(un)tangled thoughts

Last week I wrote about trusting myself when something felt powerful, even if it wasn’t the way most people were doing it. That was a big step for me, giving myself permission to experiment. But of course, that just presented me with another challenge. What  happens after I get excited? Lately in my  training , I find myself wandering off the main trail more often. Moves taught to me step by step do not always click, so I try little variations, sometimes out of curiosity and sometimes from suggestions. And every  now and then something really clicks. It might be more snap, more hip engagement, or more power. Whatever it is, it can feel so good that going back to the version I initially learned seems almost unreasonable. And I find myself asking, but why? Let me give you an example from this week. In Lau Gar, when we come out of an elongated bow stance with tiger claws, we step into an open X blocking behind us. From there, we untwist into a left leading bow with a ri...

Last week in class we went over some footwork in Lau Gar, specifically moving from a horse stance into a bow. This sequence shows up in quite a few places, and the general consensus seems to be to kick the back leg out first. The issue is that as the heel comes down, it often creates a backward shift. Sihing pointed out that the intention should be the opposite, we are supposed to hold our ground and drive our power forward. I started playing around with this, questioning how I was doing it, and eventually I noticed something exciting. When I moved my front leg first, my hip seemed to snap around more easily and gave me extra whip and momentum. I brought this up in my one-on-one this week, and the initial feedback was still that the back leg should move first. But the longer we talked through what I was feeling, the less black and white it became. When I mentioned the intensity of my hip snap, the answer shifted to: do what generates the most power for you, because it’s not the same fo...