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We get good at what we do

If you want to get good at form, practice form. If you want to become proficient with weapons, then practice with weapons. The more often your body undertakes the practice, the more familiar it will be.


Yin/yang of home training

If you don't practice often enough, you won't remember the material. If you practice too much, you'll cause unwanted wear and tear. Balance must be found.


5 repetitions per arm

This is the standard number of repetitions.


10 repetitions per arm

For the highest yield, each qigong exercise needs to be done 10 times. If you do an exercise with the right hand and then the left, the overall count will be 20.
With exercises such as 'torso circles', 10 repetitions will take forever, so sticking to 5 is more prudent.


Warming-up

A good warm-up in terms of moving qigong exercises is to do 3 x sets in a 30 minute window. Ba duan jin, moving qigong and stretches & joint work. If you can't fit all 3 sets at first - without rushing - just do 5 repetitions per arm to start with. Build up to 10 repetitions per arm. Follow this with leg stretches and reeling silk exercises for a great warm-up.

 

When your teacher demonstrates something for you, you are obligated to practice it,  or else you may invoke the following consequences of your own free will:
 
 1. Your teacher may not correct you because your actions have shown that you did not really want to learn the skill.
 
 2. You will not achieve the skill.
 
 3. If you learn the next stage of the skill, it will be weak because it has no foundation.
 
 4. Your skill will not rise to a high level until your attitude changes.
 
 (Bruce Frantzis) 

Routines

 Student routines:

  1. New starter

  2. 90 minutes

  3. Tai chi chuan

  4. Black belt

Instructor routines:

  1. Instructors

  2. Rachel's routine

New starter routine

A novice student needs to get used to qigong and the reeling silk power generation exercises. It will provide the necessary fitness benefits by serving as a stopgap pending higher level skill.
Daily practice:

  1. Moving qigong or ba duan jin (5 mins)

  2. Reeling silk exercises (5 mins)

  3. Standing qigong (10 mins)

  4. Form
    - Long Yang (slow form version) (regular) (10 mins)

  5. Constructive rest

  6. Read the website/recommended books

Tai chi is an art where all the principles of other martial arts have been turned upside down.
They practice fast, we practice slow.
They practice hard, we practice soft.

(Cheng Man Ching)

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90 minutes

Dr Michael Greger (author of How Not To Die) recommends 90 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise every day.
Dr Bradley Willcox, Dr Craig Willcox and Dr Makoto Suzuki who wrote The Okinawa Program maintain that tai chi - with its ancient origins and incredible health benefits - is the ideal form of exercise for modern people.
 

  1. Massage (15 mins)

  2. Standing qigong (15 mins)

  3. Ba duan jin (5 mins)

  4. Moving qigong (5 mins)

  5. Stretches & joint work (5 mins)

  6. Reeling silk exercises (5 mins)

  7. Leg stretches (set 1 or 2) (10 mins)

  8. Form
    - Long Yang (slow form version) (regular) (10 mins)

  9. Psoas exercises or core strength (set 1, 2 or 3) or Taoist Yoga (set 1, 2 or 3) (10 mins)

  10. Reading

  11. Constructive rest

If this sounds like a lot of exercise, why not chop it up into smaller increments spaced throughout the day?

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Tai chi chuan routine

A tai chi chuan student must increase their skill with form, martial drills and conditioning exercises.

Daily:

  1. Massage (15 mins)

  2. Standing qigong (15 mins)

  3. Ba duan jin or moving qigong or stretches & joint work or reeling silk exercises (5 mins)

  4. Leg stretches (set 1 or 2) (10 mins)

  5. Long Yang form (regular & mirrored) (10-20 mins)

  6. Psoas exercises or core strength (set 1, 2 or 3) or Taoist Yoga (set 1, 2 or 3) (10 mins)

  7. Constructive rest

  8. Reading

Staggered across the week:

  1. Full circle qigong (30 mins)

  2. Standing qigong
    - standing qigong (10 mins) or
    - horse stance (2-5 mins) or
    - full circle qigong (30 mins) or
    - qigong development (40 mins)

  3. Pushing peng exercise (2 mins)

  4. Da lu (solo) (regular & mirrored)

  5. San sau (regular & mirrored) (2-3 mins)

  6. Knife drills (regular & mirrored) (2 mins)

  7. Stick drills (set 1, 2 & 3) (regular & mirrored) (2-5 mins)

  8. Sword drills (regular & mirrored)

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Black belt routine

The student starts practicing the round form version of the Long Yang form. This increases the fitness benefits of form; allowing them to spend less time training qigong.

Daily:

  1. Massage (10-15 mins)

  2. Standing qigong (15 mins)

  3. Ba duan jin or moving qigong or stretches & joint work or reeling silk exercises (5 mins)(5 mins)

  4. Leg stretches (set 1 or 2) (10 mins)

  5. Long Yang form (regular & mirrored) (10-20 mins)

  6. 2-person cane (solo) (regular & mirrored) (1 min)

  7. 3-tier wallbag (5 mins)

  8. Psoas exercises or core strength (set 1, 2 or 3) or Taoist Yoga (set 1, 2 or 3) (10 mins)

  9. