San Ti Shi ("Xingyi Neigong" book) question

Tim's Discussion Board: Xing Yi Quan: San Ti Shi ("Xingyi Neigong" book) question
   By Eguo Ren on Tuesday, October 23, 2001 - 08:57 pm: Edit Post

First of all thank you very much for sharing your knowledge - I haven't seen any other MA book describing its subject so completely and in depth as "Xing Yi Nei Gong" does.

Here's my newbie's question. I've read the chapters on principles of Standing Practice and San Ti, what I'm after is a basic schedule - how long should I stand in the beginning, what is the normal time to stand for an intermediate, what is the ideal time for an advanced practitioner.

Thank you.


   By Tim on Wednesday, October 24, 2001 - 02:50 pm: Edit Post

Hello Eguo,
There really are no hard and fast rules about the length of time to stand. There are, however, some guidelines. First of all, to get the full benefit of stance keeping practice, you need to stand long enough to push your endurance but not so long you are straining to hold the postures. My Yi Quan teacher would have the beginners stand until they thought they could not hold the position any longer, then try to relax and stand for a little longer (30 seconds maybe), then change positions or rest. It also depends on the particular posture. You will be able to stand in a Wu Ji (natural) posture much longer than postures with lower stances and the arms held higher or more extended.
Try to stand an equal length of time on each side for asymmetrical postures (like San Ti Shi) and alternate which side you start with on subsequent days. My Yi Quan teacher also recommended a maximum total of 40 minutes per session for advanced students. If you can work up to 20 or 30 minutes a day on average, you should notice great improvements in your alignment, endurance and strength.


   By Eguo Ren on Thursday, October 25, 2001 - 01:56 am: Edit Post

Thank you very much, Tim.
I've got another question, if you don't mind -- I visited several local internal MA schools lately (mainly taijiquan) but only a couple of places start from teaching zhang zhuang, others simply throw beginners straight into the forms. Is this an indication of something lacking or just different approaches? Is zhang zhuang (or san ti) an absolute must or a tool -- a very useful one, as far as I can judge after reading "Xingyi Neigong" -- and can be substituted by forms or push-hands?


   By Tim on Thursday, October 25, 2001 - 06:47 pm: Edit Post

Traditionally, most schools of Tai Ji Quan start training with stance keeping and basic movements. I wouldn't say that standing is an "absolute must," but I would say it is a very valuable method of training if the student wants to cultivate the alignments and power for applying the arts to fighting. Also, the time spent standing will really accelerate the training process in other areas, including movements in the forms and technical applications.


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