The 3rd posture of Chen 1 tai chi is called Lazily Tying Coat. Let's look at 2 martial applications for this & why the popular application is not as effective as the one promoted here. This is from Master Jou Tsung Hwa's expression of the Xinjia Chen First...
The Yang Style Taijiquan (tai chi chuan) martial application for White Crane Spreads Wings is shown in the video below. Filmed at Internal Gardens School of Classical Tai Chi Chuan, featuring Shifu Loretta Wollering. NOTE: This particular application is shown SLOWLY...
Enjoy your video below. It will review the "breathing without breathing" technique from very old Daoist philosophy and how to apply it in your tai chi form. The idea is to remove so many of the manmade rules of breathing, and just focus on the dantian...
The triangle tai chi "wedge" shape in the arms is used a lot in taijiquan. The rooster stance (legs) works in similar ways. Watch the tai chi video below to see why these stances are so important for tai chi applications and martial arts self-defense use.[s3mvp...
Below is a possible way to use "Brush Knee & Twist Step" for self-defense. Make sure to do the twist step correctly and "seal" the arm of the opponent. This short video (accessible to members only) shows you the nuances:
Here's an alternative tai chi application for 6 Sealings and 4 Closings, as done in the Chen tai chi expressed from the Jou Tsung Hwa lineage of taijiquan. It's a little different than the standard way the modern Chen tai chi family uses their Six Sealings and Four...
For those of you who have the classic, "The Dao of Taijiquan" authored by Master Jou Tsung Hwa, you may have questions about how to properly do the tai chi (taiji) diagram exercise in Chapter 3. Here's everything you need to know in a little video clip (below)....
I no longer have colitis. Abdominal self massage as taught to me by Master Jou Tsung Hwa (tai chi master teacher), and tai chi, along with simplifying my diet CURED me of this painful condition. While I am making a full, in-depth video (available for sale soon)...
I remember studying with Master Jou Tsung Hwa at Tai Chi Farm outdoors almost every day, even in the extreme heat. And as is in most of China, on Tai Chi Farm we did not have air conditioning either. So you can imagine how that felt on a hot, humid August day in...
Classic writings on tai chi tell us to relax and move from the waist. But most people don't interpret "the waist" properly from the Chinese. This will mess up your tai chi! The tai chi waist, or "yao" refers to a very large area of the body - the lower transverse...
Harvard University Medical School is among the most prestigious. Their doctors recommend tai chi. Does yours? See what Harvard Univ. professors and doctors had to say about tai chi exercises in this video clip. Source quoted on Internal Gardens...
Tai chi exercises or qigong are often concluded with a "clearing" move by many masters. Most people think of it as a way of calming down and sealing the energy. Also, it gives a sense of closure. But there is SO much more you can get out of a clearing if...
How do you transition between tai chi moves? If this is your question, you are not alone. Remembering transitions in tai chi moves is the hardest thing for the tai chi beginner. But it's actually easier than you think, if you know how to look for patterns to help you...
Think that a good pair of eyeglasses helps you learn tai chi better? Guess again! You may be surprised to know that simple things - like wearing bifocals or trifocals - can train your body and energy to cause more harm than good! Find out how you may actually improve...
No, you are not imagining it. YES, there are acupuncture charts that label points differently. This happened to me several times while teaching acupressure self-help to my tai chi NJ students. I use a textbook that is used in Chinese and in American acupuncture...
Your tai chi is like garden soil - the more balanced nutrients it contains, the more nourishing will be your harvest. So learn ways to "power up" your tai chi so that you can get all the good health, wisdom, qi and self-defense (both physical and "psychic") training...
Tai chi videos and tai chi books seem like good tools to help you learn. Sadly, the opposite often happens: people realize they can't follow the videos/books, so they quit. This does not need to happen! I'm going to share with you, 4 tips on video, and one extra...
Tai chi exercise is powerful way to gently release knee stiffness, knee pain and injury. But as teaching was passed on in the Chinese healing arts & martial arts, many tai chi and qigong exercises got misunderstood or lost important details. One...
Are you sure you're doing your tai chi moves as best as possible? Proper twine steps will load a tremendous amount of energy into your kua. You can use that energy for effortless and speedy change of direction, invigorating and powerful tai chi kicks, or...
Grandmaster Jou was famous for his uncanny youthfulness at an advanced age and after conquering a history of illness. Here we go over his special daoyin taiji diagram stretch that he only taught in his chan si jin workshop. This stretch works very fast to...
A typical tai chi class: the instructor admonishes his students, “Relax!” They go ahead and do what they think is “relax.” And here's where the trouble begins. Ask a roomful of people what the opposite of tension is and you’ll get the unanimous reply,...
There is a tai chi, qigong and daoyin exercise that people often teach and do to "warm up" or "loosen" the knees. And it is the absolute worst thing you can do to your knees. It will "loosen" them alright - to the point that you may need surgery in a few...
