Forums IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ Spring Forest Qigong Balance

I am a "newbie" and have just started on the Active Exercise about 1 week ago. I find it impossible to balance on 1 leg as directed in the 7 steps.

QUESTIONS:
Has anyone else had this problem?
Will it likely go away over time?
Will not being able to do it, diminish the results of the program?

Any recommendations?

Thanks,

Fred

Fred,

Yes. I had a problem. What
I did was to start by keeping
the toe of the raised leg on
the floor for the first few days.

Then, I raised the leg about
one or two inches after the
first round. Gradually, over
about two weeks I was able to
raise it higher.

I still have moments when I
cannot raise my leg all the
way without losing my balance.
But that is seldom now.

If you notice the tape of
Master Lin, he doesn't raise his
leg as high in the beginning
of the first round as he does
later.

Gianni

Gianni =
Thank you. That makes sense and I will try it.

Fred

Hi,
Try this. From your standing position with both feet on the floor.
1) 'Shift' your weight over the foot that will be supporting you. When you do this, you are establishing a 'centerline'. This centerline goes through your foot into the ground, and up through your crown. Find this centerline, feel your connection to the earth (grounding). I grab the ground a bit with my toes/foot. You feel an increase in weight over this foot that will support you.
2) Draw your free foot across the floor to the other foot , 'before' you pick it up, so you are bringing it to that centerline. Don't pick it up from where it is.
3)Bring that free foot over to the other one, then, pick it up. It is almost like going 'up' a fire pole.

You have to establish your centerline, before you pick up your foot. You will be off balance, immediately, if you don't. Shifting your weight, first, finding that centerline, aligning through your feet and crown, bringing the free foot 'to' that centerline, and going straight up this newly established centerline. You establish your centerline, before you pick up the foot.
If you are standing on both legs, centered, and pick up one foot, you will fall down. Without the 'shift' to a new centerline, you are off balance as soon as you pick up the foot. There is a nice singular vertical alignment in this. Keep aware of the foot supporting you. Don't stand on top of the ground. Your weight is sunk, through it. You don't go lower, you just keep your knees bent the same. Keep this sense of sinking, or a consistent centeredness, or head at the same level, and don't raise everything up as you lift your knee. Only that free leg moves and lifts. Everything else, concerning your stance, is very firm , centered, grounded, etc.. It is a very stable position, that you have, as you raise that leg. Focus.
Standing on one leg is a basic. It is great for increasing your sense of grounding, when you lower to standing on both feet. Try it sometime. Just going from both feet, to picking up one foot, wait a bit, then put it down again, and feel your connection to the earth again with both feet. It strengthens your stance and sense of grounding. Like one can take for granted, having both feet on the ground!
love,
gallen

Two things work for me keeping the eyes softly focused on a fixed point. I can now do the seven steps with the eye closed for part of the time but the whole lenght, nope. I also don't lift the legs for a couple of cycles now and then this helps me to regain my balance. Just use the imagination and follow through with the hands.

Alex

Gallen & Alex -

Great advice. I will try all of it.

Thanks,

Fred

G'day Alex,
The seven steps are taught with the eyes open. It isn't mentioned in the manual, but is in the tapes, and is taught that way in person. It is very hard to try and do it with your eyes closed and keep your balance.
I actually found that the opposite helped, for me, as far as coming out of having my eyes closed for quite awhile, then opening them and doing seven steps. If I looked at a source of light, like a candle or daylight(just for the first few steps), it seemed to help 'open' my eyes, and feel more balanced. Or just opening them wide, for a few seconds , shifting to eyes open.
love,
gallen

The recent posts remind me
of one other thing that I do
to keep my balance.

When I watch the tape I find
that I feel unstable when I do
the Seven Steps. To counter
this I turn about 90 degrees
so that I can't see the TV
directly and focus on a single point.
This helps me to
maintain my balance. Obviously,
you can't do this until you learn
what the movement is, but that
comes quickly. The hardest part for
me was remembering the points to raise
the energy to.

Also, I find my balance stronger
at different times of the day.
It varies from day to day.

Gianni

Aloha,

This question comes up a lot on the phone (and I'm sure to Chunyi in class).

You'll notice that on the audio cassette/CD #5, Chunyi mentions to do this exercise with you eyes open. However, Chunyi doesn't mention this on the VHS Tape/DVD section of the course -and that is what people tend to go to before stepping into tape/CD 5.

You may find that some days you do well and others you wonder when you stepped onto a tight rope.

Feeling and working with the exercise, and finally stepping into the emptiness is more important that how perfectly one bends their knee, etc. A lot of people tend to worry about tipping over, or are a little intimidated when doing this exercise around other people. Being in their heads rather than the emptiness, had something to do with Chunyi now teaching it in his level I classes with the feet flat on the floor throughout the whole exercise.

This isn't the only change to the Seven Steps of New life exercise. There was more to it even before the version you have learned in the home study course. Master Lin keep looking for ways to simplfy the work so all can get the benefits.

There is focus, energetic, and healing benefit in physically doing the leg work as in the course.

One's physical balance is an indicator of more than just functional proprioceptors and inner ear functioning...it can mirror ourselves physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.

One can start with the feet flat on the floor while getting initially experiencing this powerful exercise. After this initial period, consider incorporating the legs and developing your balance (and more), in this exercise from what Gallen and others have contributed above. There are a few times when I'll do this exercise with my feet planted (long flights are a great time for this and the Small Universe), but 95% of the time I incorporate the leg work –maybe it’s that martial artist background, or the kinestetic-lover in me, who knows.

We have Chunyi addressing this exercise and many other things at the 6 Day Healing Retreat in a couple of weeks. Perhaps Gallen, myself, or another Forum participant attending will address this post afterwards.

Much Love, Shawn

I look forward to meeting you both at the retreat Shawn and Gallen and will definitely be doing the 7 steps of new life exercise as you have described it, along with the small universe and probably several of the other exercises and meditations during my long flight -all up 28 hours so I'll be well practiced by the time I get to the retreat.

By the way - the phone healing with Master Lin today was wonderful and I'm looking forward to the next three.

See you in October