Sword hand tension

[Anonymous]

Hi,

When I hold the sword hand position for any length of time – even with the fingers as loose and relaxes as possible – I experience a fair degree of tension, particularly in the fleshy part of the thumb. I assume the tendons of the hands will stretch and loosen over time. In the interim, to ease the discomfort, would it be recommended to temporarily hold the thumb lower (than the actual tips) on the last two fingers, or to forego contact with the pinky finger?

Thanks for any suggestion in this regard.

Great course and presentation, Bill, Kaualani & Kurt!

Richard

[Anonymous]

HI Richard,

Many people experience the discomfort you’ve described. Yes, with time and practice your soft tissues will stretch and the sword hand will become comfortable for you to maintain.

In the meantime, though, you’ll be exceeding your 70% if you force yourself to hold a full sword hand. So here’s where your creativity comes in. How can you back off from the fully formed sword hand to a 70% approximation?

Whenever you think about backing off from an “ideal” position, you want to come up with an approximation that follows the general principles and purpose of the ideal. In this case, the ideal is about forming a circular connection between your thumb, ring, and little finger, right? I like to do this by touching the tips of all three fingers. This requires a lot of stretch for all three fingers. Other practitioners I know do it by touching the pads together, which requires a bit less stretch.

Richard, you seem like you’re figuring out a version that is working for you, where you are touching the the thumb lower down on the ring and little fingers. The ideal has the thumb touching both, so hopefully you can find a way to touch both and yet relieve your discomfort. If you can’t then, it’s okay to just touch one, and then gradually find your way closer and closer to the ideal over time, while always remaining comfortable. if you stay within 70% and practice, then your capacities will grow over time and what used to be your 70% will become your 60 or 50% and you’ll adjust up to where your 70% has become.

I’m glad that you’re enjoying the course.

M

[Anonymous]

Many thanks, Bill!

[Author]

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