Stance/Body Balance/Alignment

[joesteph]

I found in the latest issue of Jissen magazine (Winter, Issue 4), an article on p. 16 titled "Getting to the Root of It All" by Eric Parsons. There are simple exercises referred to as well as text, and I was pleased to find on p. 20 a special reference to Tai Chi.

From the article:

[T]he slow nature of the movements in Tai Chi gives the practitioner the opportunity to focus intensely on proper body alignment, proper weight distribution, etc. . . .

Moreover, any form can be practiced using the slow, fluid motions of Tai Chi . . . (emphasis in text)

Jissen Issue 4 (and past issues) can be downloaded for free at:

http://www.jissenmag.com/default.asp

[bushido_man96]

I do think that stance work is important for all aspects of Martial Arts. However, I think that it should not be done soley stationary, but focusing on the transitional aspects of stance work, using an opponent that resists at varying levels, allows one to get a really good handle on how the stance becomes effective movement.

[joesteph]

. . . focusing on the transitional aspects of stance work, using an opponent that resists at varying levels, allows one to get a really good handle on how the stance becomes effective movement.

This is why I'd so much enjoyed when I did a two-man Tai Chi form with a friend in the past. We'd started off with the conventional solo forms, but the two-man was a special flow, and the applications jumped right out at us.