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Why I practice tai chi chuan

Oct. 24, 2011 - WHY I PRACTICE TAI CHI CHUAN

Like many other kids from the US, I grew up watching the WWF, and Sunday morning Kung Fu. As a teenager, I was introduced to the fantasy world of cinema which included movies like: Enter the Dragon, The Karate Kid, No Retreat No Surrender, and Bloodsport. I also played: Football, Baseball, Basketball, Wrestling, and naturally gravitated towards fisticuff activities like Taekwondo, Boxing, & Wing Chun. Interestingly enough, the first time I was introduced to Tai Chi Chuan concepts was when I was playing High school football. I didn’t know it at the time, but I soon realized I could take out a bigger player using speed and balance—this was something I discovered accidentally by playing linebacker and running back since the age of ten. Not to polish my own flute, but I can remember taking down 220lb full backs weighing a measly 160lbs during my senior year on the varsity squad.

I was born in 77;’ so growing up during the 80’s, all I heard about was getting pumped, lifting weights, and the theories of ‘out hustling and muscling’ the opponent. I never once heard a coach advocating balance and body control to out smart an opponent. I once remember my coach yelling, “If you can’t get your man down, than bend down and grab a handful of dirt; throw it in his eyes! Dirty tactics were a common place, and some players were caught bringing razor blades and knifes on the field. Those were crazy times! I am glad, now, to be far away from the hoodlums and gangsters of my inexperienced childhood.

The first Martial Art I took up seriously, around the age of twenty, was Wing Chun and Jeetkundo. I had all the books by Bruce Lee, and can remember at the age of thirteen lifting weights and trying to mimic his routine, which was published in FLEX magazine. I was also an advocate of the Hershel Walker and Bo Jackson workouts; lots of pushups, sit-ups, and squats.

Slap boxing was something that all kids did while I was growing up in Military Schools, but I soon gravitated towards Wing Chun and the methods espoused by Bruce Lee. Then one day I purchased a book by Robert W. Smith called, Chinese Boxing. It was the first time in my life that I had been introduced to the ideas of Chinese Internal Martial Arts. Soon afterwards, I bought a few of Chen Manching’s books, and started to experiment with push hands theories with friends and co-workers. At the time, I couldn’t find any experienced teachers in my area, so I worked hard to perfect the forms and methods laid out by Chen Manching and Yang Jun. Life took me eastward in my early twenties and I eventually would enroll to study under a teacher in Cairo, Egypt—his name, Lu Shi. Years of intense study in Cairo, catapulted me to new realities and plateaus in Yang style Tai Chi Chuan. Then at the end of 2009 into the new year of 2010, I made my pilgrimage to China’s mainland and crossed hands with the best teachers I could find in Beijing. My eyes were opened during this voyage to many new things, and my best gains were found studying with various Sifu’s who practiced exclusively at Ritan Lu Park; close to downtown Wangfujing, Beijing.

During the last two years, I have been spending my time perfecting the 108 Long-form and dissecting the internal combat methodologies pertaining to its postures. The best book I came across on the market, which helped assist me in this endeavor was, Tai Chi Touchstones, by Douglas Wile. If you haven’t already purchased this book, then I would advise you to pick up a copy. Many of the secret transmissions from the Yang family are divulged in this book; but not all of them. If you are aware of Chinese culture and its history of clans and societies, than you understand there exist many trade secrets pertaining to Martial Arts, and medicine. This reason for this is has to do mainly with status, power, money, and family honor. Knowledge is the root of all secrets, and whoever has the most thereof, is rarely fooled by false data and showmanship. Actually, showing off is the first sign of someone having only ‘limited knowledge;’ a novice usually gets a taste of knowledge and soon after, he runs out to announce to the world what he has grasped. To obtain the ‘whole chestnut,’ takes years (sometimes a lifetime) of patient observation and prying.

Many students of Yang style Tai Chi Chuan, learn the ins and outs of Tai Tui and Dalu, and can’t wait to be crowned with the title, Sifu. Fair enough, but these are the rudiments of Yang style Tai Chi Chuan, and you can bet that Yang Jun and his families lineage are the only ones who have the ‘whole piece of the pie,’ when speaking of using Tai Chi Chuan in combat.

I’m not saying there aren’t proficient teachers and Sifu’s who can use the art to defend themselves. Adam Meisner is obviously someone who has reached a high level of proficiency in the art, and would dust off about 99.9 percent of most challengers. There are also others out there who know who they are. To my knowledge, the Yang family has not released all that they know to the public—in my opinion, this is a fact based on the way the forms and Dalu practice are taught to their students. This is public knowledge. Saying this, I would also say that they are the only ones teaching the forms correctly, down to the minutest details.

So what is the public missing? I have relayed most of the withheld knowledge in my new novel, TheLost Chambers of Tai Chi Chuan.

Getting back on track with the subject at hand, Tai Chi Chuan offers the practitioner many valuable things. Chen Manching said it best, “The body of the art is more valuable than the function.”

The function, being the Self Defense mechanism used to ward off attackers. The body of the art contains more benefits because it is employed far more often. When was the last time you were attacked on the streets or mugged?

The health benefits (the body of the art) are many, due to the nature of Tai Chi Chuan. It is the only exercise which improves blood circulation without making the heart race and over work. Many athletes and individuals die every year from strenuous exercise their bodies can no longer handle.

Blood is circulated in Tai Chi by centrifugal forces created by modes of movement; which is more heart friendly for us as we begin to age and get older. The mind also assists the circulation of blood during Tai Chi movements; which is not found in other physical related activities.

Focus and relaxation help improve the practitioner’s attention span, which is usually warped and fractured by years of watching over stimulating television and fictionalized cinema.If practiced correctly, Tai Chi Chuan can turn the body into a self consuming furnace, which can burn off excessive calories and fat; which are prevalent in our modern-day diets. Extra snacks, and desserts are like kindling wood being throw into a blazing bonfire; they are consumed and absorbed without any alteration of the fire's structure. How can we tell scientifically if this is really the case? The easiest way to know is by paying close attention to your bowel movements. If you are going to the bathroom two times a day, your body is working way too hard. Advanced practitioners should be able to go for two or three days without a bowel movement. The reason isn’t due to constipation; rather it is due to the absorption and consumption of the foods we eat into our stomachs cauldron. Grains and bread will give a person larger and more frequent bowel movements; but even while consuming bread, a Tai Chi player should have significantly less waste excretions.

Here are a few drills which I practice daily to assure myself of the mentioned benefits: 30 Method Neigong, Iron- Shirt Isometric Contractions, 108 Long-Form and supplementary Tai Tui, & Dalu practice. If all these are practiced daily, your food absorption levels should be off the charts. This translates to lower blood pressure, better blood circulation, and higher energy outputs for daily tasks. By practicing Tai Chi Chuan daily, you are utilizing the method of compounded interest; you gain more advantages than a person who overextends themselves for the short haul. Thus the rabbit is fast, but the tortoise always wins by merit of steady moderation!

Thanks for listening!

W. Beattie