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79

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Mil$Uiltfll

Some more{
an altarwithi
maftialart an
reservedas a
ancestorsof I
Overall,the n
wide in lengt
cover up to 2l
from leftto rig
be plentyof rc
preferablymir
checkyourdi
from everysid
your body.
Be wary of
martialaft, yo1
and otherfitness-oriente
enterprises
that inserttai
chi intotheir
curriculum
iust to attract
more students.Such
schools offer
tai chiwith
instructorsthat
perhapsleame
just one or two
chi forms. Eve
they impressyc
with a displayo
moves,incomp
disqualifies
the
subject that is h
and requiresme
study.
Be wary of te
tai chi "miracle
teacherswho pt
Althoughthism
wnat realtai chi
it as a martialar
teacher. Thetea
edge of both the
Becauseit is cor
den withinthe m
dence of the pov
instructor.
Questionsto a
practicing?Who
is the instructorc
tice?
Like other mar
areas, from form

Evenif you are not interestedin learningall componentsof tai

is openlyoffered.This
chi,makesurea completecurriculum
qualifications.
willbe suggestive
of the instructor's

ai chi schoolscomein many

forms.Becauseof the slow,graduated natureof tai chi practice,
its schoolstend to havea
quiet,casualatmosphere. ,, 1
Somemore-traditional
schoolsmayhave [t I
an altarwith a porlraitof the school't
I 1
Thisareais usually
martialart ancestry.
I

EOUIPMENT/CLOTHES

ilfl5'":','ffi5;["+;J.;:;:J::i:,
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rr
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Overall.the maintraininghallshouldbe
widein length:mosttai chi formscan
coverup to 20 feet rn distance
from leftto right.Thereshould
be plentyof room,and
preferablymirrors[o
checkyourdistance
from everyside of

E.

maftial aft, yoga

and other fit-

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body to movefreely.
HOWeVer,
SOme
cchnnlc

i , , ^ ++ ^ - + + , - ^ +

morestudents.Such
schoolsoffer
tai chi with
instructors
that
perhapslearned
Justone or two tai
chi forms.Evenif

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F
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that insentai
chi intotheir
curnculum
luJL

Taichi attireis simple,casual,

l
d
f
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'

witha displayof
moves,incomplete
training
themto teacha
disqualifies
subjectthat is highlycomplex
and requiresmanyyearsof
study.
Be wary of teacherswho sell
mindfulwheninterviewing
Be especially
tai chi "miracles."
teacherswho pushan overly"newage"idealof tai chi.
Althoughthis minoraspectof tai chi attractsmany,it is not
what realtai chi is about.lf the instructordoes not understand
it as a martialart,you shouldquestionhisabilityas a qualified
teacher.The teachershouldpossessa good workingknowlof tai chi.
edgeof boththe maftialand healthcomponents
Becauseit is comolexand hasa multitudeof smalldetailshidthe studentshouldseevisualevidenwithinthe movements,
denceof the powerand structureexhibitedby a tai chi
instructor.
been
to ask are:How longhasthe instructor
Questions
practicing?
Who werehis/herteachers?How knowledgeable
of tai chi and its pracis the instructor
of allthe dimensions
tlce?
Likeother martialar1systems,tai chi encompassesall
areas,fromforms,to weapons,pushhandsand freefighting.

tly

nrofor moro

traditional
uniforms.
Someteachersare a
bit more relaxed
aboutuniforms,
but may havea
schoolT-shirt
usedas a
classuniform.
However,the
0resscooe
shouldbe a
functional
pad of your
trainingand,
in allcases,
shouldnot
inhibitany
form of movement.

Top
Thetop shouldnot
be tight.lt shouldbe a
relaxed-fit
shirtthat permitsa rangeof movement.
Sweatshirtsand T-shirtsare frne,
as well.A kung-fuuniformtop can
alsobe used.Cottonsare usuallya good
fabricbecausetheyabsorbmoisture.Rayon
cotton blendfabricstend to havea nice
flowingqualityto it.
Bottom
The bottomsalsoshouldbe a cottonor cotton
rayonblend.Theycan be long pantsor even
shorts,shouldfit nicelyon the waist,and have
roomin the thighareafor movement.Bottoms
(L
shouldallowspacefor the legsto openwide,as
to taithistypeof rangeof movementis necessary
movement.
lrquan
Undergarments
is suggested
for suppotl.
Formen,snug-fitting
underwear
Womenshouldchooseany athleticspoftswearthat allowsfor
naturalmovement
a freerangeof movementwithoutinhibiting
A good sportsbra is recommended.
NOVEMBER

2i)tl{i

95

"Zhdltq
pnilofr]oul
Zhunnq
isthe
mosI
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itbuilds
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"
nsuell
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found0ti0n
f0rslrenqth
f0clts

Ihrb is an example of single-hand push hands. Stand with your feet together, Faceyour partner with your arms at your sides (1),
Gently shift your weight to your left leg and pivot your right foot out (4. Step forward with your right leg, first placing the heel
down (3). The foot should be diagonally forward and to the right. Extend your right arm so that rl's chest height with your fingets
facing up (4). The left hand is placed on the hip. The player on the left shifts weight from the left leg to the right (5) and circles the
extended hand horizontally. The player on the right redirects fhe push by shifting back onto the left leg and circling the right arm
clockwise horizontally (6). To close, step back and bring the left leg back to the original standing position (7). Ptace the arms to
the srdes of your body.
96

