Are there good ways to relax the waist in Tai Chi? (3)

Hi Every Shifu, are there good ways to relax the waist in practicing Tai Chi? My waist seems stuck. Waist must be relaxed, right?

Shih-fu Symonds • Nihao Cathy? You are a rascal! I think you know how to relax your waist; get off PC for a while!

Other wise just straighten your spine (balance) and think about relaxing and sinking; as though standing in water up to your neck.

Roger Blough • Dr. Yang, Jwing Ming uses the All Season Qigong for Spine and Chest in his seminars and classes for warmups. This is an excellent exercise for loosening the waist and spine. which also is important for taiji. The exercise is taught in several of his DVDs, including The Essence of Taiji Qigong.

Stefanie Mackenzie • In the internal martial arts,there is a time-honored way to relax the waist…it’s simple to do…just stand up, draw your shoulders up towards your ears, like a super-shrug, and just let them drop down. Let them fall by themselves, don’t let your mind interfere. Do it a few times and if you’re tuned into your waist, you can feel it soften and relax. I teach this to all of my tai chi and qi gong students and they all ccessful. Good luck

Shih-fu Symonds • One of my favourites Stefanie. Another which helps is the Qigong exercise “Arms swinging loosely like rope”. This helps one to sink, relax and loosen the waist. If you then gear it into “Knocking at Heaven’s Gates” this also helps clear common blackages of qi which can make you uncomfortable too. !

Stefanie Mackenzie • Interesting insight, where did you train?