Vertical Shake is a movement practice that can enhance the alignment of the body in your chosen movement practice.
The motto of “Align, Release, Mobilize” comes close to encompassing the purpose of tai chi, but also could be used to describe other movement practices use to achieve the goals of tai chi. One way to state that goal is that tai chi allows one to move towards central equilibrium of body, mind and spirit.
Today’s post is a possible first step towards that goal. It describes a movement practice called “vertical shake” which can be seen on YouTube as presented by Ido Portal
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H6lyGhAANR0&t=1348s
Ido Portal’s progression from the set up through the execution of vertical shake is identical to the protocol that I use in teaching Yang Family Style tai chi chuan. The narrative below is an example of how the first four principles, relating to alignment, are presented in tai chi. You will see the similarity if you watch the Ido Portal video.
Vertical shake must begin with finding ones central equilibrium. Begin, standing with feet shoulder width apart with the base of the feet evenly rooted to the ground. Swing pendulum like in small circles feeling the weight change from toes, to the outer/inner edge of the feet and to the heels. Circle in both directions letting yourself slowly find your central equilibrium. Finish with side to side and forward and back pendulum like swings until you feel an aligned connection from head top to the soles of your feet.
This is your start position for vertical shake. The next phase is the release of tension which can be described as a sinking feeling. An understanding of tonus and how it supports the body will be the subject of a future post. For this narrative it needs to be understood that the desired release of tension is not a letting go of support, but rather a resilient maintenance of support without unnecessary tension.
Bring your attention to your knees. Release with a light bounce to off lock any tension in the knees. This is not a knee bend, but rather a release into a supportive but tension free position. Ido uses the idea of a touch to the back of a locked knee position which results in the off locking at the knee.
Bring your attention to your hips. Again, not bending at the waist, but releasing to an off lock tension free position. Coordinate the release of the knees with this release at the waist. As was done at the knee, a light touch to the inguinal creases at the hip can facilitate this off lock release. I use the outer edge of my palms for this touch.
Bring your attention to your sternum. Release the chest, feeling your torso drop onto the supported position of your hips and knees. And, again, use a light touch with the finger tips to the strenum to initiate this release
The combination of all three releases should bring the body into an aligned postion that feels both tension free as well as fully supportive of the bodies weight. A mental image of sinking into the floor may accompany this released position, but not one of limpness. I like to use the idea of a resilient energy maintaining support.
The release of the knees and hips can be felt in the lumbar spine as well as in the sacrum. The release at the chest is felt in the thoracic spine, the sternum, rib cage and shoulder girdle. There is still the cervical spine to deal with which will be added later.
In progression from the knees to the hips and the chest, with an inhale feel an expansiveness followed by a quick exhale to feel the release. It may take several repetition for each joint and then for all three at the same time. Ultimately come to a point where breathing is shallow and natural without mental awareness. You may be able to feel a vibration happening at all three joints. This may take some time before becoming natural.
The major supporting joints of the body are now aligned and released. We now need to add the shoulder to the release. On an inhale, raise the shoulders slightly, and then drop them on the exhale. Return to the vibrating sensation and be aware of how the shoulders are now moving along with your torso.
An added variation is to periodically raise the shoulder and drop them so that the hands shake or flop and your forearms bend slightly at the elbow, like a rag doll. Feel the affect of this on your shoulders and torso down through hips, knees and feet.
Now to deal with the cervical spine. The vertical shake of Ido Portal and the Alexander Technique bring into play the use of the vocal cords in releasing tension in the cervical spine and the connection of the spine to the skull at the occipital bone. Breathing in through the nose followed by the emanation of an Ahh sound on the exhale resulting in a release that can be felt in the throat. It also encourages the skull to settle on the occipital bone in a relaxed fashion. The jaw will drop slightly with the release of tension in temporomandibular joint that supports the jaw. Trying to mentally release these muscles is problematic, but the emanation of the “silent Ahh” seems to allow for the necessary release.
A tai chi acquaintance added something that seems to come into play here as well. Ken Go, President of the Australian Tai Chi Association, is a teacher with a high level of push hands experience and finesse. His ideal aligned position included the sensation of a raising sensation from the headtop (he likened it to a pinocchio like elongation) to a point well above the head. Imagine that your head and entire body is hanging from this elevated point. This sensation is accompanied by a release of facial muscles and the jaw, much like the Ahh practice does. So, I use both.
The vertical shake can now be started with a light bounce of the whole body. The rag doll metaphor may be appropriate to feel the body shake with each bounce. Initially a stronger inhale and exhale can get the movement going, but should subside to a shallow unconscious breathing as the shake reduces to a mere vibration. Doing the shake for just a couple of minutes to start is recommended. Ido Portal’s 24 minute shake is in line with the extreme athletes that undertake his movement training, but may not be advisable for most of us mere mortals.
Another movement system that uses the vertical shake concept is the Fascial Training system presented by Jack Thompson. He calls the movement pattern Fascia Hopping. Again, you hear the familiar tai chi principles of alignment being presented. Thompson’s version starts out the same as Ido Portal’s but he adds a number of movement options that take the concept in other directions. I don’t particularly like the way Thompson aligns the body with the palms turned forward, as this creates tension in the chest that is not desired in the objective of the Vertical shake. I prefer Portal’s version, but find it interesting that there are other movement systems that are in sync with the principles of tai chi; interesting, but not really surprising. See YouTube links below for samples of Jack Thompson’s system.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2errN-tJTo
