Motility, Long Form, Applications, Pushing-Hands, Striking!
The system of Tai Chi Chuan begins and evolves through five methods: light, sensitive body exploration, properly executed form practice, amplified and visualized self-defense and/or healing scenarios, precise push-hands training, and coiling striking motions. Real Taiji classes include
- exploring natural joint motions
- form practice (and some Qi-gong)
- application visualizations
- push-hands training (structural, not spaghetti-style)
- striking practices
Classes and class components evolve and compound upon one another.
1. Range-of-Motion exercises. We explore motility —natural, spontaneous motion— and we therefore amplify the freedom and power of each joint and joint system easily and naturally. Our explorations are unweighted at first; if there’s time we may explore body-weighted range of motion exercises.
2. Yang Chen Fu Long Form. We practice complete energetic sections and study individual movements of this Long Form in detail, to your level. This form sinks deeper and grows fantastic as your experience with it evolves. Your motion, both internal and external, develops finesse, grace, and beauty.
3. Form Applications ~ Combat & Healing. Many traditional combat applications exist for the movements in this form; we cover many common applications and some not-so common exciting applications. We also encourage how-to-think-about and how-to-feel-through movements, i.e. we may, through visual explorations, discover application meanings. Each movement also contains personal health applications; the movements, done slowly, like Qi-Gong, set-up peculiar healing potential in organ systems. And individual motions contain healing concepts when applied to others. Whew! We have a lot to do, so we cover it in little bits in the direction that your interests and questions take us.
4. Reflexive Push Hands (non-competitive). Never neglected, this fine drill forms the backbone of internal development. Single Push Hands founds our foundational building blocks of our protective attack reflex and response. This is not softy nor tournament style Pushing Hands; rather, it’s a martial application of pressurized Pushing Hands (we keep pressure between players) that teaches us to react to attacks like we react when our hand gets too close to a hot stove. Whoosh — we react reflexively!
5. Striking Practice. We practice simple striking methods—like elbow strikes—to explore quick, coiling, explosive movements. These methods hot-wire our self-defense by creating attack prowess. All the striking we do in Tai Chi Chuan brings us into the eye of the hurricane and devastates opponents at close range, quick and easy. We develop Fa-Jing Power by exploring these explosive strikes.
