In
recent years, there are many tai chi chuan players that have knee problems. This
may be the result of over-relaxation of the knee and collapsing and sinking too
much on the rooted leg. Without the countervailing support of a firmly rooted
foot, it places undue stress on the knee joint. Over time, such over-relaxation
or collapsing may lead to weakening of the sartorius muscle and other related
muscles which support the knee, causing them to strain to relieve the pressure
on the knees resulting from the weight of the upper body. Rooting with the three
active nails and allowing the signal to transmit adequate muscle energy to
protect the knee from the pressure caused by downward pulling gravity.
(William C C Chen)
Priorities
People worry about the accuracy of their postures and usually focus upon
the hands.
If your hands are misaligned, it will not cause you
harm.
However, your legs and
feet
are another matter entirely.
Remember that your legs are weight-bearing and that alignment faults
with the feet can seriously damage the knees.
Correct usage of the hip joint, combined with accurate placement of the
feet and appropriate weight distribution will prevent these problems.
The knees
Tai chi should improve knee usage and strength.
Sometimes it doesn't.
This is usually caused by a number of postural or body usage faults.
Usually the only people who get knee trouble are those with an existing
history of hard style external martial arts, sports injuries or
occupational damage.
Those people need to be very slow and careful in order to rehabilitate the
knees.
Considerations
Knee problems can be looked at in a
variety of ways:
These are simply a number of approaches that people can use - we are not advocating a preference or seeking to teach tai chi via the website.
Treatment
If you have a knee problem it is not so easy to find and
receive adequate treatment.
The knee is a weight-transference joint, and
is affected by other parts of the body.
Bad posture, tight/weak muscles, poor circulation, limited flexibility
and physical neglect will all affect the knee joint.
Whilst tai chi addresses the overall wellbeing of both body and mind, it
does not seek to
cure specific ailments.
You may need to consider supplementary exercises designed to target the
knees.
Jim Johnson, author of Treat Your Own Knees advocates an approach
which serves to address 5 main concerns:
Rear leg
Some schools of tai chi advocate straightening the rear leg, whilst
others suggest relaxing it.
(i) Straighten
If you straighten the rear leg, you can use it to push the body forward.
This can be combined with spine and waist movement to aid delivery.
Pushing off the rear leg is an approach used in many external arts.
Yang Cheng Fu used this method.
The danger with this approach is that it can incline the body to lean
forward, and it reduces the flexibility of the hips joints.
(ii) Relax
Relaxing the rear leg works the thigh muscles, releases the pelvis and drops the tailbone.
It also frees up the legs and makes the student use both legs when
delivering.
Cheng Man Ching used this method.
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Everyday squatting
(i) Squat
The human body is meant to squat. It is how we are meant to go
to the toilet.
However in modern Western culture we have the sit-down toilet.
This 'convenience' has led to the legs becoming weak. The lower back and
knees are also affected.
We can carefully re-train the legs by squatting whenever practical.
When something is on the floor and needs picking up, squat.
If this feels awkward, then you are probably used to bending at the lower
back and neglecting the legs.
If squatting hurts your legs, start slowly and carefully.
Use the wall/door frame/a stick for support. Make the movement slow and
smooth.
In time, your legs will get stronger.
Do not try to maintain a squat or do your tai chi in a low squatting stance.
Be realistic.
Everyday squatting is natural and healthy.
If you are unused to this, re-habilitate.
(ii) Bend
Bending is an alternative to squatting but has limitations.
When you wish to bend, you must bend from the hip joint.
This enables the front of the body to lengthen and the spine is
supported.
Bending should occur in the hips, not the lower back.
Correct bending frees up the waist and allows rotation to occur without
impediment.
(iii) Lifting
If you plan to lift anything up using the hips, make sure that the object is
positioned at hip height or higher.
If the object is lower, you will need to bend the knees and squat.
Lifting a heavy object from the ground using a hip bend will strain the
lower back.
Squat instead. Draw the object closer to your torso. Then stand.
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Slumping
(i) Collapse
There is a tendency towards slumping in tai chi.
