When practicing these exercises, consciously develop an understanding of the basic principles.

Seiza -- the standard sitting posture. Knees are roughly three fists apart, toes touch in back. Hands rest lightly on the thighs. The weight should be concentrated in the knees; almost no weight rests on the heels. The head should feel like it's pulled up by a string, the chin settled. Eyes look forward gently, not too tightly focused. The mouth should smile almost imperceptibly. The mind should feel both expansive and stable.

Twisting from side to side: Remember to let the arms hang loose. The point is to warm up the torso and to start feeling the one point and correct posture.

Bending forwards and back: Standing with your feet apart, let your body hang forwards, shoulders loose. The point is not to stretch the legs but to warm up the torso. Keep the back nice and loose with feeling of extension to the head. When going backwards, feel the tension and relax into it.

Stretching left and right: Left arm extended over the head, hang your body to the right. Again, relax the shoulders and bounce to warm up the torso. One stretches the side of the body, from the elbow all the way down to the foot.

Stretching the legs: Relax the upper body and let the weight of your arms draw yourself forward so that your stomach nears your legs. Avoid trying to touch your head to your legs: that idea results in stretching the neck instead of in warming up the legs.

Loosen the hip joints: Sit with soles of feet together, heels close to the body. Flap the knees like wings to loosen up the hip joints after the leg stretching. This is analogous to tekubifuriundo (see below) for the arms.

Sit seiza and stretch back; twist from side to side: It's important to relax as much as possible during this stretch. Try to keep breathing to and from the center. Also, send your mind through the knees into the ground, particularly during twisting.

Stretching the other way (rolling backwards and holding there): Again, it's nonintuitive to keep the breathing relaxed and connected to the center, but doing so will improve the stretch and help the mind concentrate.

Nikkyo: Hold your left (for example) wrist in front of your center, wrist bent. Drop the right hand down so that its palm covers the back of the left hand, fingers grasping the blade of the hand. Bring both wrists up the center line, stretching the left wrist.

Kotegaeshi: Again, left wrist centered. Point the hand up, and turn clockwise so that your thumb is away, palm facing left. Right hand's palm against the back of the left hand again, this time the fingers grasp the base of the thumb. While maintaining the clockwise stretch, bring down the center line.

Sankyo: The third wrist exercise, this one is done by holding the left hand out in front of you, thumb pointing downwards, palm out. The right hand, coming over the palm side of the hand, grasps the lower edge of the hand (side with the thumb) but not grabbing the thumb. The right hand then turns the left hand so that the left hand is palm up, and both are extended away from your body. Make a special note to keep the shoulders from tensing up.

Tekubifuri undo: Standing straight, relax the shoulders and let the hands hang so that you feel their weight. Shake like you're trying to shake water from your fingertips, as fast as you can, from the center. After finishing, stop for a moment and feel the warmth in your palms.

Funakogi undo: Rowing exercise. The wrists are by the sides of the waist, wrists bent. They are brought forward parallel to the floor, and then brought back. The mind should be settled throughout.

Shomenuchi ikkyo undo: Right on the count, the hands go up without a hitch, to about eye level. Right on the count, the hands fall naturally to the sides, closing on the way down. Move from the center, and beware of losing your center upwards when you bring your hands up.

Zengo undo: Shomenuchi ikkyo undo in two directions, forwards (zen) and backwards (go). Be wholehearted in both directions, neither anticipating nor remembering.

Tenkan: Stand with the left hand and foot forward. On counts of "one" you'll pivot clockwise; two, counterclockwise. On the very first count, simply pivot on the left foot, keeping the left hand connected to your center: you end up in the same position, facing the opposite direction. On all subsequent counts, put the other hand out, take a step with the back leg, and pivot. Try to maintain the feeling of connection between your wrist and the center: the body turns and turns, but the mind doesn't move.

Ushiro ukemi (Kohotento undo): Sitting, focus on a spot on the floor, and send your mind to that spot. On the count, roll back, still sending energy to that spot, and then roll forward, still sending. The point is to practice sending your mind forward to one spot: rolling back and forth, the mind doesn't move. Watch that the back maintain roundness (particularly the small of the back); the motion should have no bumps.

Knee-walking: Starting from seiza, raise one knee forward, and step with it, then raise the other knee, step with it. The ankles should be kept together. This exercise helps train one to move the body easily and fully from the center. Relax and send the mind ahead so that it pulls you forward lightly like a string attached to your center.

Unbendable Arm: This exercise illustrates the difference between "dead" relaxation and "live" (i.e., with intent) relaxation. Hold out your arm in front of you, and relax it completely. It can be bent easily. Now, without tensing it, imagine that you're sending something (water, blood, energy, whatever) out from the center and through the arm. Now it becomes much harder to bend, in spite of it being just as relaxed as before. Mind and body coordinated are better than body alone.