Tai Chi Qigong – Foundation Practices & Principles
A foundation programme for beginners and a framework for long term progression in practice.
Programme content:
- ‘Song Gong’ – loosening, mobilsing, relaxing, sinking
- ‘Kai Men‘ – opening, ‘silk pulling’, elastic stretching
- Structural Principles – functional, open and integrated (‘kai-he’)
- Stances & Shapes – parallel, V, horse, cat/empty, bow
- ‘Zhang Zhuang’ / ‘Ding Shi’ – standing practice
- ‘Yi & Qi’ – body-mind, somatic, sensory, 3d / 6d, equilibrium (‘zhong ding’), external/internal (‘heaven-man-earth’), breathwork
- Sinking the Qi – deepening ‘song’, internal release & opening
- Standing Gong Fu – ‘bitter practice’, building practice over time, building Qi
- Moving Gong Fu – single movement practice (dan lian), internally focussed, mobilising the Yi/Qi
- Directions & Movements – open-close, flex-extend, vertical, horizontal, rotation, spiral
- Tai Chi Walking – single form practices with stepping
- Tai Chi Principles & ‘Energies’ – peng, lu, ji, an – yeilding, neutralising, receiving, returning
- Partnerwork – co-operative practices & ‘pushing hands’
Tai Chi 37 Form – The programme covers the first section of the Tai Chi 37 Form (Cheng Man-ch’ing’s Simplified Yang Style Tai Chi Chuan) – the complete 37 form is then taught in open practice sessions, additional workshops and via online video content.
Weekend Workshops & Day Retreats – Students have the option to attend additional weekend workshops – this gives an opportunity to go deeper into different elements of the practice.
Online Content – Course videos and notes are provided which cover the foundations and 37 Form to enable students to develop their practice at home. My youtube channel has additional video content to support home practice.
Current students get access to a private password protected page with a lifetime’s worth of resources, which is added to regularly.
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