Chen Tai Chi Scotland

Chen Tai Chi Scotland
Edinburgh University Tai Chi Society

Timetable

Classes resume on the 6th of October 2010.

Day	Venue	Time	Cost
Wednesday	Drummond Hall, Broughton St Mary's Parish Church, Edinburgh	19:00 - 21:00	£7, or 10-trip card for £60

The 10-trip cards offer flexible attendance and 15% discount.

Keep informed about schedule disruptions by joining the announcement mailing list.

Who Teaches The Classes?

Classes are taught by Rory Hunter (right). Rory has also studied Wing Chun Kung Fu and Filipino martial arts for many years, and brings enthusiasm and drive to his Tai Chi practice.

What Should I Expect?

A typical class covers four main areas; warm-ups and mobility exercises; qigong and standing meditation; silk-reeling; and Laojia form practice. Over the course of several weeks, some exercises will be repeated often, while some will make occasional "guest" appearances, such as the inclusion of some Yi Quan ("mind boxing") exercises.

Warm-Up Exercises

The warm-up exercises start to wake up the body and prepare it for Tai Chi practice. They help to loosen and relax the body, whilst also starting to strengthen it. They can also be practised as Tai Chi exercises in their own right, as they express the same principles of movement.

Qigong

Qigong (pronounced "chee-gong') relaxes mind and body, and often focusses on deep, relaxed breathing and / or rhythmic motions that express Tai Chi principles. These are usually very simple exercises that allow you to really focus inside and relax very deeply. The also help you get in touch with how your unique, individual body actually feels at that moment in time. This is very useful for Tai Chi practice.

Standing Meditation

Standing meditation is just that - standing, and meditating. You stand in a specific posture or postures for short periods of time, focussing your attention on your breathing and on holding the posture in as relaxed a way as possible. The postures look easy, but some people initially find them a little difficult to hold. This is just because they aren't used to using certain muscle groups, or because they have acquired postural habits that make it difficult to stand naturally. With a little practice, this training method becomes much easier, and is an essential part of Tai Chi.

Silk-reeling Exercises

Silk-reeling exercises (or "chan si gong") are the bridge between the above exercises and form practice. These really are like very short sections of form, where you focus on arranging your body correctly and moving correctly, in the same way as is required in form practice. However, because the number of movements is so short, it is much easier to thoroughly investigate your posture and how you move. By practising silk-reeling diligently, you will get far more our of your form practice and progress more quickly.

Form Practice

Form practice is the core training practice of Tai Chi. It is a sequence of movements that are practised with an emphasis on; flowing between each movement without completely stopping; being balanced at all times in all directions; and relaxed economical movement. The form is practised very slowly, which allows you time to concentrate on the movements, but also challenges you to improve your balance and use your core muscles correctly.

In the Chen style, there are also specific movements that are executed with sudden, explosive energy. This is an ability that is developed by first training to be relaxed and to move correctly - "yin" training, if you like. This then allows you to practise explosive energy, or "yang" training. Tai Chi should be yin and yang, soft and hard. Many styles now emphasise softness to an extreme, and lack the balance that Chen offers. Regardless of whether you are interested in Tai Chi for health, or for martial arts training, this part of the practice is an important aspect of maintaining overall health, but of course it can be modified to suit your own level of health and strength. In any case, new students are discouraged from attempting the release of energy until they have been practising for some time.

Practising the form promotes health, relaxation and core strength. Furthermore, if you are interested in the martial arts then in time you can unlock how the movements apply to self-defence.

Students begin form practice by learning an 18-movement short form, that encapsulates the essential movements and omits some trickier moves whilst retaining the authentic Chen feeling. Once students are proficient in the 18-form, they then progress to learning the "Laojia" form. This builds on their existing knowledge and adds extra movements over a longer sequence (75 movements). See the Media page to see a video of Master Chen Xiaowang demonstrating this form.