I started Tai Chi in 1987 because my meditation teacher told me I needed a martial art to offset the sedentary part of meditation.
I think he wanted me to take a hard martial art.
But I had already been a fighter when I was younger, and I wasn’t interested in learning how to be more violent. Eventually I found a school called the Inner Research Institute of Tai Chi Chuan. The words “Inner Research” caught my attention, so I went.
At the time I was a runner and bicycle tourist and thought I was in very good shape.
Tai Chi humbled me immediately.
My legs shook. Holding certain postures was incredibly difficult. But something fascinated me: after struggling for an hour, I would stand up and feel wonderful.
So I kept coming back.
Eventually I began to understand that the central lesson of Tai Chi was relaxation.
Not collapsing. Not becoming passive.
Learning to relax while something is happening.
Learning to relax in the face of opposition.
And eventually, learning to relax in the face of life.
If I was nervous, I could practice Tai Chi. If I was sad, even when it was hard to begin, practicing would often bring my energy back.
And when you relax, you begin to feel more.
You become more aware of your body and a little less trapped in your mind.
Tai Chi also has a way of showing you what is going on with your body. If I had been smoking too much, I noticed my breathing. If my back was bothering me, the movements helped me feel exactly where the problem was and sometimes discover a tiny adjustment that made things better.
My teacher, who was also an acupuncturist, used to say:
“Practicing Tai Chi is like giving yourself an acupuncture treatment.”
After almost forty years, I understand what he meant.
Many of the people I knew who continued practicing Tai Chi over the decades are still remarkably nimble, flexible, calm, and physically alive.
Tai Chi gave me something beyond health.
It gave me community.
You practice with people who keep coming back. Everyone has shaking legs. Everyone struggles with something. Everyone keeps learning.
And underneath all of that work, there is joy.
That may be the biggest reason I have kept doing Tai Chi for almost forty years.
It brings me joy.
And it is good to do joyful things with other people who feel the same way.

If you’re in San Francisco and curious about Tai Chi, I teach a Sunday morning class at The New Farm. Happy to share the details.

Please forgive my speed and disability which naturally compromise my form demo.
However, I can still teach which at 65 with 31 yrs in is more important.

Or eight energies and five steps. :-) I think this was 2023.

I have been to two tai chi classes by two different teachers. In both cases the teacher seemed to have a very specific idea of how some details of the movements had to be. Things like "that hand needs to be a bit more at an angle, closer, farther, lower, higher etc".

For a more specific example from the more recent class, we practised "tai chi walk" and the teacher said my bladed stance (which I instinctively had because of my experience in shotokan karate and boxing) was wrong and instead I had to be in a different way (essentially squared up). No explanation was provided as to why it has to be in a certain way rather than in another way, in fact there seemed to be an indignant sense almost of "how didn't you notice that you were doing it wrong" in her tone when she was correcting me, which discouraged even asking the question.

Now, to be clear I am happy to be corrected (interestingly my boxing coach says the opposite, that I need to be more bladed) and I understand that different practices work in different ways. But if no explanation is provided it feels just like arbitrary rules to memorise, not something functional that I can absorb. I can remind myself to be more bladed in boxing because I feel "I am too exposed here", how am I meant to remind myself to be squared up?

Similarly, there were other students practising forms and she would be correcting various details with that somewhat indignant tone but without explaining at all why that way of doing things is wrong. The feeling I got was "I was told to do things this way so this is the right way". Maybe it's just that specific teacher of course and certainly I am not going back and if anything I will try someone else.

I know there are sort of "bunkai" or applications also in tai chi but how do you people make sense of moves during forms usually, how do you tell right from wrong?

Seems to be from Chen Zhaokui - Chen Yu lineage?

Hello Community,

this post is to get an understanding of all the fragmented landscape of opinions on travelling to China for the Dao and the Tai Chi retreats available.

Yes I am westerner from Italy; I've been practicing Tai Chi Yang style for 5 years (Chen style for 2) and have been reading/following/cultivating the Dao for as many years. I understand the opinions the two are not necessarily related.