Relax does not mean 'collapse'.
This habit can put some serious strain on the knee joints, forcing the
soft joint to take the entire body weight.
(ii) Passive joint
The knee is a weight-transference joint, which means that it is
good for brief bending and releasing but not prolonged squatting.
In tai chi, the knee relaxes rather than bends. It goes forward
rather than down. There must be space behind the joint.
The human body naturally moves the knee forward whenever the leg
steps.
This is called 'flexion'.
The knee bends itself (tzu-jan) - you do not need to deliberately, consciously
bend it.
Unnecessary bending of the knees overuses the thigh and calf muscles and
tightens the hamstrings.
Flexion needs to occur because of the forward movement, not because it
is forced.
(iii) Neutral knee
If you are standing upright with the legs parallel, the knee should be
neither locked or collapsed.
Deliberate bending is unhealthy at this point; you are not in a forward
stance so there is no need to flex the knee.
The knee needs to be balanced front to back, inside to outside - this is
a neutral state that leaves the knee supported but passive - ready for
use.
Think of opening the front of the ankle, the front of the knee, the
front of the hip, the front of the torso.
This will stop you from dropping your weight into the knee joint.
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If you want to use your tai chi realistically in self defence, you need to
mobilise the legs.
The tai chi classics tell you to walk like a cat.
Thinking of tai chi in terms of postures can lead to an attitude of fixity,
and fixity promotes muscular tension.
Tai chi is not yoga.
A posture simply represents a pattern of movement.
The end position is transitory and should not be held (unless you are
practicing form posture qigong).
If your legs become wooden and rigid, inflexible and slow, you cannot move
swiftly and easily.
You no longer step like a cat.
Have you ever earnestly watched a cat walking?
The steps are loose and fluid, natural and easy - each step flowing
comfortably into the next.
All of the joints are mobile and loose - shoulders, elbows, wrists,
sacroiliac, hips, knees, ankles - along with the spine.
A cat can change direction with ease, advance, withdraw and pause mid-step.
The knees must be free to follow the movement of the centre and the waist.
Leave them alone.
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When stepping forward, place your heel down first.
If stepping to the rear or to the side place the ball of the foot first.
Tai chi uses an 'hourglass' stepping pattern; curving out from the centre
to go forward and out from the centre to go backwards or turning to the
side.
In practice, this curvature is subtle - with only a small arc apparent.
This stepping method enables the hip joint to rotate freely, and it releases
the sacroiliac joint.
Some beginners turn hourglass stepping into 'tai chi skating' by exaggerating
the process; touching ankles/heels together for all steps and then stepping out into an
extended double-weighted position.
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Over-stepping
(i) Striding
Beginners often stride rather than step.
Over-commitment leaves you vulnerable and exposed. You put mild strain
upon your body and compromise your balance.
Over-stepping leads to double-weightedness.
(ii) Be modest
We teach beginners a very small, high stance to start with. It is easy
to learn and everyone can perform it.
There is no risk of strain or knee injury.
When students reach the intermediate syllabus, they have a greater sense
of body awareness.
A longer, deeper stance can be considered at that point.
Students can feel the range of their step. They use their kwa rather
than their knees.
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Cheng Man Ching wrote that the body must be like a 'floating cloud' - and
this will not happen when you are double-weighted.
(i)
Root
A person who is double-weighted is incapable of yielding.
They may feel to be strong, but root is not a matter of solidity, it is
about connection to the ground.
When your body is pushed, it should always move:
Empty the left
wherever a pressure appears, and similarly the right.
(Wang
Tsung-yueh)
A feather cannot be
placed, and a fly cannot alight on any part of the body.
(Wang Tsung-yueh)
This is the essence of yielding. Do not ignore the
tai chi classics.
(ii)
100%
When you are about to step, shift
your weight 100% onto the supporting leg and let the stepping leg
dangle.
You will need to have a well-developed sense of
'standing like a tree' in order to do this.
In terms of the form flowing, the 100% moment is only a pause, but you
should be capable of holding it for longer if you need to.
