I used to struggle mightily with Golden Cock Stands on One Leg. This past year I intensified my approach by purposely lowering my stances -- a lot -- as I balanced, and after awhile, the additional strength I gained has remarkably helped my Tai Chi. Without meaning to, I had unconsciously gone the easy route of not bending down as much, and moves like Golden Cock became wobbly, and lacked force. Now I look forward to doing it each time. Thanks for this!
This transition from falling stance to Golden Cock is perhaps the weakest part of my set. I appreciate this lesson and also the separate video you made of the falling stance stretches and modifications. I need to add the bench stretches to my routine!
This morning I found that the rhythm of your full speed demonstration of the sequence really helped me improve these moves. I think my problem has been I’ve been “gearing up” for the shift to the left leg instead of letting the “bounce” from the falling stance lead my body forward into the proper position for the leg lift. Hard to describe but it felt right.
Somehow, since learning that going from Falling Stance to Golden Cock is or once was challenging for so many of my kf siblings, my balance and consistency have improved. Guess the real problem was the apprehension and tension I was bringing with me into the transition.
It's great that now, with this channel, we as practitioners can share our practice experiences with each other....like the old days in Portsmouth Square when we would often stand around and discuss things after practice!
