taiji kicking (again)

[Kaitain(UK)]

Hi again, I never saw any replies to my thread- if there were any could you repost them?

Basically I want to improve the penetration of seperate left and right - my energy just seems to travel upwards.

Any help gratefully accepted

"If ignorance is bliss, why aren't more people happy?"

[GLW]

The focus should first be on getting the knee up. You may need to do stretching and such to soften the joint in the hip (kua and such)...

For example, when you do Deng Jiao (kick with heel and separate arms movement), The hands cross and raise as the knee raises. The kick's operational range is determined by the level of the knee. So, the higher you get the knee, the higher the kick can be (in theory...you still have to have the muscle strength and hamstring flexibility). Then with the knee high, you can concentrate on the Deng Jiao (heel kick)....

Deng Jiao is a straight type of forc so the foot more or less stomps outward. the knee, again, determines how high and forceful that execution can be.

The other kick that is common (besides the lotus kick at the end - assuming Yang style) is Feng Jiao. It is executed like Deng Jiao but is a toe kick. Here too, the knee is the important set up piece.

For most straight kicking, the knee is the sighting mechanism and its level and direction determine the level, direction, and potential power of the kick.

[Kaitain(UK)]

let me explain a bit more

The heel kicks I can get power into - it's the seperate left and right kicks which I have trouble with - I have been taught that they use the outside edge of the foot (towards the toes)

If it was using the toes then I'd be ok as it'd just be a front kick...

Raising the knee is a good tip - I worked on that a lot to improve the balance as I rise into the kick

Another question - is it a fault in Taiji to drive the hip into the front kick/heel kick to aid penetration?

"If ignorance is bliss, why aren't more people happy?"

[bamboo_ leaf]

I think if you examine “move like a balanced scale”, and “if there is a front don’t forget about the back.”
They may help you.

I hope this helps, this is how I look at things.
:)

Moving like a balanced scale, if I want to raise my leg my root must sink to the same depth as the raised leg otherwise i will be leaning. If you can sink the wt then the leg that is being raised is very light.

If there is front don’t forget the back, this also refers to balance but in a different way, if we accept that we are not to use our own power then it could mean weather with a hand or foot, we are adding to a direction that something is going in and must have the idea of maintaining a neutral state at the same time or we will not be able to change (follow).

If we talk of driving the hip I would say that this is the power coming from bone alignment and not really TC power although it may be effective.

Penetration, to me is the result of the other allowing me in; not so much as I have broken though “penetrated” his defenses.

IMHO the idea of TC is to maintain dynamic neutrality letting the other fall out or helping them along the way

luck in your training

bamboo leaf

[Nexus]

bamboo hit that one right on the dot. Sink the leg that is opposite of the one you are raising and the one used for kicking becomes very light. This should happen allthrooughout your taiji forms though, not just in kicking.

[Kaitain(UK)]

that's fine - but in the Yang form I train we raise to an almost straightened leg when we kick as it is more stable (I didn't believe it until I felt it for myself, but it is definitely rooted). What you describe is the standard mechanics that I'm used to from Karate/MT (not saying you're external, just saying what I've got to get to in my form is different).

Do you not straighten your standing leg? I do sink into my standing leg so I'm stable without leaning - it's more a compression than anything. The kick just feels crap - maybe I'm too used to the 'power' feel of MT kicks... In external systems I'm used to sinking a few inches into the supporting leg - in my Taiji system we definitely kick off of an almost locked out supporting leg.

Point taken re: hip use, I was worried that it was just me using external compensation - also re:paying attention to the other side, I'll have a look tomorrow

"If ignorance is bliss, why aren't more people happy?"

[bamboo_ leaf]

“Do you not straighten your standing leg? I do sink into my standing leg so I'm stable without leaning - it's more a compression than anything. The kick just feels crap - maybe I'm too used to the 'power' feel of MT kicks... In external systems I'm used to sinking a few inches into the supporting leg - in my Taiji system we definitely kick off of an almost locked out supporting leg.”

Actually no, my supporting leg is not straight, the sinking that I refer to is using your mind to sink while relaxing the body. I think the low or high doesn’t really have much to do with the idea of sinking. For me it’s more the use of relaxing (sung) and mind (YI). I have met people who while standing where very sunk (sung) and others that had low stance that I could not achieve and where very unstable; only stable in one direction.

Most people that I have met that associate power with the feeling of against something, as in the recoil, snap or pushing/thrusting action of foot or hand. I think that all of these things means that some of power remains inside and is not released. The action is not light, and nimble, it seems heavy and ridged.

I think with TC depends on your interpretation and who you follow as to what you will feel.

Try this you may already do it.

In any action think of the action and look at the place before it happens. Allow the body to follow the intent of the mind. For me it’s a no feeling type of feeling, very relaxed and comfortable there is interplay of all parts moving.

When your hand or what ever part seems to move with out you moveing it I think then this is the chi following the YI that many talk of. It will really have a different look for those watching and a very different feel for those doing.

In MT it looks to me like they lead the kick with the body not with the mind very different
We would call this dead strength as opposed to live. Again not saying what is better, just to me a very different way of doing looking at things.

:)
Luck in your training

bamboo leaf

[dedalus]

I personally don't think there's anything wrong with shaking the hips to power the kick - to me it seems analagous to the mechanics of the snap punch. My taiji is admittedly influenced by my bagua, however, so I always prefer to look for some power input from the waist.