I Liq Chuan is an internal practice, and the primary work is done through the use of attention. During the exercises, our task is to focus our attention on the processes occurring in the body according to specific instructions and to recognize them.
The very first thing is the processes that need to be tracked. It is essential to understand what to focus on, where to direct your attention, and how to work with it to achieve a specific result.
In the I Liq Chuan system, there are specific “checkpoints” that help implement the working mechanisms:
- Center of gravity – center of the feet.
- Perineum pointing down to balance beam line.
- Tan-Tien – suction and condense.
- Ming Men – project and expand.
- Crown – suspended.
- Sternum – suction and condense.
- Kwa – maintain the energy in the centers of hip joints.
- Drop shoulders over the hips.
- Tucking of the ribs.
- Nine solid and one empty on the feet.
- Elbows wrapping down.
- Knees pointing to the big-toes.
- Balance of Yin/Yang.
The 13 reference points are the points responsible for the transmission of force and energy. If the force is blocked or you feel tension during the exercises, the answer lies in these points. They form the structure of I Liq Chuan and are responsible for the principle of alignment. The main task is to bring all these points into a specific position, in which we can achieve optimal balance and then feel the flow of energy. If even one of these points falls out of alignment, the flow stops and we lose the integrity or connection of the body.
To better understand their interaction, it is necessary to delve a bit into anatomy and examine the functioning of the musculoskeletal system in I Liq Chuan.
The Interaction of Bones and Muscles in I Liq Chuan
By correctly aligning ourselves vertically using the 13 reference points, we can achieve a state of balance or neutrality. This means that under the influence of two forces — gravity and the ground reaction force — we will use minimal tension or muscle work to maintain equilibrium while standing on a surface. By giving the muscles the necessary tone, we can practice alignment and adjustment, monitoring balance within the body.
To achieve a state of balance, the joints must be centered relative to each other. The center here refers to a position in which the joint head has six degrees of freedom and can move forward, backward, left, right, up, and down. The further the joint deviates from the center, the more muscle activation is required to maintain balance. The problem is that this creates excessive local tension (transverse force relative to the bone) aimed at maintaining balance. However, to sustain this tension for an extended period, significant energy expenditure is required. This disrupts the balance in the body. When force is applied to such a structure with displaced centers, the structure will fall apart even more, causing even greater muscle tension and the inability to generate a unified effort.
The 13 points are a way to create and maintain conditions in which relaxation works. If we lose the alignment of the joint centers, transverse muscle force relative to the bone starts to occur, which destroys the integrity and cohesion of the structure.
The goal is to change the type of muscle work. This is achieved through the longitudinal compression of muscles from the fingertips to the dantian along the inside of the body (Yin muscles, or flexor muscles) and the expansion from Mingmen to the fingertips along the outside of the body (Yang muscles, or extensor muscles). The same applies to the legs. Longitudinal compression from the dantian to the toes along the back of the legs (Yin muscles) and longitudinal expansion from the feet along the front of the legs to Mingmen (Yang muscles).
It is worth noting that such work is possible when the first 12 of the 13 landmarks are properly aligned. With this alignment, we can achieve relaxation of all muscle groups in the body and give them a certain tone, which allows us to keep the joints centered. When force is applied to the structure, we can adjust the work of the Yin and Yang muscles in such a way that the centers are not lost and the body structure remains in balance.
Fasciae play an important role in this work. Fascia is a highly innervated fiber with a cellular structure. Fasciae are like pouches that enclose muscle fibers as well as all internal organs. They facilitate the movement of different types of tissues relative to each other within the human body, including muscles, bones, tendons, and others. Collagen acts as a lubricant, reducing friction between tissues.
In essence, stretching muscles in I Liq Chuan occurs by elongating the fascial pouches that enclose the muscle fibers. This elongation happens through the stretching of the fascial cells.
It should be noted that in order to perform such work and sequentially engage the Yin and Yang muscles, it is essential to bring the bone structure into a state of balance to eliminate local tension from the muscles. Aligning the bone structure creates the condition for muscle relaxation.
When any individual muscle is tense and tight, it is not possible to perform such fascial work at the location of the tension, as the tight muscle loses its stretching capability. This is characterized by a lack of necessary tone and elasticity.
Here we come to the concept of energy flow. Essentially, such stretching of the Yin and Yang muscles (flexors and extensors) throughout the body through the elongation of the fascia creates a sensation of flow within our body. Through this, we can both “absorb” the applied force, channeling it through the entire body to the feet, and project it outward.
The flow is directly connected to the thirteenth point (the balance of Yin and Yang muscles), which can only manifest when the other twelve are properly aligned.
In simpler terms, the essential condition for stretching the fascial pouches throughout the body, which creates the sensation of energy flow, is the alignment of the thirteen landmarks. This alignment allows us to achieve a state of maximum balance and fully relax all muscle groups in the body.