When the heel or toe places, it should be possible to lift and retract the
stepping foot without the need to shift weight back to the
supporting leg again.
If you need to adjust your weight at this stage, then you are
double-weighted in the feet and this is incorrect.
(iii)
Collapsed heels
When the weight is deep in the heels, you become double-weighted. Your
legs become sluggish and agility is lost.
Walk like a cat.
(Wu Yu-hsiang)
If your weight is too deep in the heels, they will collapse. This weakens
the thigh muscles above the knee joint and leads to injury.
Make sure that you can feel the big toe, little toe and heel at all
times. Spread your weight across the foot.
The big toe is most important. It counterbalances the heel.
Think of the heel reaching back but do not collapse into it.
Do not collapse your weight downwards. Use the ground to generate power.
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(i)
Beginners tuition
A beginner is usually given very clear and concise directions for the
feet, such as 'left foot faces North'.
In actual practice, the foot may face slightly to the North East
if it feels more comfortable and is applicable.
These subtle differences in angle will stop the student from torquing the
joint yet are often omitted from beginners tuition in order to simplify
the learning process.
It is the same with a bow stance, the rear foot is turned out to a maximum
of 45° and the lead foot may point forward or very slightly inward,
depending upon preference.
(ii)
Common angles
It is important to research the angles involved in every posture and every
transition move.
Different Yang Cheng Fu teachers have different versions of the very same
posture, so it can be useful to examine the footwork in each case and
understand the physics involved.
(iii)
135° hip rotation
A hip rotation of 135° is quite a stretch and many adults lack the
suppleness to safely perform this action.
Usually people can comfortably open the hips to around 90° and then the
rest of the work is done using the ankle and lower leg - effectively
twisting the knee joint - which is not a good thing to do.
Dr Paul Lam advocates changing uncomfortable postures rather than harming
your body.
It is quite easy to modify any 135° rotation to just 90°.
Just make sure that the essence of the posture is maintained.
Only perform a 135° rotation if you can do so correctly and safely.
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Leaning
Any form of leaning will tilt the pelvis and may put subtle pressure on the
knees.
(i) Leaning in the form
Some approaches to Yang Cheng Fu form advocate a forward lean on bow
stance postures where both hands are to the front.
This lean is counterbalanced by recruiting the appropriate muscular support and
should not just be copied.
Make sure that you are tutored in person if you intend to lean in this
way.
(ii)
Are you leaning but unaware of it?
You may be lifting the chest or the chin.
The spine is affected when people deliberately seek to tuck the chin
inwards.
When the head tilts back, it shortens the spine and pulls the pelvis
backwards - affecting the knees.
The same thing happens when you lift the sternum.
Other people lean back from the lower back because their pelvis has been
tucked under deliberately.
It can be useful to use a mirror or to ask somebody else to look
carefully at your posture.
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Spine
The spine needs to rotate horizontally and flex vertically.
If you are losing your
vertical centre and leaning forwards,
this will put stress on the knee joints.
Keep your hands within the range of your feet and move with your torso.
You should feel to be sat in your feet. But do not collapse the arches.
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Pelvis
Leave the pelvis alone; it does not need to be consciously tilted in any direction.
Deliberate tilting or tucking-under is exaggerated and affects the knees
adversely because you are now leaning back slightly.
If you lengthen the front of the body, relax the rear knee and allow the spine to relax, the
tailbone will drop by itself.
Now, feel how the buttocks have drawn inward gently.
The pelvis will feel stable and the legs are better connected to the centre.
It may feel odd at first, but after a few weeks of practice you will be
doing it unconsciously.
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Hips
(i) Core stability
If the pelvis is moved too much during tai chi practice, you will lose
core stability and this will affect the
knees.
You need to open and close the hip kwa instead.
(ii) Sink internally
The hips should provide a strong connection between the ground and your
waist, without the use of muscular tension.
Simply relax the rear leg, soften the tailbone and sink your weight internally - your feet
will feel very heavy.
Be careful not to curl your toes in order to stay balanced.
