Something I’ve been working on recently is maintaining my centre and staying grounded, specifically during transitions. The focus was initially within my forms, but thanks to Toudai Vogt, I eventually shifted my focus to slide-stepping.
At first, I didn’t think basic slide-stepping was something I needed to work on, because I didn’t believe I had any issues with it. Eventually, her persistence made me question whether I might be missing something—or at the very least, it inspired me to do some re-evaluating (which doesn’t hurt to do every now and again, even with the most “basic” things). And so I was pulled into this by Toudai Vogt, and I’m grateful for it.
Working on something as “simple” as slide-stepping in a bow stance has offered a lot of insight. During our training, I was challenged to focus on initiating the step with my back foot. Once I did that—and did it properly—I realized a whole bunch of things.
I’m first going to attempt to describe how I was slide-stepping versus the adjusted version. Bear with me, as feelings are very difficult to describe and convey in writing.
Previous method - My forward movement was being determined by my front leg. I’d describe it as having my front leg act as an anchor point while pulling everything forward (maybe even launching my weight forward as well), then stabilizing everything over that front leg, maintaining my centre there, and finally stepping forward.
Adjusted method - In this method, the movement is initiated by my back foot. I release my heel and push forward, with everything immediately shifting forward together over the front foot. Then I step forward.
I had to chuckle while writing this, because even the descriptions suit the methods themselves. The first is still a little confusing and unsure, while the adjusted version is simpler and smoother. Sorry for the tangent—I just thought that was funny.
Anyhow… moving on.
Once I felt the second way, I realized a few things:
- Although it was a very brief moment—a millisecond, really—I was definitely coming out of my centre. I was re-grounding very quickly and was fine again, but it was there. I didn’t even realize it existed until I experienced the movement without it.
- I wasn’t using my whole body to shift and transition. My back leg was basically dead weight, doing nothing. No wonder I needed a bit of a launch.
- That shift from the back is so important in maintaining my centre. The transition now feels smooth, and I feel grounded the entire way through.
- I’m pretty certain that before I was reaching forward with my toes, whereas now I’m stepping much more assuredly with my heel. The distance I’m traveling seems to be the same. I’m not saying heel versus toe is right or wrong, because I honestly don’t know—but in this case, stepping with my heel just feels more assured.
- I’ve applied this to my horse stance slide-stepping as well, and it seems to be making the same positive difference.
- I’m trying to apply this to my kicks, and so far I’m seeing a positive influence.
This isn’t mine quite yet. I still have to think about it while practicing, and I have to take my time. But it will be mine eventually. Like I said, I’m seeing so many other places where I can apply this and continue to progress with it.
Sifu Brinker has also challenged me to take it one step further and apply it to my hip. I haven’t quite figured that out yet—but the seed has been planted.