Here is a very basic look at how you might use the opening tai chi move for self-defense. Very few people understand that not every single move of the tai chi form is used in application exactly as it is in form practice. For example, you might add an...
The Tai Chi Classics mention that their are “Five Elements in the feet,” and are referred to as the “Five Steps.” What does that mean? Let’s first examine the Taoist five elements, and then we’ll discuss how they are used to symbolize the five steps, or...
I constantly remind my students that real tai chi chuan practice is not about being fixated on memorizing the postures of the form. Sadly, a lot of people will never understand this fact of traditional tai chi. But the ones that do, soar like eagles. Their...
Every posture of tai chi chuan has at least one of the eight gates (or, bamen) dominating the movement. This is how tai chi was originally constructed, as stated in the Tai Chi Classics. Each of the 8 gates has a certain martial "energy." Each of these martial...
Qi is a concept unique to the East Perhaps the first time the masses of the western world got a thorough exposure to this concept was in the movie “Star Wars,” in which it was referred to as “The Force.” It’s an elusive, though not too difficult concept. If you are...
The traditional schools of tai chi chuan (taijiquan), along with the other Chinese internal arts, emphasize the development of "silk reeling energy," or "chansijing," in Chinese. The oldest documented and codified style of tai chi chuan known to man is Chen style....
Your tai chi moves are only as good as you can direct your internal energy (qi) and vector the energy of gravity. The secret to healing and protecting your knees (which also empowers the martial applications of tai chi) requires that you learn to move from your...
In Master Jou Tsung Hwa's last edition of "The Dao of Taijiquan" he emphasized special use of the dantian for tai chi (taijiquan), qigong, and Taoist meditation. But most people have trouble with it and do it wrong. Doing it wrong will deviate the qi instead of...
When people hear "Sash Graduation" at a tai chi school, they fear that they will have to get up in front of a group of people and perform while under intense scrutiny. Nothing is further from this than a Typical Sash Graduation at Internal Gardens Tai Chi...
I try to remind my students that real tai chi chuan (taijiquan) practice is not about fixating on memorizing the form. A lot of people will never understand this. But the ones that do, soar like eagles. My teacher, Master Jou Tsung Hwa, always emphasized that the...
"Tai chi chuan" 太極拳 - casually referred to as "tai chi" - is a deep, meditative, internal Chinese practice. At its original core, it is a martial art, but is nowadays commonly practiced and taught in a manner that strengthens and promotes the mind/body health of...
One of the great old founding masters of tai chi chuan (taijiquan), Wang Zong Yue, stated in his tai chi classic, known as the Taijiquan Jing: "Yin cannot be separated from yang and vice-versa. When yin and yang complement each other, you will interpret the...
What is meant by the phrase, "All tai chi chuan (taijiquan) is to be done as a Torso Method?" The old masters of the traditional Chinese internal arts - such as tai chi chuan (taijiquan, baguazhang, xingyiquan, etc) mentioned the crucial skill of using the body as a...
Master Jou taught mentioned three Taoist rules of success that helped him develop an incredible life, despite having survived a brutal war and experiencing the resulting deaths of family and friends. He lost everything he had in his homeland China in World War II. He...
The ancient art of tai chi neutralizes the number one destroyer of your health and lifespan - stress. All the money in the world can’t buy you a peaceful mind and more years of your life. So tai chi may be the wisest investment you’ll ever make, as for centuries it’s...
Too many people hurt their knees in tai chi. I never could understand this, as I took up tai chi to CURE a knee injury! One day I finally understood why people were getting hurt. The culprit was improper execution of "twist steps." When you twist-step, you need to...
For millennia, the Chinese have relied on natural methods of healthcare, like acupuncture, to treat a vast array of health complaints. But you don't need needles to gently stimulate the points yourself with acupressure (instead of acupuncture). A common acupoint to...
Few practitioners nowadays abide by the Tai Chi Classics - the founding principles of the art of tai chi chuan (taijiquan). One such principle is the first of WuYuXiang's "13 Torso Methods" of traditional taijiquan. It is the principle of "han xiong."...
In the year of 1917, China was going through a tumultuous transition. With the last emperor of the Manchu Dynasty ousted 6 years prior, China saw the end of its 2000 year old imperial system. In the following years, Japan would make demands for special...
For centuries, tai chi has been rumored to be an exceptional "therapy" of rejuvenation, anti-aging, pain cure/relief... and its deep meditative and qigong characteristics are said to cause almost unbelievable transformation in dedicated practitioners. Although...
The first thing you must consider is: Should you play music while practicing tai chi or not? As long as any music or sound is not the main focus, or a distraction, to your practice it doesn't matter. You just need to make certain that you don't get dependent on...