Natural Stance

Natural Stance, as the name implies, is the simplest way to stand
naturally. A naturally balanced human body responds to the challenge of
gravity by bringing itself to a stable position using its bone structure to
support its weight and prevent falling. The vertical alignment of the spine
allows the body to spend the least amount of energy to maintain a stable,
upright stance.

If you are one of the many people leading a sedentary lifestyle you may
not know how to keep your body naturally balanced and aligned. If you
deviate from your natural alignments, the weight of your body will not be
supported by its bone structure, and you will have to engage your muscles
to keep yourself from falling. Although muscular tension may prevent you
from falling, muscles are never as strong as bones; muscles spend
energy while the bones do their work effortlessly. Not only will this make
you tired but it will also restrict your mobility and cause discomfort.
Eventually, chronically tense muscles will begin to ache from the effort
required to keep the misaligned body from falling.

If the body is misaligned, it may try various compensation strategies
(e.g., shift the weight between the hips, tilt the pelvis, bend the spine, raise
one shoulder or the other, etc.) all of which will eventually contribute to the
muscular tension and pain. Learning Natural Stance and addressing the
issue of balance between the feet can often help resolve such common
conditions as headache, backache, shoulder pain, sciatica, and even
scoliosis.

In Natural Stance, the weight of the body is distributed evenly between
both legs while the torso and head are resting on the bone structure of the
spine. The natural curve of the spine is neither exaggerated nor
diminished. This allows the free flow of energy throughout the organism. If
you could visualize the energy field of such an aligned person, their energy
field would appear symmetrical and centered.

You can experience Natural Stance by jumping up in the air and landing
on both feet as softly as possible with your feet about shoulder-width apart.
Notice that the easiest way to do this is to land with you knees bent, letting
your quadriceps (thigh muscles) absorb the shock of landing. They are,
after all, the largest muscles in the human body, which are most suitable
for being shock absorbers. Natural Stance allows you to maintain
natural body alignment, distributing most of your weight on the bone
structure of your body, rather than the muscles.

Notice how bent your knees are. Naturally, the deeper you squat, the
further the toes tend to turn outwards away from the centerline with the
knees following suit. Experiment with bending your knees enough to cover
your feet when you look at them. You may ask your practice partner to test
how stable you are in this stance. Compare this to other positions where
your knees are locked or do not sufficiently cover your feet from sight.
Taking a Natural Stance is an exercise in awareness in its own right. It
is an excellent way to begin exploring the practice of Qi Dao - Tibetan Shamanic Qigong.