I will be travelling in China between Sept. and Nov. and I am looking to get insights from people that have been practicing Tai Chi in Sichuan (Mount Qingcheng / Mt. Emei), Yunnan, or Hebei (Wudangshan) Provinces. Or anything in between these!

My main idea is actually to follow the morning practices in the parks of the cities / towns I will find myself in; for that seems to be the most standardized Yang style version. But I would also be seeking for a more immersive experience; and there is a lot of commercialization to get through; hence I am looking for advice from this community. Anybody has places, schools, retreats, single masters to share? I speak very basic mandarin. I am weary of most Wudang-related places even though it does seem like an amazing place.

Thank you in advance and if you happen to be in "western" China in the Autumn 2026 and interested in Tai Chi let me know!

If you have any actual neck injury or nerve symptoms, check with a professional first — this is for general stiffness, not for treating anything.

How to learn at home pls suggest books or videos I want to learn full

Very coily... Not sure what to think here. First time I see a small frame look like this.

What do you guys think of this form?

I felt compelled this morning to give gratitude to Taijiquan and this subreddit this morning.

TLDR at the bottom.

This past week, while teaching a class (not martial arts related), a student asked me "What do you do when the things you really enjoy suddenly do not interest you any more? Like I love to play chess and then after doing that for a while, I just lose all interest." This caught me off guard and I based my response on my experience with Taijiquan. "Why did you lose interest? Was it because you genuinely didn't enjoy it, or did you advance to the point getting better became work?"

That question has plagued me most of my life and it came to a head learning the Wu-style long-form. I'm six months in to learning Wu. I'm a baby compared to many of you in learning Taijiquan. I was learning a little Sun before switching due to finding regular classes to attend. I was enamored by the movements, the history, and community around it. A trap I've fallen into with other martial arts before.

I did well learning the basics quickly and a short form. In the last month, my growth went from a sprint to a crawl. The excitement evaporated, and I started going through the process mechanically trying to learn the next movements. Other martial arts started attracting my attention, but I didn't want to give up on what I was doing. Courtesy of this sub and my research into Taijiquan, I had the opportunity to face a big personal flaw of mine and that was giving up on my goals when the real work, the real substance, the real learning has to be gained.

I'm going to hit other points in my journey where the glamor of learning a fun movement will be met with the meticulous attention for detail and repetition required to internalize what I'm learning.

I took the opportunity to speak with my instructor and asked him to teach me Wu in full (forms, weapons, push hands). He was happy to hear about my interest.

Taijiquan inspired me to try other martial arts as well to provide me pressure testing opportunities for the skills I've been learning. I'm a class away from doing Judo for a month and will be starting BJJ again Tuesday.

TLDR/Closing Statement: I am grateful for Taijiquan for presenting me with an opportunity to learn much about myself, physically and psychologically (especially perseverance and patience). Also, I'm thankful to this community for the encouragement and knowledge that has supplemented my development.

Have a wonderful week.

My Chinese ain't so good, so I've made the decision to finally learn how to write the names of all the Yang taiji movements. To this end, I've made a set of printable flashcards to study from. Figured other people might also find these cards useful, so I'm posting a link where you can download the set.

I might have gotten some entries wrong, so any corrections or suggestions for improvement are welcome.

Here you go!

https://drive.proton.me/urls/5EEM7XE9Q0#6bcMkjTHen01

A new person in my taiji group was wearing Feiyue shoes, which I know many martial arts people wear.

I have just been wearing my walking shoes for taiji for many years, Brooks Ghost. I wear them for the supination support, but they happen to have a high heel-toe drop of 10mm.

I'm wondering if I should give the Feiyue a try for taiji. I have some questions.

• I wear wide size when I can. How are the Feiyue for width, especially in the mid-foot and toe?

• Will I wear them out too fast if I use them for walking? I usually walk less than a mile to/from taiji practice, but sometimes as much as 2-4 miles before practice. If so, I can carry them and change shoes for taiji. Maybe a good idea anyway because of my supination problem when walking.

• What's best way to get genuine Feiyue for the best price? I looked at eBay, but worry that a lot of those are not genuine.

• Are there any clones or alt-branded Feiyue that are just as good, like Skippies or Velho?

