Dexterity and strength in the waist

 Jim R: Some time ago, I had a conversation with someone who was an editor at a book company and who is also an author of a book on Tai Chi applications:  I am rewriting as much as I remember from the conversation, and I hope this helps one from what I learned from Master Hwa: A civil conversation about training for Fajin and the "Springs" of recent posts on Youtube, and viewing "A chat with Sifu" by Wynter. 

The editor: "I think I understand what you are proposing; however, I still find the emphasis surprising. I should say that although we talk about the legs generating Jin, it is true that the waist, arms, and hands also do something. They cannot be limp and may even provide substantial energy. One of how I teach as I try to translate my understanding of the classics in simple terms is to say that we should always generate power with the biggest and strongest muscles available and let smaller muscles do supporting work. According to at least some definitions, the muscles controlling the thighs and pelvis are the strongest. They certainly have more range of motion than the muscles controlling the lumbar spine. I would say that the waist can add power to the legs, but not the other way around. I would say that the legs are the heavy springs, and the waist has the medium springs. Once the heavy springs have stored the maximum energy they can, they can share some with the medium springs without loss of collective power; however, if you try to maximize the storage in the medium springs before the heavy ones, you will steal energy from them and limit them." 

Jim R said: 

Hi ,  "What you say makes sense if one takes the giant steps of a large frame. As Master Hwa has said, what we do biomechanically only makes sense in a small frame, a small circle. (I show very small steps of Wu Chien Chuan and Hua Jiping in this Blog)  I have to disagree that legs are the strongest, and they certainly are not possessing the most dexterity coupled with great strength. After all, a great baseball player or tennis player may move the legs and arms to set up the "shot," but the waist, in its turning, gives it the power, the "oomph." 

"I am not talking about large springs, large steps, or large frames as done in Yang, Wu, or Chen styles. The "springs" are weak in the elbow and the shoulder and strong in the waist. There are "reaction" forces to be reckoned with when pushing from the legs. The concept of "firming" the legs inopportunely only serves to negate any relaxation of the legs, much as "firming" up the arm that way as well. Failure to relax arms and legs subjects the body to reaction force which a giant stance may well absorb, but significantly large tai chi stances have many drawbacks. Mobility, Orthogonal forces, double weighting, and more. 

The compact and tight compact Forms use "pulling" with both front and back. The step size is relatively small in a compact form, minimal in a tight compact, and much smaller than what Wu Gong Yi showed in the Gold Book. That pulling is by the "engagement" of contracting (abdominal, back, buttock) core muscles with the legs. The style does not eschew pushing with the legs; it uses it with discretion. For instance, it can use pushing once the opponent's balance is offset. A pushing movement, even with a larger step, can be added opportunely as far as elaborating on the reasoning for "rooted in the feet, generated by the waist, controlled by the legs and manifested through the fingers," as you have talked about in your appreciated books about Tai Chi Classics. 

This statement may apply to certain Large Frame moves which use the leg to generate the pushing force. But, it is not usable in the Compact Form, which produces power from the torso, and it is essential to remember not only the difference in frame size that I speak of here. It is important to remember how equal and opposite force will be sent from the waist down through the pelvis to the leg, finally absorbed by the ground through the foot. During that instant, the buttock and leg will naturally energize to transmit the force to the feet, thus firming the lower body structure to support the fa jin."

Controlling movement video

Can Classical Tai Chi Square Form Improve Movement Control? 

It means an unwanted movement that follows uncontrollably after a conscious move. For example, imagine touching and then trying to "stick" to a person's solar plexus with 4 of your fingertips. Still, you end up activating your thumb, which simultaneously makes a fist instead, messing up your "sticking." Remember, you wanted to "follow" the opponent, not hit them with your fist.  

Master Hwa uses the image of sweeping an opponent's leg with yours. If there is another movement in the rest of the body, the sweeping leg loses power as it is drained off. You thought you would "swear" the rest of the body did not move...but it does. The brain needs training on zeroing in the neural signal to ALL junctions.

