Awaken Your Inner Strength: Weekend Tai Chi & Taoist Arts Course
Step into a space of calm and empowerment with our transformative Weekend Tai Chi & Taoist Arts Course. This immersive experience blends flowing Tai Chi movements, Taoist philosophy, and traditional weapons training to cultivate balance, strength, and inner harmony.
What You Will Experience: 🌿 Tai Chi Forms – Learn graceful, flowing movements that build energy, balance, and inner strength. 🌿 Qigong Exercises – Restore vitality and deepen your connection to breath and body. 🌿 Taoist Philosophy – Discover ancient wisdom for living with ease and natural flow. ⚔️ Traditional Weapons Training – Explore the art of Tai Chi sword and staff, enhancing focus, coordination, and energy flow. 🌿 Relaxation and Focus – Release tension and quiet the mind through mindful movement.
Tai Chi is a Chinese martial art and a gentle internal style of exercise that combines slow, flowing movements, deep breathing, and meditation.
2. What are the benefits of practicing Tai Chi?
Practicing Tai Chi can enhance balance, flexibility, strength, and cardiovascular health while reducing stress, anxiety, and depression.
3. Is Tai Chi a martial art or a form of meditation?
Tai Chi is both a martial art and a form of meditation. Some instructors emphasize self-defense, while others focus on health and wellness.
4. How is Tai Chi different from other forms of exercise?
Tai Chi is a low-impact, low-intensity exercise that is gentle on the joints and suitable for people of all genders, ages, and fitness levels. It emphasizes meditation, relaxation, and slow, fluid movements. Tai Chi is known as an internal style, which means it cultivates Qi or life force, in contrast to external styles, which are more physical and develop the muscles.
Tai Chi Practice
1. What do I need to start practicing Tai Chi?
You only need comfortable clothing and enough space to move around. Some people prefer to practice barefoot, but soft-soled shoes are also an option.
2. How often should I practice Tai Chi?
It is recommended to practice Tai Chi at least two to three times a week for the best results. However, even practicing once a week can provide some benefits. In China, they practice Tai Chi every morning in the parks before going to work.
3. Do I need to warm up before practicing Tai Chi?
It is recommended to warm up before practicing Tai Chi to prevent injury and improve performance. You can do some light stretching, walk around, or perform other gentle exercises to get your body ready. Warming up and doing some deep breathing and Qigong before you start helps to open the energy channels, so your practice can benefit Qi cultivation rather than purely physical exercise.
4. Can Tai Chi be practiced alone or with a partner?
Tai Chi can be practiced both alone or with a partner. When practicing alone, you follow a set of choreographed movements. When practicing with a partner, you practice specific martial arts techniques and self-defense strategies. Tai Chi is based on Taoist philosophy, and so Yin-Yang balance means giving a balanced emphasis to both forms and partner exercises like sticky hands.
5. What should I wear when practicing Tai Chi?
Wear loose-fitting, comfortable clothing that allows for freedom of movement. Cotton or other breathable fabrics are a good choice. You can also buy a Tai Chi uniform based on a Chinese Mandarin style design, which is popular with more advanced students but also suitable for beginners. This can help you get into the Tai Chi mindset.
Tai Chi Techniques
1. What are the basic Tai Chi movements?
Tai Chi movements emphasize natural movement, which means an upright posture and a straight back, keeping the shoulders relaxed, not stepping too far or locking the joints, and not overexerting yourself. Tai Chi movements are always circular.
2. How do I perform the Tai Chi movements correctly?
Tai Chi movements should be performed slowly, smoothly, and with intention. You should focus on your breathing, body alignment, and the flow of energy in your body.
3. What is the proper breathing technique for Tai Chi?
Tai Chi breathing involves deep, slow, and natural breathing. You should inhale deeply through your nose and exhale slowly through your mouth. In the form, breathe in on inward movements and out on outward movements.
4. How do I maintain balance while practicing Tai Chi?
To maintain balance while practicing Tai Chi, you should focus on your body alignment, keep your weight centered, and move slowly and smoothly. Coordinate the upper and lower body and avoid leaning.
Tai Chi Styles
1. What style do you teach at Cornwall Tai Chi?
We teach Lee style as taught to us by our teacher Chee Soo.
2. What are the different styles of Tai Chi?
There are several types of Tai Chi styles, including traditional family styles and more modern composite styles, which have been designed as fitness exercises by Chinese teachers. Some say there are as many variants as there are Tai Chi teachers. Some styles emphasize order and specific regimented techniques, some are more free-style, and some include both elements.
3. What are the characteristics of each Tai Chi style?
– Yang style: gentle and flowing with big stances and leaning – Chen style: more explosive and vigorous like Shaolin kung fu – Wu style: more Yin, gentle, compact, and smaller stances – Sun style: light and agile – Hao style: fast and compact – Lee style: a Yin and Yang style, somewhere in the middle
4. How do I choose a Tai Chi style that is right for me?
You can choose a Tai Chi style based on your goals, physical abilities, and personal preferences. You can try different styles and see which one resonates with you.
Tai Chi Instructors
1. Do I need a Tai Chi instructor to learn Tai Chi?
While it is possible to learn Tai Chi from videos or books, having a qualified instructor can help you learn the correct techniques, avoid injury, and deepen your practice.