Spread the weight across the foot instead but remain conscious of the weight
falling down the back of the legs.
Do not collapse the knees.
The degree of pelvis movement will lessen and the hip kwa will open and close
naturally.
(iii) Neutral/passive pelvis and hips
Do not try to freeze the pelvis; this
is counter-productive: every joint and vertebrae must be allowed natural
freedom of movement.
Think of the torso as being a cylinder, connected to the legs by the hip
joint.
Turning side-to-side involves opening and closing the hip joint.
The spiralling of the legs produces the power, which the waist then passes
out to the fingertips.
If your feet are splayed outwards this will not happen. The insides of the
feet must be parallel.
(iv) Waist
Do not seek to turn at the hip. Turn instead at the
waist. At the centre.
The hips are moved as a consequence of the waist turning. They are a
secondary feature.
The pelvis and hips are neutral/passive.
If you exaggerate the hip joint, the knees will be adversely affected.
Differentiate between 'hip' and 'hip kwa'.
(v) Hip distance
Beginners learn to stand with their feet hip-width apart.
If the human skeleton is allowed to relax, the feet fall beneath the hip
joint.
We should not ignore nature.
How wide is your stance?
Your heels should be hip-width apart. Wider or narrower stances diminish
your vertical stability.
Intermediate students learn to stand with their feet shoulder-width apart.
The distance is about the length of a shoe.
The stance is less stable than hip-width but has more martial potential.
(vi) Bend at the hip
Most people collapse the muscles at the front of the body and bend at the
lower back.
This damages the spine and puts weight into the knees.
Bending at the hip rather than the lower back will take the pressure out of
your knees.
It also prevents you from slumping the torso muscles.
The spine should lengthen.
Ensure that your head remains perpendicular to the spine. Looking up will
curve the back adversely.
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Waist
Exaggerated waist movement will destabilise the hips and
in turn affect the knees.
Tai chi is subtle.
A common approach used in Shaolin kung fu and karate is to sit deep into
the hips, with the knees deeply bent.
This structure provides tremendous support for the torso and frees the
waist to move freely.
Unfortunately, it can also damage the knees and stops the spine from
opening and closing as you move.
Tai chi moves the centre, not just the waist.
This is an important distinction to make - waist is horizontal whereas
centre is both horizontal and vertical.
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Weight distribution
(i)
The foot
The weight in your feet should be evenly balanced between the front and
back of the foot.
It is the arch that supports your weight; like a bridge.
Your weight must be in the middle.
Usually, students put too much weight in the heel.
Make sure that you balance between big toe, little toe and heel.
William C C Chen's article 'The Mechanics
of the Three Nails' is a worthwhile read.
Whilst moving between postures, the weight distribution within the foot
can and must alter.
It should return to balance when the posture is established or when at
rest.
The weight distribution between the feet is another matter
entirely: this is seldom balanced evenly.
(ii)
Weighted-turn
There is a heel spin in the Yang Cheng Fu form which is perfectly
safe if you pull the toes right back.
All other weighted-turns must be avoided.
If you want to turn the foot, empty the leg first, rotate from the hip
joint and then place the foot again.
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Forward stances
In a forward-weighted stance, the front leg kneecap should point over the
centre of the foot.
Do not move the knee forward of the toes.
When you feel the ball of the foot absorb the weight and then push back, you
should stop.
Similarly, the hips must square to the front - this serves to draw the lead
leg back slightly - out of the knee.
If your knee hurts when you use a 70/30 stance, and you can see no
obvious faults, try a 60/40 stance instead.
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(i) Alignment
The knee needs to remain in line with the second toe (the big toe is the
first toe).
If your knees are bad, try to keep the lead knee as vertical as you can
without holding or fixing the joint.
(ii) Sideways
Some people twist their knee joints sideways rather than move it forward.
The joint moves inward or outward rather than forward.
This fault can be corrected by slowing down weight changes and paying
attention to the way in which the foot is connecting with the ground.
Outward-pointing knees require greater emphasis upon the heel, ball of the
foot and big toe.