 Here we have the logical choice of Square Form, where 1000+ movements teach the student to keep integrity in all the Yin/Yang junctions of movement. Yes, the more "robotic", the better because it emphasizes all the small junctions and the large ones of the Yin/Yang pairing. 

The unwanted movement of the thumb is in the brain, not the hand. Master Stephen Hwa's quote: "Most untrained people make moves instinctively...Most beginners cannot keep their neural signals focused on a narrow segment of their body...unintended movement...sloppy movement...".

The unwanted neural activation in the part of the brain that controls the four fingers spreads inappropriately to the amount that holds all fingers and thumb because there is no appropriate inhibition. The hard part of getting better at Classical Tai Chi Form, Sparring, Push hands, or any other form of movement is simply gaining the ability to control unwanted neural activation.

Happy Lunar New Year

 

Happy Lunar New Year:  My wish for everyone in the group is to ask themselves the following and to “follow through” on the answers they find in the New Year:

There is no "flowery," "ethereal," or "new age" language in Classical Tai Chi; there is, however, lots to puzzle over and practice. The book, videos, and online learning delineate the routes to solving the puzzle. However, all the student needs is a small place to practice, a desire to enjoy what they do rather than straining to achieve something, some time, and gumption. Here in brevity, is what I might have wanted to know (as a beginner or practitioner) before I start learning.

* What does "internal energy" mean, and what is the way to get it?

* How do all those types of "forms" (large, compact, square, etc.) fit into a learning program?

* What pieces am I missing to learn Tai Chi?

* How does the way I align myself contribute to gaining internal energy?

* Why are there seemingly so many rules to follow when learning this?

* Why does it seem so complex and challenging many times?

* If Tai Chi originated from martial artists, why is it what I see often will look just like dance?

* What in the world can I gain from doing Classical Tai Chi?

* Are there any dangers in doing this? What should I cultivate, and what should I avoid?

* Why does it take so long to learn?

* This art has no "belts" what distinguishes beginners from advanced?

Uncovering The Treasure: Classical Tai Chi's Path to Internal Energy .... https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13143102-uncovering-the-treasure  as well as being available on Amazon.com for purchase.  Yes, I wrote this in another time to "good reads".

The research is in!

 Link to video of Classical Tai Chi Walking

Here is some research as we learn and "...we learn to walk again..."  I'm going to use Tai Chi Master Stephen Hwa's "coined term," "Ordinary Force,"  and here is some real irony in light of how Tai Chi critics troll Classical Tai Chi Square Form as "ROBOTIC." Understanding how humans walk with my own term, "Ordinary Walk" (which uses "ordinary force"), could help engineers improve walking by developing better human exoskeletons and walking ROBOTS. This is according to research done at a movement lab c/o Ohio State University. 

On his 75th birthday, Master Hwa walked toward me down the school hallway. His walk was Classical Tai Chi extraordinary, not "Ordinary," and each step was accompanied by a corresponding "quarter body move" of the core. This Classical Tai Chi walking is not "ordinary force," and there is no "reaction force" coming back up the legs to "flounder" the body. The legs remain relaxed, with no tension to transfer "reaction force ."We are not Simone Biles floundering that missed step, but we have floundering experiences when we "ordinary walk" daily.   

Simone Biles is not perfect, nor are we. When we walk, our steps are all different. With "ordinary walking," a researcher's mathematical model and data suggest that each step is a tiny fall. There is random-looking variation in our footfalls,  in our steps. We unconsciously do this to get it right, 

  Surprisingly, Scientists have done the math and footsteps related to pelvic positions with "ordinary walk ."When researchers compared this pelvis movement to footfall variations, they found nothing random. It seems pelvic fluctuations can predict more than 80 percent of the side-to-side variation in foot placement. We talk about the "Torso method" in Classical Tai Chi. In everyday walking, however, the torso top tips left, and our effort goes more "leftish" to correct. Torso tips right and stepping further right occurs. How ironic! We diverge to left or right with each walking step, front or back. So these are FALLS, and we fix them with the torso, mainly the pelvis, to control them.

Data shows that following pelvic movement shows where your next step lands better than watching your feet. Your pelvis knows best. They also ruled out other possible influences, like where a person was on a  treadmill belt. The single best explanation for a person's pattern of footfalls was self-correction. 

