spiraltao Posted February 7, 2012 After watching Bill Ryan in the Dragon Tiger Medical Chi Kung vid called "Letting Go of Tension" he talks about being able to squat at age 57. He says something like "I can squat with no problem, like this (demonstrates), as you see in so many other COUNTRIES." Â Â Â I think the same "squat" is indigenous to this region. It is not uncommon to see farmers, just the older generation in general (sixties to seventies) do this quite often and for long periods of time, being heavy I had always noticed this as I found this position comfortable even though I was overweight. (Come to find out, both I and the older men I am referring to were piling their body weight straight down thru the balls of the feet) Â Â Â ...ok, Zerostao had taught me some kneeling Kunlun postures. One of them is this squat. The other two are moving one leg out and flattening the heel while piling the body's weight through straight down thru the ball of one foot. Â Â Zerostao stressed the importance of these "kneeling Buddha" exercises and I have to wonder, is this squatting a Zhan Zhuang in itself and could it play a role in the longevity and mobility in some of these men I speak of? Â Â Â I am highly interested in any opinoins. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chang Posted February 7, 2012 (edited) Full squatting involves resting the weight on the feet (heels on the ground) with the buttocks resting on the backs of the calves. Â Most adults in the western world can find it difficult to keep their heels flat on the ground when squatting because of shortened Achilles tendons. This tends to be caused by the wearing of shoes with heels and our use of chairs for sitting.Toddlers find this position very easy to assume. Â Sqatting with the feet flat and heels on the ground is very useful for stretching the tendons and has an invigorating effect on the whole body. Edited February 7, 2012 by Chang 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Warrior Body Buddha Mind Posted February 7, 2012 Squatting is crucial for anti ageing, it also massaged the organs, helps with intestinal problems, and great for kidneys...Most chinese chi kung or martial arts has some kind of single or double leg squat as well in physical culture the squat is one of the KING exercises. Yoga also has the squatting position and the indian wrestlers just love the Hindu squat for health, why is the squat good for you as the legs are further away from the heart and will work it as well great for your joints, tendons, and keeps the legs strong. Â My Sifu would make us do hrs of horse stance low and high and he would say " You are as strong as your horse" and the benefits of this stance is great for kidney chi and over all health. Many people cannot stand for 5 mins in a simple horse stance and find it the hardest out of martial arts training it shows the weak minded people from the serious ones, and most would rather do punch and kick rather horse stances or stances which include squatting. Â By the way any position can be a zhuang zhan (jaam jong) stance as long as you have the right structure! Â Great thread... Â Sifu Garry 6 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
konchog uma Posted February 7, 2012 my girlfriend squats in an african tradition, putting the head down to elongate the spine, and rocking while she meditates. She loves it, i have to sheepishly admit i have never tried it 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
joeblast Posted February 7, 2012 anything to stretch teh lumbarz & hammies Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vanir Thunder Dojo Tan Posted February 7, 2012 Horse stance is a wide squat of sorts. Sinfest can do it  but so can i, so sinfest is irrelevant to this example. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Protector Posted February 7, 2012 actually I'm doing the one where feet are far apart and knees are close together don't try it Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vanir Thunder Dojo Tan Posted February 7, 2012 what's that one called, constipation stance? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Protector Posted February 7, 2012 http://www.thetaobums.com/index.php?/topic/15738-oh-haeng-gi-ma-sae/ Â 5 Elements Horse stance, I got it back when Wan was still charging 4000$ for it but for free and I think I'm the only one who knows how to do it right out of everyone who got it from him If you want to learn it go to a Daosourse seminar, there are some surviving tutorials online but doing them would be the same as doing naega shinjang thing Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Vanir Thunder Dojo Tan Posted February 7, 2012 I'll get to it as i come to it or it comes to me or we come together... wait, that sounds sick. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mantis Posted February 7, 2012 I'm proud to say I can squat like a third world native, for quite some time too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
