(III) Balance and Completeness
In the 48 Forms attention is paid to the completeness and balance of the movements. In the forms of Single Whip, Waving Hands like Clouds, and Strike, Parry and Punch, the symmetrical right forms have been added, based on the left forms, thus correcting the imbalance of movements in some traditional routines. For the legs, the set includes 29 bow steps ( 15 left bow steps and 14 right bow steps), 12 empty steps (seven left empty steps and five right empty steps), six crouch steps, and six one-leg stances (three for each leg). This helps balance the weight on the legs. Also, many fist techniques are used and account for one third of the hand movements, thus exceeding the limit of "five fist strikes in Taiji Quan" of many traditional routines.
