QA with Bruce

[Anonymous]

Question 1

I am a little un-clear with opening and closing syncing to ‘up and down’ movements particularly when one side of the body is doing the opposite to other. If you can say anything to clarify specifics or give a general approach if there is one, to syncing opening /closing to direction, or should we aim to be comfortable linking in both directions?

For example in D&T move 1,(Months 1-3 instruction) pulling the energy up as closing and on the other side opening as hand/arm goes down. However, in month 4 guidance reverses while working with the ribs, opening as arm goes up and closing on other side with other as arm goes down. Does it matter, should we aim to be comfortable in both directions?

I have a similar question about up/down- open/close syncing on opposite sides of the body in Cloud Hands.

Question 2

Similar but about breathing. In Circling Hands practice I am ’closing’ as I breath into lower belly and ‘opening’ as I exhale towards the periphery. In month 4 with the ribs, as I inhale some of that inhalation naturally expands the back area a bit rising up the spine at the same time as I am seeking to feel the ribs closing ….this is a funny balance to get, and am not sure if I am approaching it correctly? And how to approach breath as we explore open & closing in more complex forms & movement

Generally I am following the beginner instructions using Circling Hands, but using intermediate videos of D&T, Energy Gates, and Standing as way to explore process in action.

Hope that is understandable…course & teaching sincerely appreciated !

Nick

[Anonymous]

Hi Bruce,

thanks for all the valuable instruction. I have three questions that arose from my exercise:

First, when I do horizontal circling hands, I have a knocking in my left elbow joint. What could that be, I thought, maybe a band or tendon that is to short or tense? It jumps around everytime I move past it. With very small circles it is ok. Should I avoid popping it , thus alweays making only small circles, or just go through it and hope it will get better with more exercise?

Second, I have a similar issue in my shoulders, and it is louder, more strong. This affects me especially in movement two of my Tiger and Dragon practice everytime I lower the arms. It is not possible to avoid it, as the arm needs to go all the way down, but opening the shoulder a bit and moving it to the front works sometimes. What is up with that, and how best to fix this?

Third, you said somehow that people who keep smoking do not sufficiently understand how they are part of something bigger. Since I am having a hard time getting rid of that trait, what can I do to sufficiently understand this such that I will have the inner strenght to avoid the next cigarette whenever it is about to be smoked?

Many thanks again

[Anonymous]

I am still very new to this, I barely have been getting time to practice the circling hands, as well as some of the breathing technique from your book, Opening the Energy Gates of the Body, and those alone have made a massive difference in my energy flow and has benefited multiple areas of my life, so thank you so much for that! The trouble I have is that I have a LOT of tension in my shoulders that i’m not usually even able to be aware of, are there any particular exercises that help release that?

[Anonymous]

Dear Bruce
Thanks a lot for this Openings and Closings program. It fits my current training perfectly! I learn something new with every lesson and every training, so it´s really helpful and very enjoyable.

Especially new and surprising to me is the concept of Shoulder´s Nest. When I try to let the shoulder´s nest fall down at opening the shoulder, I can feel it very strongly.
Can you please tell some more about the shoulder´s nest? The functions, the benefits, how to train it, things to be aware of, why it is called the shoulder´s nest?

Thanks again for this excellent program!
Best regards
Susanne

[Anonymous]

Hi Bruce

Many thanks for your Opening and Closing videos. Strange as it may seem, I can only get my ribs to open and close while watching the videos, so I will be watching them more than the minimum three times you suggest!

A question on Circling Hands: I can’t quite get the fluid pressure up to complete a full circle without muscular help, except very small circles. Would it be more effective to practise opening and closing with these small circles or to ignore the muscular input and practise opening and closing with larger circles?

All the best

Geoff

[Anonymous]

How do you apply the Opening and Closing to Acupuncture points?

[Author]

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