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Whether aware of it or not, each human being is faced with a dilemma in the form of "controlled falling" every time we take a step. The center of gravity is NOT under control, we rely on our subconscious, and we delude ourselves if we think it is conscious walking. 

Some critics say the "square form is robotic," This may be shocking, but stability is not present in their everyday walking, nor is it in yours. Making robots, the scientists said, is about being stable. A robot stops, "it is stable if it does not fall," so it can go very slowly. One must think that the Classical Tai Chi-square form, disposed of as being "robotic," has a creative side. Our walking and controlled falling via momentum have their parallel in the animal kingdom. Ride a horse, however, and sometimes all four hooves are airborne. No slow motion for horses, and it is the same for humans. Our center of mass moves to its highest point in front of the lead foot. So, we begin to fall forward, but our other foot rushes forward to catch us. We then raise our center of mass and "reset" the system for the next step. 

So walking is momentum-based falling and catching (or "controlled falling"), and you are never in a permanent, stable state. Hence the stage is always set for a fall in everyone, both young and old.

Is it any wonder then that we are subject to falling when older? We lose strength in the legs, feeling in the feet, coordination, and more. One has to ask what has happened to the role of the rest of the body in this dilemma. Is the "rest of the body" not the core or torso? In essence, we rely on faulty mechanisms to carry us through an old age that may also be fraught with some disease. 

Master Stephen Hwa says that not every student who starts Tai Chi wishes to become proficient in the art. On the other hand, Classical Tai Chi walking training has many facets. "walking" also tunes the nervous system in the lower body and strengthens it. The essence of "walking" training is to teach the student to use "internal discipline" to direct the movements of the torso to move the legs. The walking training prepares the student how to maintain the correct body posture. Additional elements of the walking training teach the student how to integrate the principles of Tai Chi walking into everyday life.

Straight Lines, Short Distance

Link to Square Form 

Key points on practicing Square Form:

To achieve internal movements, the body must have yin(stationary part) and yang(moving part) paired at the right place. Learning to set the yin-yang pair correctly, the first task is to learn how to set the yin part of the body correctly which is what Square Form trains you to do. That is why Square Form looks robotic-when one part of body moves the other parts of body remain completely still. Therefore, practicing Square Form the more robotic look, the better. If you do not maintain the stillness while other parts of body is moving, the objective of doing Square Form is compromised. You need to know that these yin-yang pairs practiced in the Square Form are imbedded in the Round Form dynamically transforming from one yin-yang pair to another to give the effect of constant motion and continuity.

“This Square Form was taught by Grand Master Wu Chief Chuan to my teacher Young Wabu. At that time, students learning Square Form would not be taught internal, upper quadrant body movements. Therefore, movements using upper quarter body intensively were modified in this Square Form. As a result, this Square form at certain locations is different from the round form.” Master Stephen Hwa

108 Small Circle Round Form

Video Link Facebook page of Stephen Hwa

YouTube video linkYouTube video link

small frame vs large frame

The difference between small frame (small circle) and large frame tai chi form:

There is saying in China 内传小架,外传大架, "small frame reserved for family insiders; large frame for everyone else."

Small Frame does not mean: just have smaller movements. There are fundamental differences between small and large frame. It is the internal discipline in movements (all movements are carried out from the torso, not from the limbs) resulted in small frame. 

Correct Body structure of Classical Tai Chi

The Correct Body Structure of Classical Tai Chi

I recall my early days of study, particularly those in which I had teachers who were long on enthusiasm and short on experience...some with only 1 year more than me.  In retrospect I recall them telling me to "sitback, sitback, sitback..." with no accompanying instructions on HOW to sitback correctly or WHY I was doing it wrong.  Obviously, I was doing it incorrectly, I thought, otherwise why would they keep repeating "sitback, sitback, sitback..." in a stacatto fashion?  Master Stephen Hwa addresses "sitback position", HOW, WHY, WHEN,  "forward position" and more in a 12 minute segment taken from a 2011 workshop.  The segment is more appropriately named "The correct body structure of Classical Tai Chi". You can go to the Youtube video of the segment by clicking on this link:

THE CORRECT BODY STRUCTURE OF CLASSICAL TAI CHI

Master Stephen Hwa: 

I went to Shanghai and a relative of mine told me his Uncle is a big guy in Yang Style Tai Chi in Shanghai.  He is also a Catholic Bishop  there and so they use the church to practice Yang Style Tai Chi. They are like this.  And then when they are older, in their “60’s”, the whole group, everyone has bone spurs in their lower back. Because the compression, the stress on the lower back caused bone spurs. You know this stress sometimes causes bone spurs, right? That unusual stress on the joints causes bone spurs. Every one of them has bone spurs in the lower back.

Student:  Master Hwa, you talk about the sensations occurring in the back, do you talk about the sensations occurring in the front as well?

Master Hwa: Some, but mostly in the back. Also, remember when he spoke?  He just raised an excellent point.  Remember, we said, going forward, all the weight has to be on the front foot? Now, the whole back is not entirely relaxed because there is a stretch in the lower back, down to the heel, try to maintain the touch of the heel on the ground.  Now, do you feel that stretch? Now you don’t have weight on it, but you should feel that stretch. You work to maintain the heel touch the ground. So the leg is kind of straight, not with bent knee.  Not with bent knee.  So you want to maintain some force on the leg to maintain the stretch. Not bending the knee.

Student: Do you sense that stretch continually when you are transferring weight back?

Master Hwa: Yes, when you are pulling back, there is more in the front now. When you are pulling back, and again using your abdomen.  Pulling your body back like this, again pulling with your back foot. There is more sensation comes more in the front. The sensation comes more in the front.  This sitting position actually is a very awkward position. But again, when we do push hands, when we do the push hands, you will realize this is such a very important position. One of the most important positions, but it is a very awkward position. A lot of people do not know how to do that correctly, a so called sitting motion. 

Okay, any other questions on this segment?

Student: Can I ask you a question about sitting back?  When you are sitting back are you tucking the buttocks and sitting at the same time?

Master Hwa: Yes, tucking and sitting back at the same time.  When you are sitting back, it depends how you do it.  You can sit deeper and deeper, the deeper you can sit the better.  With the sitting back, you still should be able to turn your body.  Because that is the purpose of your sitting back.  You sit back, you turn and the guy falls.

Student: Master Hwa, when you are sitting back are you shortening the length of the abdomen?

Master Hwa: Not too much.  If your shoulder is too much (hunched over), your turning is limited, you cannot turn very well. You still need that length of body, so you can turn.  When I sit back, it is not just sitting back, I have to turn, to redirect. If you are too (hunched over) it is harder to turn. If you keep your body stretched (lengthened) then you can turn better.

Student: It is a pelvic tilt?

Master Hwa: Yes, the crease is not abdominal, it is creased in the pelvis.

Student: The farther you are down, the more your back stretches up?

Master Hwa: Yes, right, you find your back is kind of pulled up.  Certainly, if your step is big, your sitback is naturally quite low, OK? Now, we don’t teach the large frame.  The large frame, the step is big and it does teach you how to sit low. Now if you don’t sit low correctly, you are not sitting, your body weight is more toward the front. When you sit back correctly, the thighs have to be even (parallel).  Now my body is facing forward, if I am not sitting back, my body is facing to an angle.  On such an angle, I have a strong side and a weak side.  So when I sit with thighs parallel, my teacher checked it.  The reason he says this is “you are facing the opponent squarely and not crooked”.  If you face an angle, then you face opponent at an angle, so he is using the “thigh” guage. Most other martial arts are facing the opponent really at an angle with the body.  We are facing the opponent squarely and you will be able to redirect the opponent to either direction. If I face him at an angle, I can redirect to one side only but cannot redirect to the other very well. So you are giving a signal to an opponent that you have a strong side. So if you do push hands with “outside” practitioners.  So how can you handle him to take advantage of his weak side.  Then not falling into his trap of succumbing to being pulled by his strong side.

Student:  When I sit back like this should my thigh feel tight?

