Tag Archives: practice

There are seemingly infinite varieties of horse stance, each one with unique attributes. I find the stances capacity to build chi truly beautiful, and the strength found in practice most excellent.

I have practiced several kinds of horse stance, the one that I am now attempting is one of northern kung fu, with feet pointing straight forward, one and a half shoulder widths apart with thighs perfectly parallel to the ground, so that one may lay a staff across the thighs without it roiling off. All this with a back and head as straight as if one were standing. It is giving me great difficulty, my hips lack some flexibility.

This got me wondering about other peoples experience with horse stances. How far are the feet? How low is the stance? What feels best for building qi? Some stances look nice but lack are lacking, some are quite high (as is common with taoist styles) some are quite wide (as with southern styles). Which is best for chi building.

Just for interesting discussion, I do not think there is necessarily a “right” or “best” answer. I would, however, like to take into considerations my fellows experiences and recommendations.