Chow Gar clamping power palm

[Tame The Tiger]

Hi folks,

I was wondering if anybody familiar with the clamping power palm hay gung set could answer a question or two for me?

I'm currently looking through master Paul Whitrod's book (some good stuff in there!!) and trying to follow the text and photos to see how that one works. The first part seems easy enough, but I get a bit lost when he talks abouty making a circular motion going over the eyes and then down. Anyone know how this goes?

Also, I note the Sup Baat Um Gen Sau as depicted in the book is an abbreviated version of the full set. Is the clamping hands set depicted in full?

Cheers,

Tame The Tiger.

[David]

In clamping palm you open your arms out to the sides and back to the centre so that the palms nearly touch (maybe several inches apart). For these motions, the arms are fairly straight at the elbow.

The one you're having trouble with is as follows: -

It's a circular motion.

From the position given above of having your palms facing each other out in front of you.

Up & back
Your elbows (which are pointing down) bend, bringing your wrists up towards your head. As you're coming up, keep the fingers pointing forwards by bending the at the wrists (the thumb side of the wrist apears to lead the up-and-backward motion).

Down & forwards
Going down and forwards is the opposite; your elbows open and your wrists move towards a more neutral angle to keep the fingers pointing forward.

To get the wrists, imagine you are doing this circling with a shallow bowl of soup in your hands and you are holding the bowl with both hands. The wrist motion I describe is the one that keeps the soup in the bowl as you work the elbows.

You can imagine on the up/back part that you are bathing your head with water (or beer or whatever). For the down/forward section that you are pushing down and out into wide roots.

These ideas are to help you get the shape. It's a bit of all of it. When I say the elbows bend to bring the arms up, the upper arms will move too - don't try to keep everything static!

------

The way we do it, we do this circling forwards and later we do it backwards - not sure if that's how it's written into the book. Or which way is first. I've always hated the exercise though others swear by it.

Recently been feeling the amazing benefits of other qigong so will give it another go with my new understanding.

Rgds,
David

[mantis-1]

there are many versions of this set, different start, middle and end, palms facing in or down, no bending at the wrist though in the sets I know except one move (the name evades me).... but all done in sets of 3, either the movement 3 times or repeat the whole thing 3 times, soft, hard and then with a shock/release....

[Tame The Tiger]

Thanks David and Mantis-1 for your reply. I'll work on that one.

Cheers,
Tame The Tiger.

[mantis-1]

Its the same with hap jeurn (clamping palm) there are slightly different versions but like before can be done soft, hard and with shock/release...

[Tame The Tiger]

I think I have it now. As the book says, it's a simple excercise, but deceptively good. I'll work on it for a few months and see how it goes. One more question, when you turn to the side and expand the arms 3 times, do you return to the original facing forward position each time, or do you stay turned to the side for the duration of the three movements?

Thanks,
Tame The Tiger.

[David]

The way I understood it was to turn the waist on the inhale and straighten on the exhale. But that was only doing it once.

I think either way is beneficial.

Rgds,
David

[Tame The Tiger]

Thanks for the info David.

While we're on the subject of these different types of excercises, do you know anything about the "excercises of the spine" they talk about on the Hungarian Chow Gar website? I've never seen a reference to them anywhere else. In Australia (under the lineage of Master Nat Yuen) we have different hay gung sets.

Cheers,
Tame The Tiger.

[David]

I saw that and wondered what it referred to, too. Perhaps it's the neck power training.

Apart from the neck, sometimes in class we do spinal twists culled straight from yoga (yoga is amazing, by the way).

Rgds,
David

[Andrew]

You do the spinal exercises every time you do the step work.

;-)

[Tame The Tiger]

David,

I think yoga is pretty good. I’ve never studied it (not yet anyway) but I was lucky enough to be taught the Salute the Sun exercise, which is (arguably) the oldest and best series of postures for overall health. There’s a lot of spinal stretching in that. Maybe the Hungarian spinal exercises are something the Sifu over there picked up separately from Tong Long. The neck power exercise I know would be pretty good for the upper part of the spine, but leaves the rest of the back stationary.

I’m a big fan of Tai Chi and the softer types of Chi Kung as well. Not that Chow Gar doesn’t have everything in it that anybody could want, but it hasn’t hurt to broaden my horizons and see different approaches to things.

Apparently there’s a set of Chow Gar eye exercises as well. You’re probably familiar with the normal yoga ones of looking in different directions, circling, changing focus and palming etc. Do you know if the Chow Gar ones are along the same line?

Andrew,

Are you referring to the lifting up of the pelvis and arching of the back? I can see how the opening and closing/forward and backward motions must exercise the spine in those directions, but what about left and right and twisting?

Cheers,
Tame The Tiger.

[Andrew]

As for left and right I've no idea. Ask you Sifu. You do the stepping to generate spinal power from the extension and compression of the spine. The exercises are not there in isolation. Its about the body acting as one family.

Andrew