Please advise on a standing exercise to open leg channels and sole points

[Aletheia]

All the energy I have is coming through the top of my head. I only realised yesterday and then I noticed I don't really feel anything in my soles and legs. Up to now everything I've done has been while slouched at the computer with a curved spine!

 

I'm going to rub the soles of my feet and stand on tip toes 6 times to help open the channels and then do moving yin and yang while drawing the energy up from the floor into the LDT and keeping the 3 fields aligned in horse stance with knees slightly bent.

 

1 what do you think about that?

 

2 what's an alternative exercise other than moving yin and yang? I've seen one that looks like hugging a tree. THANKS FOR THE HELP!

[Zhongyongdaoist]

Since in your other thread you mention problems with full lotus and stretching, you might find the exercises in this book good:
 
Awareness Through Movement by Moshe Feldenkrais

Which I discovered about 1977, while I had done yoga on and off in my early to mid teens in the Sixties and qigong and Daoyin type exercises since the early seventies, I was by ordinary standards pretty limber, but I found that not only did these exercises produce great results, the results lasted whereas before, if I stopped doing exercises that "stretched me out" for a while, I had to work to get back to that higher degree of limberness, on the other hand years later in the 90s my students were flabbergasted that I could get in and out of Lotus postures with ease and sit in them for hours.  Oddly enough these exercises did nothing for my neck and shoulders in spite of have some good exercises for that, but my neck and shoulders were a real problem area until I learned enough about Chinese medicine to know the herbal combinations to take.

[Aletheia]

Since in your other thread you mention problems with full lotus and stretching, you might find the exercises in this book good:

 

Awareness Through Movement by Moshe Feldenkrais

 

Which I discovered about 1977, while I had done yoga on and off in my early to mid teens in the Sixties and qigong and Daoyin type exercises since the early seventies, I was by ordinary standards pretty limber, but I found that not only did these exercises produce great results, the results lasted whereas before, if I stopped doing exercises that "stretched me out" for a while, I had to work to get back to that higher degree of limberness, on the other hand years later in the 90s my students were flabbergasted that I could get in and out of Lotus postures with ease and sit in them for hours.  Oddly enough these exercises did nothing for my neck and shoulders in spite of have some good exercises for that, but my neck and shoulders were a real problem area until I learned enough about Chinese medicine to know the herbal combinations to take.

Yes, great. Although I'm really not sure what to think about the physical body anymore after experiencing qi tbh.  Still, thanks for the help!

[RiverSnake]

Lots of standing practices in Way of Energy by Lam Kam Chuen. Basic Horse stance postures cause an upward flow by putting pressure on the bubbling springs. 

[thelerner]

Speaking of Master Lam, here he is in action- Classic Zhan zhuang, an often underappreciated but powerful practice.

This is a 10 day class in videos.

[Aletheia]

Great thanks guys. So which exercise should I do? I think I need to open up the channels in my legs and the energy points in the soles and I'm going to draw the energy up from the ground and into the LDT!

 

I think I should do the practise twice a day. But, I don't know anything about these things really and I only worked out I had this problem yesterday tbh.

 

1 Moving yin and yang

 

2 Master Lam

 

3 or does it not really matter?

 

I think I've got The Way of Energy somewhere too so I'll look into that.

 

Does anyone have any basic tips about horse stance that a beginner needs to know? Anything which helped you/articles/videos etc?

[z00se]

1. Good - Do it

 

2. Just standing and watching your body. Mantak Chia's (well at least it's in his book) embracing the tree stance is good. It will be on the internet if you search for it.

[z00se]

Does anyone have any basic tips about horse stance that a beginner needs to know? Anything which helped you/articles/videos etc?

 

Just do it until you feel tired. Then stay there some more. It's when you get tired that you start to get results. Muscles become weaker, legs start to shake, then you need to align with your bones so that you can hold the posture, otherwise your muscles can't hold you up, they are too tired.

 

Like with tai chi, first the legs ache, then they shake, then they bake & then u know you've got it.

 

Also practice against a wall first. Keep your back straight all against the wall. This will help develop good posture. Then come away from the wall a bit, as you get tired go back to the wall and test you are still straight. Back and forth like this until you know what straight feels like.

[Aletheia]

Right I'm doing Moving yin and yang twice a day. Once sometime in the morning and then before I go to bed.

 

Does anyone have any tips that helped them getting the stance right? 

[RiverSnake]

Horse stance while meditating on LDT is excellent training. 

Edited March 25, 2017 by OldAngel

[Aletheia]

Horse stance while meditating on LDT is excellent training. 

Yeah, I can't watch that video actually. I've seen it before and it upsets my jing energy lol

Edited March 25, 2017 by Aletheia

[Aletheia]

Literally I have to do shaking knee horse stance just from seeing the thumbnail. Seriously, I don't mean this in a nasty way at all, but you've got to edit your post and take it out.

 

Porn I can probably browse more safely than that video for some reason. Since I got into qigong I got a thing for asian girls for some reason and I've watched that video about 3 times already in the past few weeks AND I'M TOTALLY TRIGGERED RIGHT NOW LMFAO.

[Aletheia]

Please edit the video out. I wouldn't ask if someone else had started the thread because I'd just not browse it again.

 

Anyway, I totally screwed up because I can feel tension starting to build up in my head. Only slightly, but I have to breathe in to my chest like a normal person right now otherwise I can slightly feel the tension at the crown of my head. It's partly because I got a little emotional watching that San video earlier too thinking WOW that's so beautiful so that's kind of why I have tension in my head, I think. I kind of got the sniffles LOL

 

I need to stop browsing the internet too and read some more books instead.

