So, without further ado:

So far in the series (in order) we have:

• Rocking Motion
• Bird Flaps It’s Wings
• Around The Platter
• Carry Ball Around The Platter
• Bass Drum
• Princess On The Mountain Top

Some key points:

• Keep those shoulders loose!
• Make your motions even and steady.
• Don’t bend the knees too much as you get used to the form

As always, please check out my Teaching Gigs page.

Let me know how the videos are working for you in the comments! Cheers!

Here it is!

Sorry the sound quality is not so good.  ;)

Cheers!

One thing I failed to mention in the video – The hand position is gender specific.  For men it’s right hand passing in front of left. For women it’s left hand passing in front of right.  This does not change as you switch feet.  I am not going to defend the political correctness of such a tradition. The fact is that in my experience the thousands of years put into empirical research by both men & women in the development of Chi Kung practices is worthy of respect.  But, you are your own authority ultimately and I would enourage any and all to experiment to see what works best for themselves.

During my own initial practice of Tai Chi Chih, over the course of my 1.000 day vow I experimented with reversing the hand positioning.  I put left in front of with in the Yin formation for 3 solid months.  The results were less than pleasant.  I did not get girly, but I did get sick and was afflicted with odd pains in my joints which cleared up a week after the experiment ended.  So, in short: mover beware.

Some key points:

• Watch those shoulders!  Keep them relaxed, fight against the raise.
• Make your breaths deep.  It should feel like your breath is hitting your pelvis.

I hope you folks are enjoying this and finding the vids useful. I would love any, and all, feedback in the comments.

Cheers!

*drum roll*

(Get it?)

Some key points:

• Do what you can.  Push yourself, but not your limits.
• The hand flutter in the left hand comes usually after about two years of regular practice and is a confirming sign that chi is flowing.
• You may experience flushes of gentle warmth while practicing.  That is a good thing.

As always, I would love to get your comments on these exercises and their presentation.  Cheers!

A few points for this exercise:

• Build up the knee flex slowly(!!), and make sure the knee moves along a line guided by the inside edge of the bone process leading up to your big toe.  Take it nice and easy and work up to deeper bends.
• Raising the heels is more important to the Chi effect of the exercise  than bending the knees
• Breathe!

Any questions, feel free to comment below.  Let me know how you are doing with these moves!

Check out the first move in the series here, as well as my teaching schedule.

Until next time, happy Tai Chi!

In this video I demonstrate the first exercise in the series, a warm up called Rocking Motion.

A few points:

• Looking into the far distance, as if looking to the most distant horizon, helps with balance.
• Do not strain to lift the balls of the feet, or the heels, to high when starting.
• Try to keep the breathing consistent, but don’t worry about it too much at first. I tend to exhale as I raise my arms for the forward swing and inhale on the back swing, but any consistent pattern is fine.

Please feel free to hit me with any questions. I’ll be releasing these videos weekly until the series is done.

Please see my Teaching Gigs page for my current schedule!

Cheers!

My favorite bit:

I’ve not exactly being pushed to my limits, so in the interests of my bold journalistic endeavor, I select a “surprise” My Health Coach challenge: “Complete 15,000 steps in 24 hours,” the stick-man happily chirps.

One hour later, I find myself over a mile from my house, not even halfway to my target. As I walk home, zig-zagging across the road like a remarkably methodical drunk in order to push my step count that bit higher, it suddenly hits me why exercise and videogames are a perfect match …

… I’m grinding. I’m repeating the same mechanical task over and over again in the distant hope that I might one day accrue enough experience points to equip a six-pack.

And it’s boring in real life, too.

“I learned encouraging news that little bouts of exercise — as few as 10 minutes in duration — can add up to significant gains in fitness.

Unfortunately, it’s the little bites eaten here and there above our daily caloric needs that can add up to sizable weight gain over time.”

This has a strange, and fun analogy to a todo I got from my Tax preparer at our meeting the other day.  He wanted me to get the mileage for when I use my car to support my wife’s professional art career.  “At $0.58 per mile, it can really add up over a year.” True stuff!

It does not take much to make a significant impact on our health.  The trick is to make it a habit.  Including little bouts of exercise and caloric reduction in your day can go a long way toward reaching your fitness goals and maintaining a strong and healthy body. (Which is your birthright, BTW!)

Some tips from random sources:

• Drink a full glass of water first thing in the morning, before you go to the bathroom.
• Park a couple extra blocks from your destination.
• Kegel when waiting in line, driving or sitting.  No one can see you do it, and it’s good for you!
• Put your shoes on standing up.
• Have some coleslaw with your burger instead of fries.
• Pause for a couple of minutes halfway through your lunch to see if you are satisfied.  If so, save the rest for dinner.

Finding little ways to sneak in extra movement, and sneak out some calories can be an engaging and fun game to play against yourself.

What are your ideas?  Let me know in the comment section.

Cheers!

The path of reclaiming my fitness, my body, my peace of mind and my place in the kitchen has been a long one filled with many twists & turns, ups & downs. I look forward to sharing those lessons with you, and learning from your experience in turn. Welcome to my blog!