Hey Julia
Sorry to hear about the leg cramps. I do find standing for 40 mins a bit uncomfortable, but I get pain more in my feet than legs.
I think it gets easier with practice, but it is uncomfortable. I think shortening your practice is a good idea for now. I've heard Chunyi say that you can do the exercises lying down/sitting, but I've never tried it like that. I'm sure there are others on this forum that could offer advice on this.
I used to do a style called fragrant qigong, and I would get the same thing from standing for long periods, except that my feet would often burn and feel pins and needles. My old teacher used to say that it was the chi working. Wasn't pleasant though....
As for the same time each day, I'm doing ok. I'm not exact and it depends what I have going on in my life. Most days I do that active exercises in the evening, on the days I do the Small Universe I typically do it around midnight.
In the manual for level one, Master Lin says there is no wrong way to practice, only good, better, best. So I don't think the time matters too much.
