Jerky

The nervous system is spread throughout your entire body and affects the internal balance.
Many people are jerky and twitchy; like a nervous bird looking for food.
They do not move in a relaxed, fluid manner.

Being restless and agitated affects body language, and can make the individual emotionally volatile.
These people appear to be profoundly uncomfortable in their own body: irritable, tense, bored, fidgety.

Plank of wood chest

Some people are so accustomed to acting tough that they forget that it is a front.
They posture and strut in a parody of masculinity.
This is an elaborate disguise designed to hide their inner fears and uncertainties.

Two common indicators are the plank of wood chest and walking on the balls of the feet.
The chest is not a solid lump of bone and needs to flex as you breathe.
The human foot naturally walks heel-to-toe.

Everyday life

It is important only to move in a predatory manner whilst immediately engaged in taijiquan practice.
Out of class your body must remain free, nimble, spontaneous and agile.

Expressing your body in a permanently pugilistic way is pointless and unhealthy. There are few occasions in daily life that require combat.

In terms of strategy, it is unwise to advertise that you are a martial artist. Far wiser to appear unassuming and innocuous.
This gives you the element of surprise.

Form

Tai chi form was designed to train the body to move in an unorthodox manner that loosely emulates the combat postures used by a variety of animals.
These natural shapes are intended to be intimidating.

By mimicking the predatory movements and body shapes of animals, the human martial artist learns to shape their body language into something threatening during combat.
Many martial artists like to pull faces and exhibit aggressive emotional traits, but these actually inhibit clarity and impede judgement.
Employing the body language of animals is one thing, acting like an animal is something else entirely.

As the tai chi student becomes more skilful and adept, their body language gains an increasingly intimidating aspect during combat.
This promotes fear in the aggressor.

Non-verbal

Body language provides a whole host of clues concerning a person's attitude, thoughts and feelings.
For example:

The 'lifted chin' is widely observed indication of arrogance and self importance; stemming from status insecurities, and the need to project an air of superiority.
By over-compensating, the person quite literally is forced to 'look down upon' other people.

This same trait is discernable in the 4-by-4 car craze, which enables the emotionally insecure individual to hide within the armoured shell of enormous vehicle, elevated above other motorists.

There are countless examples of easily observed body language, and we are all pretty adept at unconsciously picking up on non-verbal clues.
Further research is advisable.

Heavy feet

Some people walk with an impossibly heavy step.
They slam their weight down with some gusto; making every step loud.
This strange practice is extremely bad for the body and harms the joints.

Oddly enough, most of the people who do this are small in stature.

Sport

It is common for athletes to over-develop their bodies in order to perform their given activity. The side-effect is often chronic muscle tension.

(i) Female athletes

Many female athletes re-shape their bodies to suit their chosen sport.
A ballet dancer trains a body that suits the feminine aesthetic standards of ballet.
Runners, rowers and gymnasts produce an end product is virtually indistinguishable from that of a man.


(ii) Martial artists who undertake body building

Body building can distort the human skeleton and impede the smooth movement of the joints.
Martial arts students who undertake body building often find themselves locked into a hunched-over fighting stance.

This may indeed help them in their given art, but is redundant when eating dinner, watching TV or speaking to someone in a shop or at work.