It is common for students to say that they are "playing" taijiquan... This notion of 'play' must be considered carefully. Most adults perceive play as tooling around - insincere, light-hearted and carefree.
But is this play at all?Our syllabus was developed as the result of our own tai chi practice and teaching experience. The post-graduate professional teaching skills/qualification have proven invaluable in creating a syllabus.
Tai chi is easy in principle, yet difficult in execution. The problem lies with your own body and mind. After all, it is you that make the tai chi exist. Without your body, the system cannot become manifest - the tai chi can only be as good as you personally make it.
Do not look outside yourself for answers. The solution lies in this very moment, in the very process of doing. Your tai chi will improve relative to your ability to produce it.
When stood in tai chi, the feet are beneath the body so the legs are not fatigued. Your everyday stance should emulate this as closely as possible as often as possible.
The trick with tai chi is to keep your training mild. It is not a gym workout. You are not meant to be sweating and straining. Go easy on yourself. Little and often is the key.
If the training is gentle but works your muscles nicely, then it is easy to sustain and your energy levels will stay high.
Conversely, people who do not exercise are also likely to become fatigued. How come? Their muscles are weak and we need muscular strength to move our bodies around.
By avoiding exercise, the problem of fatigue will not go away. It will not get easier. If you are lazy now, expect difficulties ahead of you. Your fitness level will not improve by ignoring it.Many forms of exercise can actively develop bad posture. They often cause serious fatigue and adverse wear and tear on the body. The tension in the body uses energy and tires you out.
Many health problems are caused by the way in which we stand, walk, sit and use our bodies during everyday activities.
Headache, fatigue, stiff neck, bad knees, back problems are usually caused by our own bad habits.
Incorrect muscle use, imbalance, poor physical awareness, work and many forms of exercise only serve to perpetuate poor fitness and muscle tension.
Fatiguing the body can be addressed through careful, safe practice. By contrast, fatiguing the mind is far more insidious and difficult to detect.
Politics, news, gossip, media, TV, opinions, fashions, negative emotions, competitiveness - all put the mind under duress. They create frustration, anxiety and a feeling of helplessness.Instead of hammering and punishing your body, you treat it with respect and care.
Your body must last you a lifetime.
'Stretching' covers a wide range of approaches. A good tai chi class should offer a varied and versatile selection of stretching methods.
Most people are not used to training at home. The key to home training is to work into it gently. Try doing a small amount every day. Nothing ambitious.
A tonic is a medicine taken daily in order to maintain and invigorate the body. It may significantly improve your fitness.
However, you should take note of the small print, the conditions of use:
It must be administered every day
When you stop taking it, the benefits go away
This is something to really think about. Re-read the paragraph if you need to.
Tai chi is not going to fix you up. It was never intended (or designed) to be something employed for repair. At best, it may be seen as a tonic.
It helps to keep you fit, healthy and vital. It is a preventative measure, not a fix.
Metabolism slows down 90 percent after 30 minutes of sitting. The enzymes that move the bad fat from your arteries to your muscles, where it can get burned off, slow down. The muscles in your lower body are turned off. And after two hours, good cholesterol drops 20 percent. Just getting up for five minutes is going to get things going again. These things are so simple they’re almost stupid.
(Gavin Bradley)
Fitness is different to health. Being fit entails a wider range of concerns e.g. increased flexibility, suppleness, strength, cardiovascular health/fitness, agility...
These considerations are addressed at length in the tai chi syllabus.
