taiji instructor that was beaten up?

[Lozen]

I'm looking and looking but cannot find this article friends of mine swear to have read about a year ago abotu a tai chi instructor that got beat up in the park in Tucson. Anyone (Cam, maybe) ever heard such a thing?

[Cameron]

You need to put an ad in Tuscon personals "searching for Tai Chi teacher who got beat up".

 

Hey, maybe he is your next Sifu!!

Edited May 8, 2006 by Cameron

[Lozen]

LOL, too funny Cam! Well I got the details and he used to teach at BALLY'S apparently. So don't take taiji at Bally's.

[Cameron]

Oh really? I always heard Bally's Tao Chi Master's had a great reputation in the internal MA community.

 

NOT!

[thaddeus]

LOL, too funny Cam! Well I got the details and he used to teach at BALLY'S apparently. So don't take taiji at Bally's.

Why would yoga be so overwhelmingly popular at a gym whereas taichi's track record is dismal at best...thoughts anyone?

T

[Lozen]

Cam,

I stole that quote for another board.

 

Thaddeus,

I hate to say this on a Taoist board, but could it be because tai chi is more boring?

[Cameron]

Probably because Tai Chi isn't a "workout" like Yoga can be. If done correctly I doubt Tai Chi is borning but more like a movement form of Qigong and internal MA.

 

It's probably best it's not taught as much mainstream so it doesn't get completely watered down like Yoga is now.

[thaddeus]

It's probably best it's not taught as much mainstream so it doesn't get completely watered down like Yoga is now.

Yeah, yoga is watered down, but people are getting results. And I don't necessarily believe it's natural selection, I actually see people progressing and looking healthier from taking yoga at the gym. Compare it to your typical taichi group and it's amazing. For all the hoopla about internal martial arts and helalth benefits, it's hard to see it.

But I'm thinking as a practice, taichi wouldn't necessarily have any inverted poses like downward dog for instance but it should have almost everything else. And the moving component should please all the vinyasa lovers.

Lozen, it is boring..but how come people don't find yoga boring in the same way..

T

[mYTHmAKER]

'thaddeus' date='May 8 2006, 09:48 AM' post='14051'

 

Why would yoga be so overwhelmingly popular at a gym whereas taichi's track record is dismal at best...thoughts anyone?

 

Anyone can pop in and out of any yoga class and follow along at their level.

You can come one week and not show up for another three weeks.

Yoga is made up of seperate static postures which are more or less the same and easy to follow. You can skip one if you don't feel like doing it or it's too difficult.

Flow yoga and vinyassa are the exception but this would not be for beginners.

 

In Tai Chi you have to learn a continuous form which can take about twenty minutes to a half hour

for a long form - ten minutes or so for a short form - to complete.

So you have to commit to show up just to get from here to there - to learn the form.

Then you have to practice at home to get the form in your body.

The coordination is more difficult than yoga.

You learn to use your body as it was designed to be used - in motion.

 

 

 

'Lozen' date='May 8 2006, 10:01 AM' post='14055'

I hate to say this on a Taoist board, but could it be because tai chi is more boring?

 

I am curious as to what constitutes boring.

Have you ever tried doing tai chi.

Is it boring to do or boring to watch?

Do you find qi gong boring?

Is zazen boring? And if not why not?

[Lozen]

I've done chen-style tai chi with two different instructors and was bored. Qi gong was less boring. Zazen is very boring. Yoga and pilates are not boring, except those yoga classes where you do the exact same moves in order every class.

[mYTHmAKER]

'Cameron' date='May 8 2006, 10:06 AM' post='14056'

 

Probably because Tai Chi isn't a "workout" like Yoga can be. If done correctly I doubt Tai Chi is borning but more like a movement form of Qigong and internal MA.

 

I think it would be very interesting or boring and educational for you guys to find a tai chi class

and try to follow along.

 

I've done chen-style tai chi with two different instructors and was bored. Qi gong was less boring. Zazen is very boring. Yoga and pilates are not boring, except those yoga classes where you do the exact same moves in order every class.

 

Ok so you like more external forms of bodywork.

Tai chi does develop patience.

Zazen and tai chi require focus.

I was under the impression you practiced zazen

[thaddeus]

Anyone can pop in and out of any yoga class and follow along at their level.

You can come one week and not show up for another three weeks.

Yoga is made up of seperate static postures which are more or less the same and easy to follow. You can skip one if you don't feel like doing it or it's too difficult.

Flow yoga and vinyassa are the exception but this would not be for beginners.

