Friday Practice

 

By the time I finally got down to the beach the sun was already up. The first thing I did was to shoot the rising sun with my phone. 

I haven't seen much color from the house for days, so I haven't been bringing my camera rig. After a few washouts earlier this week and a few super clear (colorless) sunrises over the past few days. I've kinda lost my motivation to bring my camera rig. 

My phone seems to be doing and ok job and it's much easier to take with me and the processing at the house is easier. As the sunrise becomes earlier and earlier I've been having more difficulty getting down to the beach and set up 10-15 minutes before the sun rises. 

In my experience as soon at the sun is up, most of color is gone. 

The Details:

The sunrise was at 6:57, high tide at 8:06. It's 53 here at the house. I dressed medium but I did have my hood up and gloves on initially. The tide was still coming up, so there wasn't much beach to practice on. I did find some semi-firm sand to practice on. I just had to keep and eye out for the highest set of swells because the tide was still rising.

 Frankly I'm so used to practicing on the beach in unstable sand that I practically don't even notice it anymore (almost). My feet and left ankle seems to be able to withstand the instability this season. As long as it doesn't hurt I'd say beach practice is better for Zhong Ding. foot placement and leg/core strength. 

I suspect if I would  restart practicing Bagua Zhang in the loose sand regularly it would irritate my feet (plantar fasciitis) and ankles (achilles  tendonitis). 

These days I'm only practicing Bagua Zhang on more stable surfaces. Years ago I learned my lesson on that. Although I love to practice Bagua Zhang around the parking poles on the beach. My feet and left achilles tendon didn't like it. I find that if I practice Bagua Zhang on a stable surface using Lion Stepping and higher single leg squats I can get a really good round of Bagua Zhang in and not suffer the consequences. My idea is get healthier not un-healthier. Especially as I age....Duh!

I love practicing by the Atlantic Ocean, looking at the horizon. This morning marks my 104th Sunrise Beach Practice (SBP) this season. I started doing SBP's last season when I did a full 6 months of them. The difference is notable and difficult to convey. It's the experience of it all and the way it changes your personal frequency. If'n I could only bottle it! 

With gratitude and appreciation....

The Practice:

I started with a full round of The 10+ focused on feeling the result of 40+ years of consistently doing them. I highly recommend them to anyone interested in their health and or develop and maintaining martial skills.

Next I did a Round of Taiji  (right side) focused on "Stimulating my qi like the beating of a large drum and retaining the qi internally in calm contemplation." 

I also focused on noticing and using the counter balancing that's throughout the solo form. I've been regularly using the counterbalancing to assist my balance in the loose sand all season. But today I stayed focused on it and noticed how wide and deep my empty stepping has become. Without physical effort! So cool!!

Next I did a round of Anyo Isa and Nihanchi Kata focused on adjusting techniques and sequences. 

Next I used my dragon canes to do a round of Taiji Double Saber (Dao) focused on shoulder health and agility. 

I finished with a Healing Qigong before returning to the house.

I had a productive video conference call with Jeff from 8-9 (every Friday).

Jeff and I did a bit of work on Anyo Isa and Apat and Sunsu Kata.

Afterwards I went out back and reviewed the ending of Sunsu Kata; I did several iterations of the ending.

                                                                       Beach Art