Qing Gong "Lightness Skill"

I am really interested in Qing Gong, or the Lightness Skill, My teacher says that there are two ways to advance in it, one it Physical. That is basically working on your legs to be able to jump as high and long as you can. And Internal, which involves using your Qi to lighten your body to allow you to move quicker and jump higher and farther than you normally would. I know one common practice is to jump in patterns on tall poles driven into the ground, unfortunatly I don't have 50 poles just laying around for me to drive into the ground, and nobody to teach me how to use them even if I did. So my question is can anyone tell me alittle more about it, how to practice it, or learn it? Thanks.

Semper Fi.

Semper Fu,
Lightness Qi Gong. As Far as I am aware it is a very physical Qi Gong. There are probably many different versions of it. Asking a large group of people will get you different versions of it. I found one version in The Training Methods of 72 Shoalin Arts. If your interested in it, I would ask your Sifu if he knows it, or knows of anyone who would be willing to teach you it.
I started it but due to a previous injury was unable to finish it. It was fun, I really enjoyed trying. When I am fully healed I plan to try again.
Train Hard
Tigerklaw

Thanks for the reply, I was starting to think nobody knew what I was talking about!

__________________
The more we sweat in peace, the less we bleed in war. Therefore make your exercises bloodless battles, so that your battles are bloody exercises.

The "72 dim sum recipes" thing is plain jumping practice.

Light body training is a version of internal strength and internal structure training, that also helps to jump very high, and keep balance under any circumstances. Circle walking would be an easy version of light body practice.

__________________
"Fawning, but proud!" - (at least sometimes, in rare cases)
"Killing them all didn't make it any better..." - "Are you a freak or something ???" - Max Payne
"Theft is a crime, even in Iraq." - Me.

So Nik, are you saying theres only one kind of "light air" or light body chi kung? I myself have tried two external variations that seem to both be a precursor to an internal and both work very well from what I've seen without their internal counterparts. I have tried the type Tigerklaw was practicing, but I need to gain more heel cord flexibility before I get too far into that one.

Hey Kinetsudragon, could you go into a little more detail on those training methods. Maybe I could try one, I really am interested in trying it. Thanks!


Semper Fi,
Patrick

__________________
The more we sweat in peace, the less we bleed in war. Therefore make your exercises bloodless battles, so that your battles are bloody exercises.

The one Tigerklaw was talking about is in the 72 consumate arts if I remember correctly. You start by placing a long board angling from the ground to the roof of your garage or house if its a 1 story. You know, I'll ask Tigerklaw to outline the program here on the forum, he's actually practiced it, I don't want to tell you incorrectly.

The other one I have practiced I don't have the entire program either per se. Basically you start by digging a small hole that you stand inside of and you jump out of the hole onto the ground. As it gets easier you make the hole deeper and deeper. That's the basis of it, but once again I don't remember all of the specifics for how long you are to stay at each depth. Rather than tell you something incorrect, I'd like to find out for sure first then tell you. Maybe someone else has trained this before and knows the specific regiment.

I'll get back to you.. 3 hours of class, now I need food..

The "72 blabla arts" is a load of hearsay and hoaxes. Sometimes a bit of truth contained, but mainly lots and lots of fairytale, badazz training "recipes", and folklore, in a 1920s boulevard book.

The board thing is a Shaolin exercise that elongates the achilles tendon and trains the calf muscle. Correct training, if not overdone, Ma Chuanxu also described it as a part of his Bagua practice. The same can be done by standing with your toes on a staircase and stretching up and down. There are more of such exercises for the calf and foot tendons, giving you skills like a Ballerina, to roll on the foot and withstand strong torque. Losing this from tendon and capsule ruptures took away about 60% of my airstand on dunkings (I reached the rim with my elbow before).

The hole thing might have been done in reality, but this is plain SIMPLE, NORMAL jumping practice. It's like telling someone to just jump up in-place and reach for the ceiling. One of the variations of this exercise is to tie the knees so you cannot bend them on jumping, forcing to jump from torso and foot stretching, i.e. maximizing that contribution to the jump.

However, this still is not Qing Gong as in light body. You need to do other internal strength and conditioning practices, similar to circle walking, standing, etc. I might do a video on it in the future when I am a bit healthier, so I don't feel like writing a 101 on it.

__________________
"Fawning, but proud!" - (at least sometimes, in rare cases)
"Killing them all didn't make it any better..." - "Are you a freak or something ???" - Max Payne
"Theft is a crime, even in Iraq." - Me.

Just as I said before, because you know of something as light air qi gong, does that seriously mean there is no other kind that was ever practiced in China in the entire time that kung fu has been practiced? I mean seriously, I myself find that something could never truely be ruled out and don't doubt the things many schools practice..

So, how is jumping out of a hole plain simple, normal jumping practice? I was a track athlete and I never heard about doing something similar other than plyo boxes and there were different methods behind the entire training. Just like I said in my previous post, I don't know all of the details so I wasn't a good person for Semper to ask, but apparently he can ask you because you know maybe the only "valid" way of learning light air chi kung.

