BALANCE
Weight shifting is a good way to warm up the body and activate your neuromuscular system. Start in a wide tandem stance (one foot in front of the other), and slowly shift your weight onto your front foot, then onto your back foot. To progress, pick up your front foot as you shift your weight onto your back foot, so that you are balancing on one leg. Surprise, you are also doing Crane kung fu!
Balance is not only about standing on one leg, it can involve many different body parts and actions. We use balance daily to keep us upright when we walk, to change positions, to carry and maneuver objects. This is a move from the Drunken Monkey style of kung fu, which is my Sifu’s (teacher’s) specialty. Try it if you dare, with or without alcohol. Can you guess what’s in my glass?
Make balance practice fun and more challenging by incorporating another activity such as a ball toss, either with a partner, like Doug (who is 79), or even with yourself by tossing the ball against a wall and catching it. Adding a ball toss to single leg stance causes you to continuously shift your weight and make whole body balance adjustments, as well as incorporates hand-eye coordination.
This is a great balance and strengthening exercise that I refer to as single leg stance with a hip hinge, also known as a single leg deadlift. You can perform with or without weight. To progress, you can perform on an uneven surface such as foam, a BOSU ball, or even outside on grass, dirt, or sand. This is also a movement we practice for the Crane style of kung fu – you can add a kick for effect!
