Theme of the Week: Segmentation

Some things are best defined by their opposite.  Darkness is the lack of light.  Blandness is a lack of flavor.  So today in class we looked at segmentation by making our bodies one solid piece;  We defined the theme of the week by first investigating the opposite.

We have a form in our system, “Mo Yut Do” (first martial way) that focuses on dynamic tension – meaning one moment you’re as relaxed as possible and then the next you try and tense every muscle in the body.  This feeling of tension, this unified solid of action is the polar opposite of a body that is segmented.

The form reminds me of a binary system – the body is either completely relaxed (0) or completely tense (1).  There is no in between (at least, there’s not supposed to be).  One of the payoffs students can get from practicing this form regularly is a distinct idea of just how much effort it is to be tense and how much it slows them down.  Once again, a point is made (it’s best to be relaxed) by pointing out the opposite (try being as tense as possible).

Check out the student’s thoughts here.