post 53. Heng quan (横拳) and more

Ah. Heng quan, usually the last of the five element fists.

When Zhou lao shi first said Heng quan had a bit of difficulty, I confess I did doubt him a bit. Come on, it looks simple: just keep your fist facing forward and walk from left to right, right?

Right, it's the things that look easy that are not easy.

First, the footwork. Looked a bit iffy but picked it up after 2 or 3 reps. Basically, from san ti (left foot forward, right foot back), swing left foot to right, turning it 45 degrees inwards. Rear right foot follows, but stops facing forward. So both feet form a rough triangle. Bring left front foot foward at 45 degrees, and bring rear foot up and facing in same direction as left so that both feet are parallel. Sink. Now, swing rear right foot across and around to the front, stopping with foot hooking in 45 degrees. Rear left foot (which was the front foot before) now goes to the back and follows, facing front. Repeat.

Basically, it's moving from a rough triangle to parrallel, swing and cross to form triangle, to parallel, swing and cross, etc etc. The swinging bit I find hardest, cos it's hard to balance and control the position of the rear foot when stopping.

It's easier with a vid, but then, hmmmm. Pondering taping Zhou lao shi doing the forms, but lack of digital camera. Still, something to consider.

So that's the footwork. Moves you left to right while still advancing. Heng = horiszontal in Mandarin. So, that is what the footwork achieves. Moves you side to side but still advancing towards oppoenent.

The upper body now. So, from san ti, when moving left front foot to right, close fists, and as in zuan quan, left hand jerks down and right hand drills up. Position: left foot forward, right hand forward. When moving to parallel, right hand still faces forward. Now the tricky bit. When swinging and crossing right foot to the front, twist body to the right and send the hand foward a bit more; do not passively allow the arm to follow the body movement of left to right. When right foot touches ground, left hand pulls down and right arms drills up, right foot stomps into foward facing position. All in one instant.

I find the twisting of the body hardest. Zhou lao shi suggested thinking of a S-shape , but then he also said that muscles in the curved-in region (quadratus lumborum, i think) should also push upwards. At the same time, the shoulder and upper limb should be sent forward, as if someone was pulling on it.

Lol, if that sounds complicated, try doing it. It is. I wonder if Heng quan is usually taught last cos it's the hardest to learn.

And you know what's the most irritating thing? That a middle-aged man can make it look so effortless. Zhou lao shi got me to feel his back whilst he was doing the motions, and yeah, I wouldn't have thought it possible that someone's small back muscles can be so developed. Lats, traps, yeah, that's normal, but quadratus lumborum, I would have said it's dodgy if I haven't felt it myself.

Zhou lao shi empahsized the twisting motion helps to massage the viscera and work the back muscles as well. That's a simple way of possibly explaining how internal martial arts mantain organ health. I just find it bloody hard to do.

He also mentioned something that makes sense to me though. It's important to work on the internal (organs, viscera) as well, not just the external (nice big muscles), because it helps with abosrbing force. It's a matter of conditioning, I think. The Chinese have a saying, which when loosely translated means, work on the internal, so that strength stems from the inside. Makes sense to me. Can't get strong without good lungs and heart.

And then possibly because we didn't fulfil our quota of hands-on, he set about showing me how to show different parts of the body to smack someone around. I wouldn't have though a chin could be used in that way, or that it could be that painful or effective. And he also did do the stomach thing when you shove someone with it. It's like being lifted up by a big solid mass of air. No, really. It's an up and out motion, basically breaking your root/centre of gravity. And he was doing it slow. If he did it fast, I really think I would have been hurled far away. I can see how it would work in a fight.

And then he really got into it, showing me the butt-shove, the head butt, the shoulder stroke. We both had a laugh when he showed me how to use the head to attack continously. Looks funny, but bloody painful if used on you. Basically, they all adhere to the principle of xing yi: attack continously, using every part of your body, until your opponent is totally vanquished. Or to put it in a nicer way: Overcome your opponent with such an overwhelming force that he feels like he cannot possibly fight against it.

Hehe. I still remember the continous head butts.