Okay, there are many different paths to take with the light body/air/mind/whatever Qi Gong. I know of 5 different variations. 1. Running a board 2. Jumping out of a hole, and back into it 3. Running up plum flower posts 4. Running up stairs 5. Walking the rim of a half barrel. There is more stuff that has to be done. I had a simple meditation when I ran the board. I also had a Sifu right there for me to ask questions. Yes, there are many questions when just simply running a board. I know there was MUCH more to the program that I never got to do, due to heel spurs.
To write up a program on the internet would not be right. I never finished the program. My suggestion is to ask your Sifu if he knows light body/air Qi Gong. If he doesnt, then see if he would be willing to find someone who would teach you this skill you want. Having someone to ask questions, give advice, and tell you if your doing it right is INVALUABLE. I had a Sifu, my brothers in Fu to help support me. Sometimes they would even run the board (woody) with me. The neighborhood kids would stop playing, be silent, while I meditated (they did that on thier own). They even would try and meditate with me, and basically they cheered me on. The neighbors across the street would watch me from the porch and cheer me on. Again, I had my Sifu help me all along that path. Giving me things to think about. Making sure my focus was in the right spot.
Semper Fu, I like the fact your willing to try and train this. find someone to teach you. Maybe there is a person at the Wuh Lum (?) Temple in Florida that knows this program. That way you get the right direction.
Train Hard
Tigerklaw

I don't know what is so difficult to understand from the posts already mentioning these several methods.

YES, jumping out of a hole is a known exercise, that is sometimes attributed to (from people who don't have the other training) as "real light-body qigong". However, as you mentioned it, what is the difference between jumping out of a HOLE and jumping onto a BOX as done in athletics for jump training ? Nothing. BTW, the important part that is often left out for the "hole thing" is that you need to bind the knees to not jump from the thighs for that exercise, although I have no idea on the success rate of that. You still can do it, and it still is mentioned (more than enough) as training method for that purpose. If you want that sort of "light body skill" that is otherwise known as the "NBA skill", then go ahead, do that. PLEASE, TRY that. And then decide if it is good for your jumping skills, and come back to tell on this. Then we have something better than a 1920s folklore book to tell on this big secret.

What also can be DONE (as in really, yes, do, practice this, now) is CIRCLE WALKING (low or high doesn't matter that much, from my POV), that board thing, feet training, normal internal strength training like the slow-moving Senkong exercise mentioned somewhere else here (video in the gallery), low posture practices like done in a zillion internal arts, etc., etc. This can be DONE, and is PROVEN to strengthen both jumping skills and balance abilities. Plus, it is not mentioned in the "48, 57.6 or 72 arts from over the hill", which is a BIG plus, in todays world. You can also look into that french "parcours" training, from the guys jumping up and down streets, buildings, staircases, etc. Which is the original meaning of light body skill, when it's about never losing balance and being able to artistically jump around, and very high and far.

__________________
"Fawning, but proud!" - (at least sometimes, in rare cases)
"Killing them all didn't make it any better..." - "Are you a freak or something ???" - Max Payne
"Theft is a crime, even in Iraq." - Me.

The jumping out of a hole... was told it should be combined with stamping exercises - eg standing on toes and dropping down with the heels to break planks.

IME - if you want to get a head start on learning to

“	never losing balance and being able to artistically jump around, and very high and far.	”

talk to some one who really understands ballet - the way they use the body is very, very similar to the way "neigung" or "internal" training does but they can explain it in clear, simple, English.

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Consider Phlebas, who was once handsome and tall as you
High mountains are a feeling
I don't need to sell my soul, he's already in me

Nik the thing that is hard to understand from your posts is that your only speaking from the physical side of things, the air/lightness qigong is the other half, somehow you must focus your chi to go to your feet and somehow come under you, ive never done it, but i have seen those who have. they've walk across tight bulbs and blades w/o cutting their feet. I was told that this took years of practice from a pupil of one of the master's performing.

The best thing you can do is find someone who knows of how to do this and train with them, that's the only way i can see possible.

Ummm ... erm ... well. Lightness skill is a) the ability to manipulate the connections of the body instantly and unwillingly to maintain PERFECT balancedness on any ground, at any moment, dynamically (i.e. on swinging tress), and neutralize any force going at your body in a way that you take as less impact as possible, and maintain control, b) the ability to use internal strength in your legs to jump high, really high. Everything else ... well. Uhm. Well. Did I mention I HAD lightness skills to a very good degree until I developed some bad case of depressions, and had my ligaments torn too often, so the feet wouldn't take it any more ? Praxis vs. theory. Tale vs. reality. Training vs. reading books. "I know someone who saw this guy who could spot someone doing" vs. I CAN do this and DID it. People can do a lot of things, that appear "magic" to others, but what you cannot do is fly, float around, or walk on a sea, or "let your qi convert horse remainders into gold".

__________________
"Fawning, but proud!" - (at least sometimes, in rare cases)
"Killing them all didn't make it any better..." - "Are you a freak or something ???" - Max Payne
"Theft is a crime, even in Iraq." - Me.

Nik i see what ur saying man and i know exactly of this... its not "magic" ive seen it done in person.. i believe you can do it there's no problem there.