Introductory Yi Jin Jing Technique

"Warm-up" Sequence

1. Take your stance -- feet shoulder width apart, 
outer lines straight, knees slightly flexed, tuck 
in coccyx, pull up abdomen. Let your weight and 
energy settle in the lower "dan tien" 
(2 inches below the naval).

2. Rotate your body on its natural axis with shoulders 
loose, arms and hands free, moving 
from the hips, not twisting the waist 
(30 seconds - 3 minutes).

3. With shoulders loose, push back your arms. 
Allow them to swing back naturally. Keep 
pushing like pumping a swing (1 to 15 minutes).

4. Head Rotations -- (6 in each direction) Take 
your stance. Find your hip bones and hang the 
backs of your hands on them (between the 
thumb and index finger) like hanging a hat on a 
hook, so that your shoulders and arms are loose 
and free. Let your head drop in front. Draw a 
circle to the left with your eyes, looking first 
at your left elbow, then left shoulder, then left 
corner, circling around to your right corner, right 
shoulder, right elbow and front. Change direction 
after 6 circles.

5. Waist Rotations -- (6 in each direction) The 
feet are about twice as wide for this exercise, 
outer lines still straight. The hands cover the 
kidneys (palms to the back), thumbs pointing toward 
the floor, third fingers touching. Swing your weight 
over to your left hip, with the left knee over the 
left toe. Using your waist as "the driver," draw 
a circle with your waist from the left starting 
point, circling around back, to the right and 
front. Keep your heels down, move your head as 
little as possible, and keep your eyes 
fixed on a point in front of you in your normal 
range of vision. Disengage your external vision 
to turn your attention inward. Explore your natural 
range of movement within every quadrant of your 
circle. Imagine yourself as a compass with your 
head in a fixed position as the head of the compass, 
and your hips as the pencil drawing the circle. You 
will learn how the right and left sides of the body 
cooperate and work together to create your natural 
range of movement. All of these exercises strengthen 
and tone the tendons and ligaments which control 
joint movement. With regular practice, over time 
your range will increase. 

6. Ankles (from a sitting position)
a) Shake the feet with loose ankles and toes.
b) With legs straight, rotate the balls of the 
feet in opposite directions, then reverse.
c) With right foot over left knee and right hand 
over right ankle, take the ball of the right 
foot in the left hand and rotate and flex in both 
directions. Do the same with the other 
foot.
d) Standing up on the left foot, dig in the ball 
of the right foot and circle around the heel 
with knee, hip and ankle loose. 
Repeat on the other side.

7. Knee Circles (standing again)
a) With feet in an "11" position, flex the knees, 
put palms over knee caps and circle the knees 
around keeping thighs together and heels on floor 
(7 in each direction).
b) With feet shoulder width apart and palms over 
knees, push out knees in opposite directions in a 
forward manner, making circles; then backwards. 
Keep heels down (7 in each direction).
c) With feet in the same position, keeping 
tucked, release the knees and try to sit with the 
back straight, knees over toes, until thighs are 
parallel to the floor (5 - 7 times).  You can 
also try this exercise hanging on to a rail 
or door handle.
	
8. Slap the thighs. Jump out from an "11" position 
to a wide "\   /". Slap the indentation where the 
legs meet the hips. With loose wrists, slap down 
the outside of the legs across the ankle, up the 
insides of the legs, and along the line of the 
groin to the indentation and repeat 7 times. 

9."Chi Hwa" or transformation of the "chi" 
(8 in each direction) -- Keeping shoulders down, 
take your stance. With lungs empty (allow yourself 
to slouch), breathe in through the nose filling up 
the lower part of the lung. Imagine the arms in a 
weightless condition as you breathe in. In response 
to that impetus, the arms move, crossing in front 
of the body until they are higher than the head. 
Breathe in again filling up the upper part of the 
lung. Turn out the palms and spread the hands, as 
if opening up your own skylight. Keep your shoulders 
down. When your hands and arms are spread horizontal, 
breathe in one more time to fill up the back part of 
the lung. Tuck in the coccyx, and begin to exhale. 
Allow your arms and hands to float down to the starting 
position, as a dropped feather would slowly glide down 
to earth, gently shaking the hands (rotating the wrists) 
and articulating the fingers. After eight, reverse 
direction. With the initial breath, the arms open and 
spread out along the sides of the body, outside of 
arms to the sky. When they reach above the head, the 
backs of the hands are touching. Breathe in and fill 
up the upper part of the lung. Try to keep the shoulders 
down and disengaged during the whole exercise. Turn the 
palms toward you with hands crossed, making a "V" 
with your hands, wrist to wrist, bringing them down 
to nose level. The elbows should droop. Breathe in a 
third time and fill up the back part of the lung. 
Then begin to exhale (through the nose always). 
Shake the wrists and articulate the fingers as before. 
As the hands come down in front of the body, 
rotate the wrists outward and separate the hands. 

