Tai chi forum for those who practise at home?

I've been doing Chen Tai Chi for some months. Classes organised by Age UK. This week a man was worrying because after a few weeks he still couldn't remember any of it. The teacher said "If you come and tell me that in 10 years I might suggest that you find something else to do. Until then you are going to forget things,"

My Tai Chi class is run by U3A but there are many others in Buddhist centres or individually run in my town. Maybe ask online Facebook or Nextdoor to see if there are any in your area..

Ramblingrose228 My Taichi class, consists mainly of repetitive simle exercises, we do some of the complicated moves for the last 15 minutes of the class, but quite a number of us have problems. Our tutor is pnphased and saids merely trying them is good for us.

I have dyspraxia and one of the problems this can cause is problems with sequencing. My tutor knows of my problems and just tells me to do what I can.

Look around your areas for other TaiChi tutors. I am sure ypu will find some that are far less demanding.

I wouldn't want to dones like those you describe.

Rambling Rose, it took me years to learn Tai Chi. I was a really slow learner. I attended the class regularly, and really it was the companionship with the others and the teacher, together with the rather nice venue, that kept me trying to improve.

I went to one class of Tai Chi and each move had about 7 parts to it (if not more).

The point is that the movs were so long and complicated that I couldn't remember all the different parts.

If there's a really simple version please let me know. We are having to ditch our DVD player for a wireless TV box so I'm not sure if I'll be able to use our DVDs anymore.

The tan tien or belly is the natural centre of gravity for a human. Tai Chi movements and awareness are centred in the belly.

I go to a regular Tai Chi Qi Gong class each week and a daily 20 minute exercise routine that I follow online.

I found quite a number of 20 minute YouTube exercise routines that do not require you to sign up or pay for anything, although obviously the opportunity to sign up and pay for proper classes is sometimes offered.

The range of exercise routines is almost without measure and is very much a personal taste. I prefer silent sessions, or near silent sessions with bird song or neutral noise, not ones with a voice over or instructions.

I learned ‘ Infinite T’ai Chi’ - a very gentle meditative form. We also started a class with Gi-Gung. Numbers dwindled and the classes stopped. I didn’t realise how much benefit they were to me until I stopped. Recently I have managed to find demonstrations of the complete form on YouTube and am slowly re-aquainting myself. It isn’t easy ( ten years older) but the practise definitely helps with stress.

I learned the long form of Tai Chi more than twenty years ago, then I moved away from Edinburgh and I used to do it alone on my empty garage plinth here when I was still energetic enough. I have forgotten all the moves but remember the advice from the teacher that the difference between Tai Chi and ballet is the former gets your centre of gravity grounded whereas the latter is to elevate your centre of gravity.

I agree it is hard to practice Tai Chi on your own at home. The class I went to did not re-open after Lockdown but I have recently found another class which teaches Yang style. The Instructor is excellent, the group is small and friendly. Just what I was looking for.

I'm actually doing a class for the 24 form. I have done other courses and there does seem to be some variety in what is taught. This class has a couple of moves where you have to balance on one leg- I can't do it,
I think one of the most important things to learn is that the moves are quite contained, and when it is a push it's done with bent arms and you don't lean. Someone said it's like having an imaginary box around you and you mustn't stretch out of it.
Think you are very brave tackling it on your own.

The Club I belonged to had simplified the Form- but it is confusing that different 'Masters' or groups, or DVDs, do have quite a bit of variation.

Helen Laing's Simplified sounds interesting. Will look it up. In our group, advanced members would help individuals who were struggling or had missed some lessons, to catch up.

Thanks for your reply, Fleurpepper. I've had a Dr Paul Lam DVD for ages and it's very good, but also bought Helen Liang's 'Simplified Tai Chi for Beginners 24 form', which is excellent. She teaches very well and also shows the martial art application for each move, which makes it more interesting. Good luck with your own practice.

Same here. I do Gi-Gung now, but would love to re-learn the short form and then the long one. I don't think there is any alternative but to learn face to face as part of a small group.