http://www.newcastletaichi.co.uk/zen_mind.htm

Imagine waking up each morning full of energy and vitality yet also feeling calm and relaxed about the day to come. It sounds like a miracle yet this state of abundant health and wellbeing should be our birthright. In our natural state we would face each day with joy, peace, and a deep connection with our bodies.

 (Jane Alexander)

Taijiquan

The internal martial arts encourage all students to focus on the use of the lower body.
It gives a strong foundation of strength.
Leg muscles and buttock muscles are enormously strong compared to the arms and shoulders.

Pyramid

Men are strong in the upper body, and proportionately weaker in the lower body, like an upside-down pyramid.
Women are the opposite, with most of the strength residing in the hips, buttocks and legs: a regular pyramid.

Combat

If you are competent with taijiquan, you should be quite comfortable having an instructor test your taijiquan skill any day of the week, at any time.
This is quite reasonable.
Your skills should be active and present at all times.
Otherwise, you are not really capable of using the Art in combat.

Commitment

When starting taijiquan classes, treat it like driving lessons.
You will only get out of the class what you put into it.
If you just attend once a week and neglect to practice between classes, then progress will be slow.
If you have conviction, then your progress will be steady.

Learning any real skill

Learning any skill in life is akin to learning how to drive.
There are no shortcuts.
You cannot just sit down at a piano and play.
You cannot travel to Spain and speak fluent Spanish without learning the language beforehand.
You cannot watch taijiquan form (or applications) on YouTube and expect to be doing the same in the first months of class.

Learning process

Learning involves:

1. Lessons/explanations
2. Study
3. Practice
4. Heavy repetition of basic elements
5. Homework
6. Revision
7. Exams
8. Levels of proficiency
9. Regular feedback  

Making mistakes

The first step in learning from your mistakes is to accept the mistake without being defensive.
The second step is to consider what went wrong and why.
The third step is to try again; this time with a modified approach.

Remembering

A learner makes a colossal amount of mistakes.
They remember one concern and forget another.
Driving is akin to juggling: trying to keep several balls in the air at once.A high degree of concentration and awareness is needed.

Step-by-step

Consider this: you cannot be taught everything all at once.
Tuition must be incremental.
Just like in school.

Learner

To drive safely and correctly within the legal guidelines, you need to have lessons.
These will probably be weekly and could take many months.
The lessons culminate in a theory test and a practical test.
If you pass, you will become a novice driver, not a skilled driver. 

Can't drive

Imagine that you don't know how to drive a car...
You have an idea of what is involved.
But you have no experience, no skill and no licence.
If you got into a car and tried to drive you would make a mess of things.

Determine your future

Think about how your body feels and ask yourself whether you are nimble, agile, graceful, strong and dexterous.
Or clumsy and inflexible...
Is your mind clear, calm and sharp?
Do you feel relaxed and at ease?
The fun part is... you get to decide. You can be happy, sad, fit or lazy.

Make the best of it

What if we only have one life?
What if this is it? 
Take a good, hard look at your life.

Taijiquan can help

Avoid/offset the common problems associated with modern life:
• Stress
• Memory loss
• Headaches
• Stiff neck
• Lack of mindfulness
• Low energy
• Reduced sex drive
• No peace of mind
• Diminished brain activity
• Poor focus/concentration
• Sarcopenia (muscle loss with aging)
• Reduced joint function
• Unbalanced/unsteady
• Bad circulation
• Heart problems
• Respiratory problems
• Poor lower body strength
• Imbalanced body use
• Reduced stamina and endurance
• Deeply-held muscular tension
• Poor awareness
• Restlessness
• Poor sleep
• Agitation
• Limited flexibility/suppleness
• Bad coordination
• Not relaxed
• Bad poise and posture
• Slouching
• Too much sitting
• Obesity
• Arthritis
• Reduced mobility
• Back problems 
• Knee problems
• Unfit
• Poor condition
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Loss of manual dexterity in the fingers
• Lack of ambidexterity 
• Sports injuries

Medical research has proven that a small daily commitment to taijiquan practice can produce tremendous results over time.

There is no tomorrow

What is going to happen if you choose to do nothing?
The answer is obvious: things just get worse.
Alternatively, what will happen if you act?
Exercising, reading healthy books, meditating, contemplation... these things will all have a fairly rapid positive effect.
But be careful; not all exercise is healthy. 