 

In Tai Chi you have to learn a continuous form which can take about twenty minutes to a half hour

for a long form - ten minutes or so for a short form - to complete.

So you have to commit to show up just to get from here to there - to learn the form.

Then you have to practice at home to get the form in your body.

The coordination is more difficult than yoga.

You learn to use your body as it was designed to be used - in motion.

 

I was picturing a gym class with people doing the first part of the form and holding the end posture and breathing--like a standing form of ashtangha yoga. How much you open your kwa would determine the level you worked on in the class. There would be small breaks to discuss the silk reeling during the transitions and throughout class you would be adjusted on your posture much like a yoga class.

Maybe I'm a freak, but I would love a class like this. Only draw back would be no upper body workout unless a medicine ball was thrown to work some repetitive movements, but even there the focus is really core and legs. Maybe I'll pitch this idea at my gym and see what happens..

T

[Lozen]

I was under the impression you practiced zazen

 

I do but it still bores me.

[Buddy]

Hmmm, while my love is baguazhang, I'm never bored when practicing taiji. It's all in the shenfa (body method), and keeping the yi in the form.

[mYTHmAKER]

'thaddeus' date='May 8 2006, 10:34 AM' post='14059'

 

But I'm thinking as a practice, taichi wouldn't necessarily have any inverted poses like downward dog for instance but it should have almost everything else.

 

There are no inverted poses ( shoulder stand, head stand) in tai chi because it would be an extreme position.

Tai chi is based on the tao in which there are no extremes.

Taoists are interested in groundiing - getting into their bodies. The focus is on the tan tien and

rooting.

[thaddeus]

There are no inverted poses ( shoulder stand, head stand) in tai chi because it would be an extreme position.

Tai chi is based on the tao in which there are no extremes.

Taoists are interested in groundiing - getting into their bodies. The focus is on the tan tien and

rooting.

There is a version of XiaoJia that has a mule kick in the form. Almost like a hand stand.

But philosophically, I don't think we can say there are no extremes in taoism--that in itself is extreme. A thunderstorm is an extreme..but it's a movement back to balance. Fajing is extreme, but it too is a natural part of the store/release cycle.

Not to pick on you and I'm not saying you are saying this, but I think too many people think taiji is about staying rooted and immoveable in one spot. If that were true, then it wouldn't have survived hundreds of years in China. The other qualities of nimbleness and lightness are just as highly prized as being grounded.

Also, I learned this from a rolfer--he evaluates people regarding whether they tended toward the ground or the sky and does the bodywork and suggested exercises to help the person balance.

anyway, just some jumbled thoughts..

T

[sean]

Release the hounds!

 

LOL!

[mYTHmAKER]

Edited May 10, 2006 by mYTHmAKER

[Fireblood]

I've practiced Tai Chi Chuan for a few years now and it's only boring if someone is teaching it as a dance.

 

If you have someone teaching you who has any idea of what they are doing then it's great, find a club that does Tai Chi Chuan full contact fighting, then you know it's the real thing.

 

There's too much going on to be bored even for a second. There's all the external postures, keeping the head straight, sinking the elbows, shoulders and chest; keeping relaxed. Substantial and insubstantial in the feet/weight, sinking the chi to the dantien etc etc...

 

There's just way too much going on at anyone time to be bored. Even if you've done it for years, you'll be concentrating on finer aspects of the form etc... Maybe Jian (straight sword) form, Dao (broad sword) or push hands, kwai forms, two man sparring etc...

 

The other thing is there's too many bogus Tai Chi teachers out there.

[thelerner]

To me, even if the Taiji instructor gets his butt kicked every single year, he is still the hands down winner if: If he lives to 95 and enjoys his art on a daily basis, and the hard styler, practices for 6 or 7 years, gets good then quits, fights yearly and wins every fight, and dies at age 70 or 75.

 

The Taiji player won the big battle, the hard styler just slapped people around.

 

Michael

 

There's a Chinese martial philosophy we should begin hard style and evolve softer and softer. Sounds right to me.

[mYTHmAKER]

To me, even if the Taiji instructor gets his butt kicked every single year, he is still the hands down winner if: If he lives to 95 and enjoys his art on a daily basis, and the hard styler, practices for 6 or 7 years, gets good then quits, fights yearly and wins every fight, and dies at age 70 or 75.

 

The Taiji player won the big battle, the hard styler just slapped people around.

 

Michael

 

There's a Chinese martial philosophy we should begin hard style and evolve softer and softer. Sounds right to me.

 

 

You got it Michael!

But what about all those additional years of bordom

Edited May 16, 2006 by mYTHmAKER