10. Balance the "chi."
Begin as in "chi hwa". When the arms are outstretched 
parallel to the floor and the lungs are full, 
drop/release the arms and slap the indentation 
of the thigh. With one inhalation bring the arms up 
under the armpits and make a fist. With another 
strong exhalation, fling out the hands/arms directly 
in front of you, shoulder width with palms flat 
and fingers closed. Exhale once more to completely 
empty the lungs and open the fingers, spreading 
the hands. With an inhalation, bring the fingers, 
hands and arms, joint by joint, toward the body 
with fists pointing towards the body. With another 
inhalation, turn around the fists. With another, 
open the hand upward, palms flat, fingers closed. 
Slowly exhale while bringing down the hands and 
forearms towards the floor pushing down with the 
heel of the hand. Lungs are empty but form is 
maintained. Then, relax.
 
*******************************************
11. Walking -- From 50-50 position, shift 
the weight to the left, left knee over left 
toe, and turn the body to the right corner 
pivoting on the right heel (toe to corner). 
Shift the weight to the right (0-100), lift 
the body on one leg (knee turning the body 
to the lift corner (45 degrees) to the other 
leg. Walk as far or as little as your space 
allows over toe), then turn to the front, 
sinking the weight in the lower dan tien, 
squaring the hips to the front, tucking in 
and keeping all the weight on the sustaining 
leg (100-0) knee over toe (45 degree angle 
with feet).  Maintain the position until you 
cannot any longer (and then some!) before 
turning the body to the left corner (45 
degree) and slowly transferring the weight 
to the other leg. Walk as far or as little 
as your space allows. 

12. Standing meditation "cultivating the 'chi'" 
(Yang Qi) Take your stance. Sink your 
body weight into your lower "dan tien." 
Feel your head held as if suspended from the 
ceiling with the chin tucked in slightly. The 
tongue touches the upper ridge of the teeth, 
the corners of the mouth are turned slightly up. 
Loosen all the joints, the shoulders, the 
elbows, the wrists; release the tension of 
the upper body into the dan tien, then into 
the legs, into the feet and discharge it into 
the earth. Close your eyes and look inward, as 
if looking backstage in a theater. Gradually 
center your thoughts in your lower dan tien. 
There are various ways to meditate, but all 
must start from a peaceful condition.


"Cool Down" Sequence

13. Balance the "chi."

14. Pushing down the heel of the hand, 
open the fingers, spread them equi-distant 
and flex the wrist and the fingers. Rotate 
the whole arm as one unit from the shoulder.

15. Shake out the legs. Balance on one leg, 
grabbing the floor with the toes and sinking 
down the weight into the lower "dan tien." 
Shake out the leg to the front. Loosen the hip, 
knee, ankle, and toes. Do the same on the 
other side.

16. Take the stance. Shake out the hands to 
the sides of the body as if throwing off water. 
Keep the shoulders down.

17. Mortar and Pestle -- With the arms extended 
and the weight in the balls of the feet, leaning 
forward like the side of a pyramid, elbows to 
the floor (not locked) and loose shoulders, 
grind the right locked fist into the palm of 
the left hand clockwise, exploring the range 
of movement of the wrist. Repeat on the other 
side counterclockwise (19 times each direction).

18. Pressure the thumbs up the spine of the ears 
and then out (horizontally) below the occipital 
bones (19 times). Up, down, out, and back.

19. Cup the left ear with the left hand. With 
the outer edge of the right hand, put pressure 
about 1 inch above the hairline moving across 
the neck, palm flush with the neck, into the 
cup of the opposite hand. Pinky goes from 
earlobe to earlobe. (19 times each direction).

20. Rub the face like a cat -- right hand over 
left side of face and vice versa 
(9 times each hand).

21. Pinch and pull the neck.

22. Tap the back of the neck at the brain 
stem lightly with finger tips.

23. Thump the thymus with the right fist.
                     

Feel better?
6/28/01
LBG