Balance exercises to improve push hands

Cross training is an essential component of push hands. As well as balance, the difficulty of throwing a ball that returns centre to the receiver is visually obvious and the benefits immediately transferable to push hands. If you can do push hands on one foot ( I can't), you're really off to a good start at becoming a grounded push hands partner.

simulating brush knee and push

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qEp6kz8Fy_U

Working with reflexes,  and depth and peripheral perception. Add the movement precision you get from this repetitive simulation to a heavy bag and your brush knee and push should manifest some remarkable improvement.

Local push hands friends...go to https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCh60jDZIAy_7smA9xJotNbA
Frank Doss' dojo......These are good push hands video's to watch and observe the many mistakes...and also the flow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBbquRNL2uA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9xkE3Vj-KQ

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0myKFoEpKI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_3xAwyer4c

Another Brennan translation of the classics....

http://brennantranslation.wordpress.com/2013/05/25/the-taiji-classics/

"You must act according to your opponent, not try to do things from yourself, for if you go along with your opponent, you can act spontaneously, but if you act from yourself, you will get bogged down.
     If you obsess over the energy, there will be no power, whereas if you ignore the energy and thereby nurture it, there will be pure strength.
     If he takes no action, I take no action, but once he takes even the slightest action, I have already acted.
     For you to follow him, you have to know yourself, and then you can adapt and connect to him. For you to stick to him, you have to know him, and then you will be neither too late nor too early.
     If you can raise your spirit, then you will not have to worry about double pressure. If in sticking to the opponent you can follow him alertly, then you will find the ability to unbalance him.
     In the back and forth [of the arms], there must be distinguishing between passive and active. In the advance and retreat [of the feet], there must be both variation and coherence.
     If an opportunity comes from yourself, go ahead and shoot, but when force comes from your opponent, borrow it.
     When you issue power, there must be coordination between above and below, and then directed at an undefended area. Your posture must be straight and not leaning in any direction, so as to be able to brace in all directions.
     In stillness, be like a mountain. In movement, be like a river.
     Step as if near a cliff edge. Move energy as if drawing silk.
     Store power like drawing a bow. Issue power like loosing an arrow.
     Move energy as though through a winding-path pearl, penetrating even the smallest nook. Wield power like tempered steel, so strong there is nothing tough enough to stand up against it.
     The shape is like a falcon capturing a rabbit. The spirit is like a cat pouncing on a mouse.
     Within curving, seek to be straightening. Store and then issue. To gather is to release, for there is no discontinuity between the two moments.
     If you can be extremely soft, then you can be extremely hard. If you can stick and follow, then you can be nimble.
     By nurturing energy with integrity, it will not be corrupted. By storing power in crooked parts, it will be in abundant supply.
     Gradually you will reach a point in which everything you do is a response [rather than an initiation of attempt], and thus you will achieve the condition of dispensing with greed and thereby getting what you want."

The theory is easy to read and so hard to practice when there is a real live boy pressing against you in push hands....For more read on Brennan's translations. 

Wall juggling

From reasonably competent to the sublimely ridiculous... consider the defence has been penetrated a number of times and the defender has been pummelled several times and lies inert on a cold floor!  Wall juggling is great hand/eye practice.

A very simple game which improves: hand eye coordination, anticipation timing, peripheral awareness, visual reaction time, depth perception, focusing and tracking, and speed and span of recognition. And guess what....there's instant feedback. Oops, dropped the ball!

As well as developing several aspects of sports vision, the foot movement is most important. The weight of the body over the feet are always placed to exert maximum balance and force.

Yang style four corners training

No the footwork is not the same as Four Corners but the response to bounce-back from the corners requires some fluidity that starts with the feet and moves upward. Note the awkward left hand tosses that intermittently occur. To improve this exercise, you can put targets up in the corners. Hey, theoretically, if you can repetitively hit the targets, you might not have to move from your centre circle throwing location, and you will be able to entertain the precise foot work required in yang tai chi's four corners.