Knee Injuries

A common problem experienced by beginners is knee injury. Some of my fellow students, especially the new ones, complain about feeling pain in their knees after starting to learn taijiquan. In fact, when I first started learning from my teacher, I had the same problem too. My knees would hurt, and I would ask myself what was the cause. I thought it was because my legs are still not strong, my knees not used to the exercise. In the end, I started to wear knee supporters during practice, and even took glucosamine to help my knees heal. After about a year, however, the problem seems to have been cured, or at least gone away.

However, looking at my fellow students who are now facing the same problem, I think I know what is the real cause. Beginners are unable to relax their kua. Thus, when they bend their knees, without relaxing the kua, their weight is supported by their knees, putting unnecessary stress on their knees. If they relax their kua, their legs will become like a spring, and their weight will then become evenly distributed along their leg (like in a spring). This prevents unnecessary stress on their knees.

Thus, if you are currently experiencing pain in your knees, look at your stance. Is it because your kua is not relaxed, and you are putting unnecessary stress on your knees? Your legs should be like two springs supporting the weight of your body, not like two twigs about to break under the weight of your body.