beginner Zhan zhuang question

[jagandeep]

Hi All,

    I am beginner Zhan Zhuang learner from India and learning my own using book Lam Kam Chuen book "Way of Energy".  Looking for ZZ master in India but not been successful.  My question is related to transitioning from Wuji to Holding the balloon posture.  In book author ask to start in Wuji and then move to Holding the balloon posture. My Wuji posture is correct but when I lift my hands, my upper back moves back and stains the middle back. In his book he ask to move the body forward so that the pressure shifts  forward in feet as compared to the wuji posture ( weight is spread out evenly in the whole feet).

 

How do ZZ practitioner keep there back straight in Holding the balloon posture.? 

Does every one simply lift the hand in front of chest while moving from wuji to Holding the balloon and their back remains straight.?

 

I don't have the same issue when I start ZZ practice directly from Holding the balloon.

 

Thank you

 

[Fa Xin]

Hello, jagandeep, and welcome.

 

Your membership is approved and we're happy you found your way to us. We look forward to accompanying you on some of the way that you still have to go.

 

Please take the time to read the post pinned at the top of this Welcome page and take a look at the forum Terms and Rules.   This covers all you need to know when getting started.

 

For the first week you will be restricted to ten posts per day but after that you can post as much as you like. Also, until you’ve posted fifteen times in the forums, you’ll be a “Junior Bum” with somewhat restricted access and will be allowed only two private messages per day.

 

Good luck in your pursuits and best wishes to you,

 

Fa Xin and the TDB team

 

Hi jagandeep,

 

Welcome to the forum... I'm sure someone will be along to help.

 

You are welcome to jump right in to the ongoing discussions, revive an older thread, start a new thread of your own, or start a discussion in the "Newcomer Corner" sub-forum to expand on your introduction or ask general questions to help you get started.

 

May you enjoy your time here.

 

Fa Xin

[Marblehead]

Hi jagandeep.  Welcome.

 

There are some who can speak to your question.  I can't.

 

[Miffymog]

Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant – you are asking exactly the same questions I used to ask myself when I started out.

 

I am also self-taught so this means I’ve missed out on having an experienced person guide me. But I’ve sustained my practice for three years now and, after much experimentation, am happy with how its going.

 

Ok - even now I’m still working with these subtle shifts in the centre of balance as I move my arms into different positions and it’s a fundamental part of the practice as it unfolds.

 

What I’d like to focus on first is not a direct answer to you question, but the question itself and the circumstances that created it.

 

One, you have noticed a change in your body as you move your arms - this is actually a sign of your increasing awareness of your body and is a good thing.

 

Two, you feel a strain – this is also you becoming more aware of your body and is your body communicating with you, this is also good, despite the discomfort.

 

Three – you start to ask the question what should I do about this strain I feel? This is arguably the most important part of the whole process because if you are teaching yourself, you will continually be having these questions and a lot of them you will have to learn how to answer yourself.

 

Once you’ve worked out the answer to this question, another will soon come along, and another, and another. Becoming comfortable with this process is fundamental to teaching yourself.

 

 

 

So – the first response I could give to you could be – ha ha – you have to work out the answer to these things all by yourself so you know how to next time!

 

The second response when you feel strain is to take things more gently. In this case, rather than going straight to holding the balloon in second position, you might try holding the stomach instead.

 

This is a less strained pose and, in time, it is said that the arms will naturally rise up to the 2^nd position when the arms find the strength. I have quit ZZ so many times in the past, that this time I made sure there was no chance of that. So, I avoided any strain in second position and just used holding the stomach for a few months first.

 

I then slowly raised the height of the arms until they were holding the balloon.

 

Third answer – you are developing muscles you’ve never really used before. They will hurt as you put them under strain and then they grow. Learn to gauge how much discomfort you are happy to take every single day. For me, it was very little, so my progress was slow, but I did not give up and the strength came after (a long) time.

[jagandeep]

23 hours ago, Miffymog said:

Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant – you are asking exactly the same questions I used to ask myself when I started out.

 

I am also self-taught so this means I’ve missed out on having an experienced person guide me. But I’ve sustained my practice for three years now and, after much experimentation, am happy with how its going.

 

Ok - even now I’m still working with these subtle shifts in the centre of balance as I move my arms into different positions and it’s a fundamental part of the practice as it unfolds.

 

What I’d like to focus on first is not a direct answer to you question, but the question itself and the circumstances that created it.

 

One, you have noticed a change in your body as you move your arms - this is actually a sign of your increasing awareness of your body and is a good thing.

 

Two, you feel a strain – this is also you becoming more aware of your body and is your body communicating with you, this is also good, despite the discomfort.

 

Three – you start to ask the question what should I do about this strain I feel? This is arguably the most important part of the whole process because if you are teaching yourself, you will continually be having these questions and a lot of them you will have to learn how to answer yourself.

 

Once you’ve worked out the answer to this question, another will soon come along, and another, and another. Becoming comfortable with this process is fundamental to teaching yourself.

 

 

 

So – the first response I could give to you could be – ha ha – you have to work out the answer to these things all by yourself so you know how to next time!

 

The second response when you feel strain is to take things more gently. In this case, rather than going straight to holding the balloon in second position, you might try holding the stomach instead.

 

This is a less strained pose and, in time, it is said that the arms will naturally rise up to the 2^nd position when the arms find the strength. I have quit ZZ so many times in the past, that this time I made sure there was no chance of that. So, I avoided any strain in second position and just used holding the stomach for a few months first.

 

I then slowly raised the height of the arms until they were holding the balloon.

 

Third answer – you are developing muscles you’ve never really used before. They will hurt as you put them under strain and then they grow. Learn to gauge how much discomfort you are happy to take every single day. For me, it was very little, so my progress was slow, but I did not give up and the strength came after (a long) time.

 

Thanks Miffymog for sharing your valuable experience. It given me motivation that  people out there have been able to learn ZZ on their  own and have been able to make progress in their practice.

 

One more question

Did you see an increase in you libido when you started  ZZ practice ?

 

    

Edited November 7, 2018 by jagandeep

[Miffymog]

I’m now at an age where I’ve to come to accept the slow decrease of my libido …

 

The very first effects I noticed in just a few days was an increase in reaction time, but this leveled out fairly quickly.

 

I then noticed an increase in leg strength which meant that I could walk really fast if I wanted too, but that’s not exactly the most useful of skills.

 

The other effects of general improvement in mental and physical health are very slow in coming I’m afraid. Whether this effects libido is just too subtle for me to tell.

 

For me, the aim of my practice is just to slow the ageing process rather than improve me in any significant way.

 

However, if I could go back in time and give myself any advice it would be to tell my younger self to keep the practice time short so as not to give up. The benefits are there and are good, they just take a long time to come to fruition.