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Chen Zhen Lei’s Warm-ups, Basics, Silk Reeling, Fajin,and Tui Shou

January 2, 2010 on 6:21 pm | In Tai Chi Chaun/Taijiquan | No Comments

Here are my notes of the Chen Zhen Lei warm-ups from a different seminar, but he always does these. Hope they make sense to you. I guess I should youtube them.

He does them for a good amount of repetitions so the set takes 20-30 minutes. Followed by two sets of Lao Jia Yi Lu or Old Frame Long form.

Chen exercises:
1. wrist circles hands clasped
2. arm circles both directions
3. body wave/ chi flow circles hands to dan tien
4. hands at shoulders arm circles both directions and alternating
5. waist twists- 2 elbow strikes
6. forward bend bouncing
7. squating
8. knee circles inside, outside, together both directions
9. squat and half squat
10. drop stance warm up
11. drop stance
12. gong bu bouncing
13. gong bu with heel up
ankles
14. shake out kicks
15. hands over head through body- heaven/earth walking.

Concepts-
1. anatomical planes-
sagittal- left/right
coronal- front/back
traverse- lower body/upper body
2. 2 dan tien: spinal rotation points- 2 lower dan tien at lumbar and in center of chest at Thoracic.
3. Horizontal body sections- the 2 dantien’s divide upper section, mid section, and lower section.
4. 4 kua: torso rotational points: ball and socket of shoulders and hips.

Vertical plane drills
Lower kua rotations
1. Right Front stance-
a. Sagittal forward using finger- a pushing hip circle
b. Sagittal backward- Reverse ‘sagittal circle’
c. Vertical right- small frontal circle
d. Vertical left- reverse direction small frontal circle
e. Horizontal right-small circle on horizontal plane
f. Horizontal left- reverse small circle on horizontal plane
2. Left Front stance-
a. Sagittal forward using finger- a pushing hip circle
b. Sagittal backward- Reverse ‘sagittal circle’
c. Vertical right- small frontal circle
d. Vertical left- reverse direction small frontal circle
e. Horizontal right-small circle on horizontal plane
f. Horizontal left- reverse small circle on horizontal plane
3. Both kua- standing in wuji
a. Sagittal forwards
b. Sagittal backwards
c. Vertical right
d. Vertical left
e. Horizontal right
f. Horizontal left
g. Vertical inside-out
h. Vertical outside-in

4. Rocking- body weight distribution
a. Lifting hands- rocking back and fourth
b. Rocking with sinking- lift hands
c. rocking with swinging arms

5. Open and close- check and back
Upper kua twine inside-out
a. Open and close- wrist touch method.

6. Turning, Twisting, and Wringing:
Turning: small horizontal rotation of the lower kua
Twisting- continues through the spine
Wringing- fully engaged feet, spine, to hands, upper and lower kua turn towards each other.
a. turning- swing loose arms
b. twist- swing arms higher to twist body, hitting
c. wringing- swing arms and hit tan tien and ming men.

7. Side-to-side torso rotation:
-helps to rotate your torso vertically and side-to-side.
a. right rotation- hips circle side-to-side
b. left rotation- reverse rotation

8. Single arm vertical inside-Out #1 (using vertical kua rotation)
-rotating the kuas and torso vertically in same direction.
a. circle left arm
b. circle right arm

9. Horizontal Rocking and Shifting-
a. Shift weight left and right through heel.

10. Single arm vertical inside out using horizontal rocking and shifting
a. Lazy tie coat Left arm-turn, shift
b. Lazy tie coat right arm

Concept: Postural alignment- feet touching, feet hips apart, feet shoulder apart.

Circle patterns: using a comfortable hips width stance.

a. Vertical Inside-Out: tiger back to mountain, raise hands and go outward.
b. Outside –In: reverse tiger back to mountain/open fan.
c. Vertical right- double hand roll back
d. Vertical left- double roll back other side.
e. Alternate inside-Out- wave hands: soft like yang style
f. Alternate inside-Out- wave hands: more detailed
g. Alternate inside-Out- wave hands: fully like chen Taiji.
h. Alternate outside In- brush knee circles
Horizontal Plane
Sagittal Plane

Chen circles in martial arts Chen horse/bow stance

1. Lazy tie coat (LTC) left- single arm

2. Lazy tie coat right- single arm

3. Reverse (LTC) single arm- right

4. Reverse (LTC) single arm left

5. Double hands roll back right side

6. Double hands roll back left side

7. Double hands reverse roll back right

8. Double hands reverse roll back left

9. Wave hands circles (circle outwards)

10. Brush knee circles (circle inwards)

11. Carry tiger/cover hand/shoulder left (downward two arms circle)

12. Carry tiger/cover hand/shoulder right (downward two arms circle)

13. High pat-Open fan left (upward two arm circles)

14. high pat-Open fan right (upward two arm circles)

15. Repulse monkey (Wrapping Upper Arms)circle right side

16. Repulse monkey (Wrapping Upper Arms) circle left

17. Small wrist at dan tien circle clockwise

18. Small wrist at dan tien circle counter-clockwise

19. Combine small wrist with lazy tie coat (xin jia) right side

20. Reverse #19 other side left

Chen circles done in empty stance

21. Vertical circle in chen uppercut-(Buddha warrior) two hands circle vertically

22. Reverse #21: arms roll like back fist/elbows (buddha warrior)

23. Side single arm circle right side

24. Side single arm circle left side

With stepping-
1. Part horse mane
2. Brush knee
3. Roll back
4. Single arm wave hands (er lu)
5. Repulse monkey

Fajin circles from Er Lu
1. Bell gong left
2. Bell gong right
3. Dragon head pose left
4. Dragon head pose right
5. Fajin push left side
6. Fajin push right side
7. Chen punch left
8. Chen punch right

Tui shou Push hands
1. Basic horizontal circle- peng
2. Basic horizontal circle- brush knee
3. Diving hand
4. Yank and pull
5. Inside/outside elbow circles
6. Inside/outside shoulder circles
7. Leg circles
8. Leg bumps
9. Hip bumps
10. Shoulder bumps
11. Pung-lu-ji-an
12. Da lu
13. Moving step