Inward-pointing knees require more attention on the little toe or outer
edge of the foot.
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Exaggeration
Many faults are caused by exaggerating the size of a movement or action.
Movements that come from the centre involve weight transference, waist and
spine action.
If you over-emphasise the waist turn, this may well affect the knees.
Similarly, reaching your hands past your feet can create imbalance.
Performance stances
(i) Fitness
Many pictures of tai chi people training in China show very deep stances.
These are almost yoga-like in nature; very long but narrow, with the lead
knee 90°relative
to the ground.
These gymnastic stances are very impressive but should not be undertaken
lightly.
The performers are exceedingly supple and fit.
(ii) Not martial
Performance stances are not necessarily martial in nature; they are
wushu.
A long narrow stance offers power in a forward direction only and will
leave the practitioner extremely vulnerable to attacks from the side.
Whilst potentially good for your health, these stances
are not easy to perform.
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Deep stances
(i) Horse stance
If you have trained the horse stance correctly for many years, you know
how to sink into the hips rather than the knees.
Most adult Westerners should not consider emulating these deep stances.
Remember that sinking is 'internal'; sink inside your stance.
Your knees need to relax rather than bend.
(ii) Poor feedback
Faulty sensory appreciation can lead you to think that you need to drop
more deeply into the stance.
Ask somebody else to look at your posture; you may already be far deeper
than you realise.
If your body tells you that there is discomfort, do not ignore it - pain is a warning
that you have gone way too far.
(iii) Exercising the legs
A tai chi student moves from a small stance to a larger one and then
back to a smaller one again.
The intermediate student adopts a longer, deeper stance in order to
integrate the legs more fully.
Neglecting the legs is unwise. Every movement should involve the entire
body.
Healthy leg use works the leg muscles and the hip joints.
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Speed
The taoist approach to things is to avoid the
extremes.
Your form wants to be slow, but not too slow and not fast either.
If you have knee problems, then fast movements may be too jarring if you are
placing the feet incorrectly, and slow movements may require too much work
on the supporting leg.
The ideal pace is ambling, like an aimless walk - drifting like a leaf in a
breeze.
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Muscles and bones
Muscles, tendons and ligaments support the joints and are responsible for knee alignment.
If your muscles have grown in an unhealthy direction or are too tense, the
knee can be twisted.
Flaccidity or tension are equally bad.
Healthy, toned muscles should offer springy support for the knee joint and
ensure that it points in the right direction.
Tai chi is much more than energy work.
If your muscles and bones are not working correctly, your body may be
damaged by the practice.
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Qigong
Standing qigong can help in developing
stronger knees, providing the alignment is correct.
By relying upon the skeleton and the support muscles, your leg muscles will
strengthen and grow.
Certain qigong exercises place more weight in one leg than the other or in
different parts of the foot.
These are useful for muscular control.
Remember that the natural foot position for the skeleton is '10 to 2'
(picture a clock face), so the act of aligning the feet in a parallel
fashion is working the muscles.
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Mirror
the form
Experienced students should mirror the entire Yang Cheng Fu form.
Doing this will ensure that your body receives a balanced workout.
It is also a good perceptual challenge.
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Body work
A good tai chi class should be concerned with 'body
work'.
This is not as simple as doing
form
or
qigong; it involves
retraining the body's posture and movement for optimal
functioning.
It goes beyond energetic awareness and the
tai chi classics.
If your tai chi teacher lacks the understanding of body work, you may want
to consider taking one-to-one
pilates or alexander sessions.
A skilled body work teacher will increase your physical awareness, so that
your bones and muscles work more harmoniously.
With greater
sensitivity and physical understanding, you can feel
what is happening to your body during tai chi; where you can move
comfortably, what feels good and what doesn't.
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Rest
The main thing with knees is to avoid twisting the joint or bending too
deeply - sink into the hips instead.
If you have injured yourself, then rest.
Adopt the constructive rest position and elevate your legs.
Let your calves be supported at a 90°
angle.
Do far less practice (especially self defence) and rehabilitate carefully.
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Page created 29 May 2000