How

It is not just a matter of exercising. 
How you exercise matters too. 
If you exercise without professional guidance, then habits of poor awareness and bad postural/alignment will persist.
The world is filled with well-meaning runners who exhibit appalling physical tension and deleterious poise.

Sedentary

Medical studies have found that inactivity is as unhealthy as smoking.
How scary is that?
Those long days at your desk, hours spent driving your car and those long nights watching TV or playing videogames or looking at your phone are actually making you sick.

Your life

If you ignore the reality of your life - your health, your emotional condition, your relationships - who is managing these things?
They do not manage themselves.
A lazy person continues to be lazy.
A sick person waits for the doctor to heal them.
But this is your life.

Distraction

TV, politics, gossip, caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, sugar... these things all serve to hijack your mind.
Instead of paying attention to what is taking place in your life you are talking to yourself inside your head.
Worrying, comparing, judging, planning, manipulating.
It is quite a circus.

Who chooses?

Who decides what food to put in your mouth?
Who decides what you drink?
Who decides how much TV you watch?
Who decides how much time you spend on-line?
Who decides how much you play with your phone?
Who decides how much exercise you do?
That's right... You do. 

It is beyond my control...

People have difficulty coming to terms with the fact that they are largely responsible for their own health and wellbeing.
(Or lack of good health).
It is far easier to pretend.
In fact, most people would rather talk about how to run the country instead of how to manage their own lives.

The future

The future has not happened yet.
Yet, no matter what we choose to do, our future cannot be avoided.
Every day we lay the foundation for the days ahead.

The past

The past is gone.
We can regret our mistakes and the way that we have lived our lives.
But we cannot change the past.
It has already happened. 

The Science of the Essence

A dog acts like a dog, a tree like a tree.
Everything has a substance that is reflected outwardly in some way through specific characteristics.
These qualities are called virtues because they the uncontrived demonstration of the essence.
Te (pronounced 'day') means virtue. 

Tai chi is often described as "meditation in motion," but it might well be called "medication in motion." There is growing evidence that this mind-body practice, which originated in China as a martial art, has value in treating or preventing many health problems. And you can get started even if you aren't in top shape or the best of health.

Tai chi differs from other types of exercise in several respects. The movements are usually circular and never forced, the muscles are relaxed rather than tensed, the joints are not fully extended or bent, and connective tissues are not stretched. Tai chi addresses the key components of fitness — muscle strength, flexibility, balance, and, to a lesser degree, aerobic conditioning.
(Harvard Medical School’s Harvard Health Publication, May 2009)

Awareness

Lao Tzu said that you can know the whole world without leaving your room.
What was he talking about? Awareness, insight, wisdom. 
You do not need to go anywhere else to learn the workings of your own mind or the subtle relationships of your body.

Truth

Truth does not lie on a path, or at the end of a path.
The truth is all around you in every moment of everyday. It is right in front of you. 
Every sight, sound, touch, taste, smell, detail, nuance, facet.
Reality is truth.
Not what you think, but instead what is.
If you walk a thousand miles, do you imagine that this reality, this truth will somehow have changed?

Religion?

Taoism does not require you to believe in anything.
If you look at the Tao in terms of a conventional religion, then you will be immediately confused. 
It is not about anything. It does not worship anything. It does not ask anything of you.

You are not required to preach or promote anything.
There are no special costumes. There are no holy scriptures or holy books.
See where the confusion can lie?If somebody offers to show you the Way, decline their offer.

The Way

http://www.newcastletaichi.co.uk/way.htm

Taijiquan can help

Avoid/offset the common problems associated with modern life:
• Stress
• Memory loss
• Lack of mindfulness
• Low energy
• Reduced sex drive
• No peace of mind
• Diminished brain activity
• Poor focus/concentration
• Sarcopenia (muscle loss with aging)
• Reduced joint function
• Unbalanced/unsteady
• Bad circulation
• Heart problems
• Respiratory problems
• Poor lower body strength
• Imbalanced body use
• Reduced stamina and endurance
• Deeply-held muscular tension
• Poor awareness
• Restlessness
• Poor sleep
• Agitation
• Limited flexibility/suppleness
• Bad coordination
• Not relaxed
• Bad poise and posture
• Slouching
• Too much sitting
• Obesity
• Arthritis
• Reduced mobility
• Back problems 
• Knee problems
• Unfit
• Poor condition
• Depression
• Anxiety
• Sports injuries

Medical research has proven that a small daily commitment to taijiquan practice can produce tremendous results over time.