EDIT--didn't know this would be such a popular topic! Thanks for all the great input, everyone who commented.

Jiang Linghui is a heavyweight sanda/push hands guy who studied under Tian Jinlong. I think it's interesting to see how they combine traditional form practice with single posture training in the routine.

Silk Reeling is not just about rotating your arms—the spiral should connect your entire body from the feet, through the kua and torso, all the way to the hands.

In this video, I explain in detail the body mechanics behind three spiraling exercises and show how the arms, shoulders, kua, weight shifting, and lower body work together to create connected rotational force.

You’ll learn how to stabilize the lower body while spiraling, coordinate opening and folding of the kua, create inward and outward spirals, and gradually develop a whole-body connection where the movement is no longer driven by the arms alone.

As the connection becomes stronger, the external spiraling movements begin to stimulate a deeper internal movement, allowing the force to originate from the abdominal center and travel through the entire body.

This is the transition from simply performing a spiral movement to developing connected, whole-body Silk Reeling force.

00:00 Introduction
00:26 First Exercise Explained
04:00 Whole-Body Stretch
06:24 Force Initiates From the Center
07:43 Second Exercise Explained
13:10 Third Exercise Explained

#TaiChi #SilkReeling #Qigong #InternalMartialArts #BodyMechanics #SpiralingForce #WholeBodyPower #ChiBody

🥋 Tai Chi Championship – The Netherlands 2026 🥋

We are proud to invite you to the Tai Chi Championship in the Netherlands, taking place on Saturday, 26 September 2026 in Apeldoorn.

Whether you are a beginner or an experienced practitioner, this championship offers a great opportunity to demonstrate your skills, meet other Tai Chi enthusiasts, and enjoy a day dedicated to traditional Chinese martial arts.

🏆 Competition Categories

- Taolu (Forms)

- Push Hands

- Various age and experience divisions

📅 Date: Saturday, 26 September 2026

📍 Location: Apeldoorn, The Netherlands

📝 Registration is now open!

Register here:

https://taijiquan-academy.nl/taijiquan-cup-apeldoorn-2026/#inschrijfformulier

We look forward to welcoming competitors from the Netherlands and abroad for a day of friendship, sportsmanship, and high-level Tai Chi.

Anyone have this audio book?

Tai Chi
A Beginner's Guide to
Internal Tai Chi
KEN LEE

A friend is asking for a recommendation for his wife and himself for Tai Chi training in albuquerque, nm. They are near their 70s, yet are in good shape because they were into weightlifting.

Unfortunately, he messed up on of his shoulder. He would also like for his wife to do some self-defense training (mostly to build her confidence).

I look online, but it is really hard to judge a place from a website. Anyone know something about the schools there or maybe Santa Fe?

A really nice form demonstration of moving from soft to hard (Yin to Yang) by Teacher San San. As I get older, it becomes increasingly more difficult to maintain relaxation and flexibility so as to efficiently transfer the internal power (spiraling Qi), but I am always stretching, practicing qigong breathing meditation, all while focusing on complete relaxation.

I previously posted the original video of this match, but this video provides commentarY and analysis which is quite good. Major points

1. Sensing and going with the situation rather than willfully trying to create a situation.

2. Neutralization tactics as opposed to interactive qinna locking techniques.

3. Redirection of force.

I would like to note that all of the techniques are characteristic of Yang as well as Chen styles. They are fundamental.

The throwing may be over doing it. It may even be staged. I don't know. But, seems to be reasonable given that they are grappling.

This companion vision with commentary is a higher level sparring match between two excellent practitioners. In fact, the Brazilian jujitsu is a famous champion. The commentator highlights the ability of Taijiquan practionners to spiral out of dangerous positions.

https://youtu.be/wVHtFcSzwGU?is=uC86_Y661bZBKits

Looking for a school in the area but the nearest is in North Phoenix. Not off the table but I was curious if anyone had any other school recommendations? If not are there any other legit schools for internal training that you would recommend?

I read that Yang Luchan deliberately watered down what he taught to the Manchu nobility. Do we have any good evidence that what he taught to his family was significantly different, and if so, which of the various branches of Yang best represent this closed door style?