[RiverSnake]

If you need a bit of work done give me a PM. 

[Aletheia]

If you need a bit of work done give me a PM. 

I think I got tension in my head from getting a little emotional earlier today and spending too much time on the computer. But say I have been drawing 90% of my energy through the top of my head and I start bringing it up from the ground do you think that is the correct way to fix the problem? Anyone?

 

Anyway, I'm going to bed to get my beauty sleep and let my soul wander unleashed through the eternal qiscape.

Edited March 25, 2017 by Aletheia

[Protector]

Sit ups 

[dwai]

Just stand with feet shoulder width apart, toes pointing straight ahead. Bend your knees slightly (not extend beyond toes), relax your lower back, hands to the side or fingers touching your thighs lightly.

 

Tuck your chin towards your chest slightly, and very slightly lean your upper body forward. Stand like this and breath slowly, from your lower abdomen. Stand for 3 or 4 sets of 9 breaths. Each breath is one full inhale and full exhale cycle.

[Aletheia]

I just did 15 minutes moving yin and yang and my legs were shaking for the last few minutes.

 

It's totally different. I was talking in my mind the whole time, I felt no qi and I couldn't do the deep breathing either. So there's obviously something missing somewhere.

 

I did it with my back against the door and I noticed my glutes weren't activated, it was my calves and quads where I felt it in the muscles and I could feel some heat in my calves right near the start. But I don't know if that was qi or not because I've never felt qi in my legs before.

 

Now I'm sitting down again I get feel the qi and do the correct breathing, But not while doing moving yin and yang!

Edited March 25, 2017 by Aletheia

[Aletheia]

Spring Forest Qigong is a good one. Having seen my wider presence on the interwebs, it appears that  the thoughts people had about my comment of SFQ (and it not doing the stuff in advanced Taoist Yoga) diverged from what I had in mind while writing. While writing, I was thinking in terms of the exercises that are available through the lessons that you can get in the books, CDs, and videos. Although, with the recent release of level 3, the scope of what I was considering didn't match what is available now.

 

Regardless, my intent was never to defame anyone. Chunyi Lin is a genuine master and (if you can advance in his system) it can probably take you through all the stages in Taoist Yoga.

 

You will find some variety with regards to standing exercises here:

http://lienho.com/SFQ%20New%20Level%201%20Active%20Exercise.pdf

 

You might benefit from the patting/clapping exercises.

Great thanks. I'll just keep doing moving yin and yang until I start to feel something I suppose.

[Aletheia]

Okay, I need to engage my glutes. I can be so clueless sometimes!

 

I'm going to try and take a few days off the internet so I can take things a bit more seriously and read some books instead. I think that qi projection went to my head and it blew me off course somewhat, so I need to start taking things a bit more seriously again. Thanks for the help everyone,  Drew etc.

[Aletheia]

I think I should start to progress again now, so it's a good thing I started posting and asking questions otherwise I would not have really understood the significance of moving yin and yang. Hopefully in a few months time I'll have moved on from where I'm at now. THANKS FOR THE HELP!

[gendao]

Okay, I need to engage my glutes. I can be so clueless sometimes!

How do you engage your glutes in horse stance?  And if you do so, are you then able to feel the qi there?

[Aletheia]

How do you engage your glutes in horse stance?  And if you do so, are you then able to feel the qi there?

Tucking the tailbone slightly engages the glutes and also closes the lower magpie bridge. I just tried it and I can feel the qi and do the correct breathing etc.

 

For some reason it just didn't really occur to me what I was doing wrong and I was thinking my leg channels were closed or something which they probably are somewhat. But I just wasn't getting the stance right so it felt like everthing was empty and that's why I never wanted to do anything standing. But now I can do that for 20 minutes at a time with the added shaking knees. So who knows, at this rate maybe next month I'll be posting asking how to stop levitating!

 

I'm just getting this from Drew. I don't know what you guys have been reading from him, but it's all there if you care to look!

Edited March 26, 2017 by Aletheia

[Aletheia]

Just did my second standing practise and felt nothing again. I gave up before I got tired actually. I can feel qi now I'm sitting down. But, I can't get the stance right!

 

Maybe I'll get some qi while I'm sitting down and then stand up, but I don't think that's going to help. I'm not really sure where I'm going wrong tbh.

 

Actually it was better than the first one, I had better concentration and did feel a tiny bit of qi a couple of times in the earth meridian.

Edited March 26, 2017 by Aletheia

[dwai]

Just did my second standing practise and felt nothing again. I gave up before I got tired actually. I can feel qi now I'm sitting down. But, I can't get the stance right!

 

Maybe I'll get some qi while I'm sitting down and then stand up, but I don't think that's going to help. I'm not really sure where I'm going wrong tbh.

 

Actually it was better than the first one, I had better concentration and did feel a tiny bit of qi a couple of times in the earth meridian.

Don't go into too deep a stance, just a slight bend in the knees and stop "looking" for qi. Just look into the horizon (eyesight should around 25-30 degrees angle down from vertical if you are aligning correctly). Just forget everything else and breath from your stomach, but don't force the breathing. Just stand, breath, relax more and more with each breath. As you relax more, you will be able to sense the qi.

 

And don't forget to touch your tongue to your upper palate, right behind the ridge where your tongue touches as you say the "t" in "tongue".

Edited March 26, 2017 by dwai