damn competition or a race, and trying to force it will only slow you down on the path to developing internal gongfu.
So be cool, relax, and be gentle with yourself. Practice diligently but not by forcing yourself.
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Noticing
Noticing is very important in your internal gongfu practice.
Today during standing I noticed areas of tension in my shoulders and upper back. As I noticed it I started judging it as bad - thinking oh this is bad I have to get rid of that relax. I was trying to force it and it just got tighter, but when I noticed the tension without judging it. Thinking ah isn't that interesting that there's tension there in my back. It began to relax on it's own. I
n addition when I began to notice areas of my back that were relaxed and connected feeling a little fascial stretch then that feeling began to expand into more areas.
Isn't noticing sweet.
Noticing in this manner has been huge for me. I hope it is helpful to you in your internal gongfu practice. Feel free to drop any suggestions, questions, or comments on here. I'd love to get a discussion going.
Today during standing I noticed areas of tension in my shoulders and upper back. As I noticed it I started judging it as bad - thinking oh this is bad I have to get rid of that relax. I was trying to force it and it just got tighter, but when I noticed the tension without judging it. Thinking ah isn't that interesting that there's tension there in my back. It began to relax on it's own. I
n addition when I began to notice areas of my back that were relaxed and connected feeling a little fascial stretch then that feeling began to expand into more areas.Isn't noticing sweet.
Noticing in this manner has been huge for me. I hope it is helpful to you in your internal gongfu practice. Feel free to drop any suggestions, questions, or comments on here. I'd love to get a discussion going.
Monday, October 26, 2009
Gongfu Training
Training internal gongfu is a personal journey of growth and development. It is often said in Wujifa that a student must take responsibility for their own training, experiment, and notice the results.
A multifaceted deep practice to develop internal gongfu and full body connected strength and health is Zhan Zhuang which in Wujifa as well as other internal arts is commonly called stance or standing practice.
Intention and attention are important concepts during wujifa stance training. Your Intention is to stand for X amount of time with good structure, balance, and relax. Read about this Wujifa Liangong Triangle Model for more on structure balance and relax. The attention comes in when you notice what shows up - what you are noticing about your body, mind, and practice.
Simply notice what comes up with no judgement
a useful phrase when you notice something is "ah isn't that interesting"
even if it is discomfort, relaxation, a good thing, bad thing, anything - remember no judgement just noticing.
This is a good place to start with Wujifa stance
other helpful gongfu sites are
http://wujifaliangong.blogspot.com/
http://internalgongfu.blogspot.com/
http://internalmartialartstraining.blogspot.com/
http://wujifa-dan.blogspot.com/
http://unenlightenedpath.blogspot.com/
A multifaceted deep practice to develop internal gongfu and full body connected strength and health is Zhan Zhuang which in Wujifa as well as other internal arts is commonly called stance or standing practice.
Intention and attention are important concepts during wujifa stance training. Your Intention is to stand for X amount of time with good structure, balance, and relax. Read about this Wujifa Liangong Triangle Model for more on structure balance and relax. The attention comes in when you notice what shows up - what you are noticing about your body, mind, and practice.
Simply notice what comes up with no judgement
a useful phrase when you notice something is "ah isn't that interesting"
even if it is discomfort, relaxation, a good thing, bad thing, anything - remember no judgement just noticing.
This is a good place to start with Wujifa stance
other helpful gongfu sites are
http://wujifaliangong.blogspot.com/
http://internalgongfu.blogspot.com/
http://internalmartialartstraining.blogspot.com/
http://wujifa-dan.blogspot.com/
http://unenlightenedpath.blogspot.com/
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