Master Hwa:  Yes, really tight

Student: When I sit back this leg muscle is very tight. I have a weak right knee so I notice this.

Master Hwa:  Then you need to take a smaller step. If one has knee problems you always keep your step small. 

Student: Could you address the importance of tucking the chin?

Master Hwa: Right, when your chin is not tucked, and people push you hard enough, you head may snap back.  If your head snaps back like this you are very weak. We constantly stretch our head up using the neck muscle to support the head rather than using the cervical vertebrae part of the spine to support the weight of the head.  In doing so, you also develop the neck muscle.  The neck muscle is important in preventing whiplash.  When you sit back you have to feel the tuck of the chin, the stretch of neck muscle and that is why you feel the back is pulled up.

 

Don't "lean" on the Tai Chi Classics

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7QHPErjhs8

DON’T ”LEAN” TOO MUCH ON TAI CHI CLASSICS

Tai Chi Walk

Michael wrote that he has some questions about what he refers to as an understanding of leaning the body in Classical Tai Chi, weight distribution, Tai Chi Classics, and Yin and Yang:

"As I watched Master Hwa's video more intently, I was drawn to the movement of the lower limbs, i.e., from the hips down. Can I assume that master Hwa advocates the separation of ying-yang footing, i.e., 100% weight on one leg and the other 0%, in all postures (except the end of the single whip)? While I understand the weight shifting from one stance to another - I'm interested to know the weight distribution, e.g., brush knee twist step at the end. Is it 100% in the front leg, and the back leg is insubstantial? I'm studying the classics by zhang sang Feng, and it was mentioned that one should not lean on any side. I would interpret this as leaning forward, backward, or at the sides - but if there is 100% weight on one leg, I assume that there is a leaning force involved? "

Hi Michael, I know that Master Hwa has addressed your questions on a previous occasion. As a teacher, I would like to contribute something for discussion on Facebook if possible. In Classical Tai Chi, my teacher, Master Stephen Hwa, explains the principles of movement (the how and why) in terms of Yin and Yang. He also explains the principles in terms of "body weight distribution ."When one moves, they do not let their weight "distribute" itself in an out-of-control manner. Losing control of weight distribution is a grievous error and can have health and martial consequences. This type of error is discussed in detail in the: DVD series, Yahoo Email Group, Classical Tai Chi Forum, Classical Tai Chi Website (Table of Contents for DVD), and in the online course Classical Tai Chi at Teachable.com.

What I discuss is illustrated in the Forward Lean as seen in this video link and several other video links about ”Tai Chi Walk” on Youtube. When one takes a step forward in Classical Tai Chi, the weight stays 100% on the back foot until the front foot is flat on the ground at 0%. The practitioner will pull the body forward till the body weight 100% is on the front foot, with the back foot becoming 0%. The body weight distribution is dynamic, fluid, and continuous through all postures, with no exception.

The words lean, leaning, leaned, etc. are certainly fine in English are they not? However, I think an understanding of "leaning" in Classical Tai Chi should encompass the thought that one should take the Tai Chi Classics with the proverbial "grain of salt." The Classics are, as Master Hwa has said, "attributed to various authors." Regardless of who wrote them, we did not hear of them until Wu Yu Xiang "found them in a Salt Shop." The Classics, for one, do not specify what they mean by "lean." Did the mythical Zhang Sanfeng mean don't lean at all, don't lean too much, etc.? Then there is the definition: 倾斜 This is defined as "incline, tip, bias, slope, etc. I cannot find "lean" defined as "incline" in Chinese. Lean in Chinese is more like "thin" as in a lean piece of meat. I like "incline" better than "lean" for Tai Chi terms, etc. and in pinyin, one says "Qingxie."

The term "incline" is used in the Wu Family Gold Book as elucidated by Grandmaster Wu Kung Cho. He means you do not "incline" by breaking at the waist. You see a lot of "breaking at the waist" in some styles of Tai Chi; it is painful to watch. Master Hwa does use the term "lean." In his explanation, he makes it work in English where "incline" would not. He does not caution against it, as does Zhang Sanfeng; on the contrary, he tells us how and why we need to do it. It is discussed in detail on page 56 of his treatise in the book "Uncovering the Treasure." I think there is a crucial point about not "breaking at the waist" when he says: "The head, the body, and the back leg form a straight line in the lean forward." With that in mind, one can readily see that breaking at the waist would break the straight line and any energy flow.