2. How do I find a qualified Tai Chi instructor?
You can search for qualified Tai Chi instructors in West Cornwall on this website. If you live outside Cornwall, please visit our Association’s website.
3. What qualifications should I look for in a Tai Chi instructor?
Look for instructors who have completed a formal instructor training program, have years of actual teaching experience, and are knowledgeable about Tai Chi principles and techniques. It’s also important to find an instructor who has a teaching style that resonates with you.
Conclusion
Tai Chi is a wonderful practice for both physical and mental health and can be enjoyed by people of all ages and fitness levels. With the right guidance and consistent practice, you can experience the many benefits of Tai Chi, such as improved balance, flexibility, strength, and mental well-being. Tai Chi, if taught correctly, is also an ancient and powerful form of self-defense training that will greatly improve your chances of survival if attacked right from the first lesson.
To mark the Chinese New Year of the Rabbit the Leamington Spa Tai Chi club will be hosting a weekend of Tai Chi and Kung Fu at North Leamington School. The course is open to beginners so come along and have a go. The Leamington club was established in 1980 by Chee Soo a world-renowned Tai Chi and Kung Fu Grand master with over sixty years of experience in the Taoist Arts. He was learning Tai Chi and Kung Fu in the London of the 1930s years before it was known about publicly in the West.
Tai Chi on Saturday 21st January 2023 10am to 4pm, lunch 12:30-1:30pm
Kung Fu on Sunday 22nd January 2023 10am to 4pm, lunch 12:30-1:30pm
At North Leamington School in Sandy Lane, Blackdown CV32 6RD
There will be a Tai Chi day course for the Cornwall clubs hosted by the Penryn club on Saturday 11th February 11am to 5pm.
This will be at the Zedshed on Jubilee Wharf, Commercial road, Penryn, TR10 8FG
Beginners are welcome
Unrivalled views – underfloor heating – a riverside balcony – carbon neutral. The ZedShed is a beautiful community hall with a roof made from reclaimed timber that is shaped like the upturned hull of a boat.
We will be hosting a twelve-week long course on the basics of Chinese Medicine every Monday night at 8 o’clock (UT) starting on Monday 9th January 2023. Sign up for the course on Eventbrite. We will start by looking at the basic concepts of Chinese Medicine, primarily the three treasures Jing Qi and Sghen and why they are so important and what we can do to improve the quantity and quality of them. If you want to start looking at some of the course materials beforehand please join the Facebook group for the course, the first week’s topic will be discussing the three treasures.
The Three treasures
In Ancient Chinese medicine, the “Three Treasures” (also called the “Three Jewels” or “San Bao”) are three fundamental principles that are believed to be the foundation of health and well-being. These treasures are:
Jing (精): Jing is the essence or vital substance that is responsible for reproduction, growth, and development. It is believed to be stored in the kidneys and is thought to be the source of one’s physical and mental energy.
Qi (气): Qi is the vital energy or life force that is present in all living things. It is believed to flow through the body along pathways called meridians, and is thought to be essential for good health and well-being.
Shen (神): Shen is the spirit or consciousness that is responsible for one’s mental and emotional well-being. It is believed to be stored in the heart and is thought to be the source of one’s thoughts, feelings, and awareness.
In traditional Chinese medicine, it is believed that maintaining balance and harmony among the Three Treasures is essential for good health and well-being.
Why learn Chinese Medicine?
Well for me I did it because my teacher taught it and I wanted to learn what he was teaching. When I first started it was at a Tai Chi class and I was interested in Taoism. When I asked him if he did it he said “That’s all we do!” One of my big stumbling blocks paradoxically was my education which stemmed from Western philosophy based firmly on Cartesian doubt. This is a method of tearing things apart until there’s nothing left. Once I encountered Chee Soo I began to realize his method was more along the lines of a jigsaw puzzle and tearing things apart was not of much use, in fact, it slowed me down considerably so I decided to become more open-minded. Chinese Medicine was at the core of his teachings I started to realize and although he was well known as a Tai Chi and Kung Fu master it was his skill at understanding and controlling energies that made him such an outstanding healer.
This course is exactly about that, Qi or energy, and if you can just get a grip on this concept, which in actual fact is a real thing and not merely a concept of the mind, it will put you on the high road to understanding everything related to the Taoist Arts and will do more than anything else to prolong your youth and protect your health into old age. Sign up here Eventbrite
We were doing some kung fu training down at Sennen Cove just the other day when some interested parties approached us to do an impromptu class for them, this is what transpired.
We are offering free online Tai Chi lessons every day during the lockdown. Wherever you are located and whatever your level of experience, beginner, intermediate, or advanced, you are welcome to come and join our classes, and yes they are completely free of charge for the duration of the lockdown, but if you wish you can make a donation to support the cause. You can train once a week or every single day and there are special classes in the evenings if you are working.
Our Lee style Tai Chi has enormous health benefits and can increase your level of Qi or life force and improve your health and strengthen your immunity on a daily basis.
We are a professional team of Tai Chi teachers with years of experience and we would love the chance to show you what we can do and give you some insight into what Tai Chi can do for you.
