Yoga focus and Zen Body Being

This week I have been spending a lot of time thinking about and practising yoga. I do a short yoga routine every day to wake up and this week's yoga class also was challenging. I have been toying with the idea of going on a Yoga Teachers course for a very long time. I have attended yoga classes regularly for almost 10 years, and I would really like to deepen my knowledge and practice. I am not interested in teaching per se, but think a teaching course would be a good step because it should have a more in-depth level of detail and theory. There are lots of different courses available, with all different kinds of focus and qualifications available. Although I am not too concerned about the qualification, I do want to ensure a quality course. I have made a couple of enquires but think I have found a course that would really suit me. I am very aware that undertaking the course is a huge commitment both financially and in terms of time, we will see if I find the courage and finally decide to take the plunge!

Tai Chi was again great, a welcome break in my Monday. We were further refining the Weiji Yufang Gong set and we started on another adventure, the Cheng Hsin Tai Chi set. I've been religiously practising the opening to the set whenever I get a spare moment, trying to lock in all the fantastic pointers the teacher raised. As my teacher had repeatedly mentioned Peter Ralston in practice to date, I did some research and saw that he has written a couple of books, I brought Zen Body Being and have just started reading it. Already a very interesting read! Plenty to reflect on, and valuable lessons not just for Tai Chi practice.

I joined the Tai Chi Union of Great Britain (http://www.taichiunion.com/join/) this week too, I was really interested in the magazine as well as finding out about events so I signed up. So I look forward to receiving my first magazine. 

“The beauty of a lake reflects the beauty around it.  When the mind is still, the beauty of the Self is seen reflected in it.” BKS Iyengar

Tapping Ren Du and going with the Vinyasa Flow

This week’s class saw the final piece of the Weiji Yufang Gong puzzle being put into place. Since May the group has been steadily working through the form and now we practiced it, the whole set. Now starts the period of polishing and going deeper, I can’t wait. I really enjoy detail and the theory that I believe goes hand in hand with the movements. Without this detail we are embarking on a memory game of chorography, a dance and not a Qi Gong set. I am really lucky because the teacher Mike drip feeds us this vital knowledge alongside learning the motions. This reminds me of a quote by Goju Ryu Karate Master Gogen “the Cat” Yamaguchi who rightly points out that "It’s not how many Kata you know, but the substance of Kata you have acquired”. Quality is critical not quantity. I think many martial artists are guiltly of wanting to move on, push and learn the next form, the next move, etc. I personally prefer to lock in a technique, to make it mine so I can perform and practice with confidence, rather than knowing half the story and filling in the blanks myself. Having Gordon Faulkner’s book to hand is also useful, so each time I practice I am going to focus on one of the moves, read the relevant explanation in the book then practice the set focusing on what I have just read. Hopefully that system will help me to slow it down and make the most of my technique.

I also had time to pick up Master Liming Yue’s Laojia DVD and have again been revising over the opening, Buddha’s warrior attendant pounds the mortar, lazy about tying the coat and six sealings and four closings. I am really looking forward to the next seminar, which is rapidly approaching in September!

Yoga this week was also really good, at class we ran through the sun salutation, which is one of my favourite sets in Yoga. I also did my last free class on Yoogaia. I went for some Vinyasa  flow which I really, really enjoyed. I really enjoyed Yoogaia because you could fit yoga classes around your other commitments and the amount of choice was brilliant. I could try out yoga styles that aren’t available locally to me. Wonderful. 

If you'd like to try out Yoogaia click the link for a free trial! https://yoogaia.com/?referral=97C9P7URUMZM

Future Chi!

Sadly I missed my usual class this week, there was nothing I could do about it, so for the the first part of the week I continued to practice the routine to Buffalo Ploughs the Land - which was good because I was having trouble getting all the teaching points into my physical practice, especially the focus on the Laogong Pericardium-8 and turning the little fingers up as high as possible when bringing the arms forwards in the initial part of the movement. So the extra time certainly was a positive.

I did go to a different class at the end of the week, in fact I went to two lessons back to back! It was fantastic as the classes were for more experienced practitioners than I. I guess you could say I got a glimpse of my Tai Chi future. Both classes started with the Weiji Yufang Gong. I was lucky that there were a couple of questions on the next move I needed to learn, Distinguished Lord Combs Hair (Zhaojun Shufa). So the questions gave me opportunity to repeat and digest the movement.

The classes then did the Cheng Hsin Tai Chi form, with only one of the classes progressing to the Daoyin Baojian Gong up to Shoulder the Sun and Moon (Jiandan Riyue). I found that particular movement really challenging and I am looking forward to being taught it.

So lots to think about and concepts to put into my personal practice this week!