I N S I D EK U N G - F U

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t-il..!$ria.l]F

yoursenseof chi(internal
energy),
andstimulate
thecirculationof thisenergy.Zhangzhuangis the mostimportantpartof
yourtraining;
it buildsthefoundation
for strength,
aswellas
focus.
Afterstandingpractice,mostclassesmoveintowarm-ups
"silk
Nexton thelistarethemorecomplicated
andstretching.
reeling"
whicharemotor-skill
sequences
derived
exercises,
fromthetraditional
forms.Aftertheseexerchoreographed
mostclasses
willpractice
forms(or
cisesarecompleted,
followed
suchastui shou
sequences),
by partnerexercises
(pushhands).
ELEMENTSOF TAI CHI lPRlNClPtESl
school
Studyingtai chi is likestartingat elementary

yourpostures
practice.
Youshouldbe ableto fine-tune
and
howto expresspower,speedandcontrol.
understand
youarestronger,
youmaybeginto challenge
yourBecause
At thispoint
selfthroughsomeof thegamesin yourtraining.
yourself.
youshouldbeginto feelcomfortable
correcting
Level3: Thinkingof Gircles
you've
At thislevelyoushouldthinkof allthe movements
beenpracticing
as circles-somebig,somesmall.As you
improve,
thesecirclesbecomesmaller
untilno onecansee
them,butyoucanfeelthem.At thisadvanced
level,you'll
movefromthinking
aboutbigcirclesto thinking
aboutsmd
ones.Yourmovements
shouldbe continuous
and
withoutweaknessin anypaftof yourbody.Your
movements
shouldbe sureandnatural.
E

::3Jffiy-?'3fli:i#nHtfi:i::ffi?"":T"
-.L
the fundamentalprinciplesacquiredin ele-

Leve,4:chiF,ow

At this stage.you willbeginto feelan intrin-

f,

mentaryschoo|andhighschoo|,the"--'.msicheatnotfue|edbystrenuousexercise'
taughtinco||ege.Learningtaichi|yoUrmoVementssmoothenandyour
|SIneSame.NeWKnoW|eoge.poStureSSIeaoy.yoU||oeg|nIo

anoUnoerSTano|noareo,,,ioninsttSenSean,n.",n,,*a,..n."so"WnaInaSoeenacqU|reo|n...-..-c|a||V|nyournanoS.AIIn|SSIage

no
ff:J;",il::Je'fi;
:il::#iil"does

youshouldfocuson relaxing
yourbodyby hollowing
your

premature|yjumpahead,rlndara}qar|chestands|ight|ytuckingyour

youwi||on|y|engthenyour|Undet$ldndl|,i,""n.in,whi|ekeepingyour
|earningproceSS.'r_:^L:-^_5-.'-r-..ffiffiSpinestraight.TheSemoresub-

Eventhoughtraditiona|.toichinsnT-nrtio|dW'ii:HI",:il''.}""fflJ"-

Chinesemartia|artsdon'tffinenhancetheflowofchiand

H"x;:iliyili'':..J:i"?:}"q0Ush0U|mil0nhiSffiyoursensationofit
complete.Chentai
chispecifically

hasriveskiltevets
thatarepursued
by

]n:ahnrg ""

JgnCh f .

*dffir

Asyouprogressthroughthefirstfour

wilsoften
butwitl
."#ffiW- ,""","1i"t?lrl"i""ments

' "- '

.. ......,-..,
the long-termstudent. Summarizedbelow,
,l:":4lypnot be limp. Your tai chi will resemblea balance
the first four levelsdistillclassic(Chenstyle)tai chi
of hard and soft, fast and slow, bent and straight.
principlesapplicableto all tai chi styles.Thereare objective
When you're able to move balancingdifferenttypes of energy
standardsand criteriafor each of these levels.The following
in your body, your tai chi will exhibita balanceof forces-a
introducesthe principlesand technicalskillsachievedat each
balanceof yin and yang.
level.This shouldhelpyou assessyour currentleveland know
Tai chi's physicalelementscan be complex,but are rooted
what areasyou need to work on to advanceto the next stage. in precision.Overall,tai chi is a disciplineof structureand
alignment.Tai chi principlesof alignmentand structurepermit
Level 1: Form and Posture
an increasedflow of energyin the body. When practicedcorIn the beginning,your body is not well-connected.
As you
rectly,tai chi instillspeace,tranquilityand focus,whiledeverdevelopstrengththrough good postures,you will see less
oping internalpower and focused energy.Tai chi usesthe
practices
angularand disconnectedmovement.The stance
laws of physicsand the principlesof circularmovementto baF
and games will help you in this area of development,since leg ance the forces within you againstthe forces coming from an
strengthis crucialat the beginning.Overtime you'llexperiopponent.In tai chi, one deflects,absorbsand redirects
ence improvementin the directionand positionof your moveopposingforces so that you can defend yourselfagainstan

mentandlimbs,whileachieving
correctpostures.

Infact,thegreater
opponent
of superior
strength.
the

Level 2: Body and Mind Synthesis

exertedby an opponent,the greaterchance a skilledtai chi

practitionercan thwart it.

Hereyou'llhaveto be moremindfulof yourpractice

by
carefullywatching your body's movement.Thinkingof where
your weight is and concentratingon slow movementsare
excellentways to get your mind and body to work as one. At
this stage,you'llunderstandyour movementsbetter,and your
body will beginto make senseof what is happeningduring
9A

INSIDE!(UNG-FU

Soadhereto theprinciples
of yinandyangin your
Wheneveryou noticethe physicalchangesdetailedaboveat
each level,you'll know that you're readyfor the next stage.
Understandingthe five levelsof tai chi will help guide your
practice,and provideyou with hintsthat will signalwhen
you'reableto progressto higherlevels.S

ett

90c;i u3g!

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