To sum it up, I think the Classics, while having some key insights, are often filled with "contrariness" and can be very cryptic. I would not conflate basic principles of Classical Tai Chi to the often contrary statements in the Tai Chi Classics; hence "take it with a grain of salt."

An award for Classical Tai Chi of Buffalo

 Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Classical Tai Chi of Buffalo Receives 2022 Buffalo Award

Buffalo Award Program Honors the Achievement

BUFFALO December 6, 2022 -- Classical Tai Chi of Buffalo has been selected for the 2022 Buffalo Award in the Martial Arts Activities category by the Buffalo Award Program.

Each year, the Buffalo Award Program identifies companies that we believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and our community. These exceptional companies help make the Buffalo area a great place to live, work and play.

Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. The 2022 Buffalo Award Program focuses on quality, not quantity. Winners are determined based on the information gathered both internally by the Buffalo Award Program and data provided by third parties.

About Buffalo Award Program

The Buffalo Award Program is an annual awards program honoring the achievements and accomplishments of local businesses throughout the Buffalo area. Recognition is given to those companies that have shown the ability to use their best practices and implemented programs to generate competitive advantages and long-term value.

The Buffalo Award Program was established to recognize the best of local businesses in our community. Our organization works exclusively with local business owners, trade groups, professional associations and other business advertising and marketing groups. Our mission is to recognize the small business community's contributions to the U.S. economy.

SOURCE: Buffalo Award Program

CONTACT:
Buffalo Award Program
Email: PublicRelations@citiesaccolade.com
URL: http://www.citiesaccolade.com

We are happy to announce that Classical Tai Chi of Buffalo has been selected as the Winner for the 2022 Buffalo Awards in the category of Martial Arts Activities. Notice to other winners in Buffalo is happening over the next few weeks. The entire list of winners will be posted on our website after all recipients have been contacted.

Fajin(s)

 

Ken L. asked: hi, i have a question for master Hwa, is fa jing the same as internal movement?

if not, can you explain more about fa jing and how to do it?

Master Hwa replies:

The term “fa jin(jing)” may be explained as ‘thrust of power”. It could be a “sudden burst” but it could also be extended over a period of time.

Yes, practice of internal movement is the practice of fa jin in a deliberate and systematic manner so that one could perfect the technique of fa jin. In addition, the practice of Tai Chi Form is also important to fa jin by building up your internal energy as well as providing a proper body structure base where you can launch fa jin effectively. One example is the topic of “heel on the ground” discussed in Forum 3. Another example is the body posture. Remember in the video, certain movements resulted in the posture of the body leaning forward forming a straight line with the back leg. This is ideal posture for “forward fa jin”. When you sit back with weight all on the back leg, a defensive posture, this is ideal for “side-way fa jin” with turning motion, such as ward-off or neutralization. If one try to “forward fa jin” while sitting on the back leg, with the body perpendicular to the ground, there is not much support to counter act the reaction force from “forward fa jin” and his body will likely tilt backwards losing much of the forward force. In the Form you are practicing, when ever your hand is moving forward, the forward arm is always at the same side of the body as the back leg, forward right hand with right leg at the back, and vice versa. This alignment provides better structural integrity of supporting the fa jin than that of forward right hand with left leg at the back.

                  *************************************

Keep the hand guarding face!

This link below shows a student’s dropped hand. It's repeated and corrected repeatedly in “watch whole video”. 1:16, Master Hwa repeats “…hands up…” several times. 😳There is a golden rule I learned in Freestyle push hands, Tai Chi and Karate sparring. And that is “Drop hand from guarding face and lose Face”! 👀 Teacher:  “Keep you hand up”, Student:  “I know that”, Teacher: “Ouch, that must have hurt, are you ok?KEEP HAND UP VIDEO CLIP