YSB Knoxville training challenge, Week of May 14, 2012

I'm thinking about throwing up a once-weekly (or maybe more often) training challenge for folks in the YSB, Knoxville, study group to take on, although others are welcome to join in, of course.

This week's challenge: Make a very solid effort to increase standing strengthening practice. Specifically, try to get three sets of standing strengthening in per day, where a set is holding the posture with full effort twice on each side for at least a minute on each side both times.

For those that know only the Lion representational posture, try to work in at least three sets a day. For those that know more postures, up the ante a little bit and train more than one. Some suggestions follow at the bottom of this post.

Time is less important than sensation, so you want to hold the postures until you feel like you cannot hold them accurately any longer. One minute per side seems to be a reasonable minimum, even if your strength has to wane on later sets to achieve it. Endure!

You want to put in 100% strength throughout, aiming to achieve the goals of the postures, where 100% strength is defined to be the maximum strength you can exert without making yourself shake (to become "turbid").

You want to sit down low, challenging the quadriceps, which should hold your weight, and the connective tissue of your hips, which you are changing in a practical, fighting-oriented way. Try to stay down between sets, even if you shake your arms out.

Some suggestions for those who know a few postures:

1. Try picking three postures, usually the animal representational posture and two palm representational postures. Stand the animal representational posture, then take a break. Stand the first palm posture, then after the break, do some strikes from that palm. Repeat the palm representational posture. After another short break, do the animal representational posture again, then the other palm posture. Follow that with strikes from that palm. Stand that palm's posture again, and then the animal posture to finish. This is hard.
2. Stand a number of postures for two sets, twice on each side in each set, in a series, with short breaks in between.
3. Stand *all nine* standing strengthening postures, starting and finishing with the animal representational posture (a total of ten standing sets), with short breaks in between. This is hard as well.
4. Pick any one posture and concentrate on it, doing sets repeatedly, two or three times holding it on each side in each set, perhaps three to five (or more) sets.

Practice these things intelligently, of course! Seek out the forces that the posture represents, try to put in strength everywhere it goes and to increase that strength over time. Figure out where to stay relaxed and try to maintain that while keeping the breathing smooth and even. Focus your "spirit" on doing the posture well, and train your attention to stay where it goes. Remember the requirements and run through them, one by one, to make sure you're meeting them.

EDIT: For more information about standing strengthening practice, check out this post about YSB standing strengthening on my personal blog, Becoming the Lion.