zerostao Posted February 7, 2012 http://www.thetaobum...aeng-gi-ma-sae/  5 Elements Horse stance, I got it back when Wan was still charging 4000$ for it but for free and I think I'm the only one who knows how to do it right out of everyone who got it from him If you want to learn it go to a Daosourse seminar, there are some surviving tutorials online but doing them would be the same as doing naega shinjang thing  interesting, glad you got it for free Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Protector Posted February 7, 2012 Well it was free for everyone who was active on his website, the 4000$ price was for laughs for everyone visiting the site and I think someone actually bought it Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
寒月 Hanyue Posted February 7, 2012 He says something like "I can squat with no problem, like this (demonstrates), as you see in so many other COUNTRIES." I think the same "squat" is indigenous to this region.  From an anthropological pov, in my opinion this is a misconception.  I also think many in the 'West' misrepresent the flat foot squat and its place in cultivation and martial arts.  I know people who can naturally do a flat foot squat as being described, some are English, some Scottish, some Chinese. All of these people also have stiffness in some parts of the legs and back, and some even complain of lumbar pain. They do not train or practice cultivation, they can simply squat this way "naturally".  At the same time I know people who are Chinese and Japanese who cannot squat this way. There is great variation in bone structure from individual to individual. Tension is also a play in ranges of motion, but strength and co-ordination of the movement pattern is just as relevant in squatting.  Yes there are people who can flat foot squat and those that cannot. Some cannot simply due to structure etc, some because they have 'forgotten' how. I don't see it as culturally so black and white though. There is a big difference between having squatting as a natural movement pattern you don't have to think about, and 'training a squat'  I have read papers on how the pelvic structures of the Japanese differs leading to inherent differences in the ROM of the hip and pelvic joints. And it is also understood that the Chinese and Japanese have thicker patella tendons, though whether this is pure genetics or a combination of genetics and 'conditioning' through daily routine is unclear. You make use of what you have without thinking about it. These days many don't even realise the deficit.  Mabu teaches the same thing as proper 'Western' conditioning squatting technique from what I have seen. Yet most argue about how to do either correctly so good luck with figuring that out.  Best, 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
spiraltao Posted February 8, 2012 Great input, snowmonki. Â Â Â Cultural or genetic, as far as the ability to do this squat, I feel it is much more cultural/environmental here in my state. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chang Posted February 8, 2012 Great input, snowmonki. Â The fact remains however that the flat foot squat posture is ideal for stretching the Achilles Tendon, which tends towards tightness owing to our western lifestyle. Â I note that no has yet made mention of the squat posture for defecation and its associated health benefits. Â Let me remedy that:- Â Sqatting Defecation Posture 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jeramiah Zeitigeist Posted February 8, 2012 Squatting is crucial for anti ageing, it also massaged the organs, helps with intestinal problems, and great for kidneys...Most chinese chi kung or martial arts has some kind of single or double leg squat as well in physical culture the squat is one of the KING exercises. Yoga also has the squatting position and the indian wrestlers just love the Hindu squat for health, why is the squat good for you as the legs are further away from the heart and will work it as well great for your joints, tendons, and keeps the legs strong.  My Sifu would make us do hrs of horse stance low and high and he would say " You are as strong as your horse" and the benefits of this stance is great for kidney chi and over all health. Many people cannot stand for 5 mins in a simple horse stance and find it the hardest out of martial arts training it shows the weak minded people from the serious ones, and most would rather do punch and kick rather horse stances or stances which include squatting.  By the way any position can be a zhuang zhan (jaam jong) stance as long as you have the right structure!  Great thread...  Sifu Garry    Great post ! Informative and interesting ! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
konchog uma Posted February 8, 2012 I note that no has yet made mention of the squat posture for defecation and its associated health benefits. Â Let me remedy that:- Â yeah it makes a huge difference, thanks for bringing it up Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
