Ken Gullette's Internal Fighting Arts Blog

How to Save Years of Time Building Tai Chi Skill

chen taiji training internal arts training tai chi training Oct 16, 2012

I received an email from a guy in Kansas a couple of weeks ago. He had seen one of my videos and began asking questions about the internal arts. He had practiced several arts over the years and was now studying Wing Chun from a guy who also teaches Tai Chi but only for health purposes.

He wondered if he was getting the real deal.

I asked a few questions and told him some experiences I've had with instructors who taught Yang tai chi for meditation and health, versus the Chen style instructors I've had who teach body mechanics for internal power. This is not mystical -- it's physical.

Finally, I directed him to the school of Chen Huixian, a niece of Chen Zhenglei who teaches in Overland Park.

At the same time, he signed up for a free course I was offering. Here's what he wrote after seeing the second or third video, when I explain peng jin and clearly demonstrate the physical nature of this skill:

"Ken, you have no idea how much that has helped because I really did believe those va...

The Day I Discovered The Tai Chi Teacher Test

chen tai chi chen taiji training internal arts training Aug 05, 2012

I began studying Tai Chi in 1987. I loved my instructor and considered him a master. I became pretty good at the Yang 24 Simplified Form and even won a Gold Medal performing it at the 1990 AAU Kung-Fu National Championships.

Every day, I practiced chi kung. I studied acupuncture and worked hard to cultivate my chi. Eight Pieces of Brocade, Microcosmic Orbit, even Iron Palm.

Flash forward to 1997, when I began teaching a small group of students near the Quad Cities, where I relocated in 1993. I had a black sash and was teaching the system I had learned beginning in 1987.

The Internet was beginning to really take off, and I found a listserve about Neijia -- the internal arts. I started reading posts, arguments and discussions led primarily by Mike Sigman and some others. I read terms such as ground path and peng jin in ways I had never heard them discussed. I read about the "Teacher Test" and how a good tai chi teacher can perform it.

I had no idea what they were talking about, and ...

Ken Gullette's Internal Fighting Arts

How to Save Years of Time Building Tai Chi Skill

The Day I Discovered The Tai Chi Teacher Test

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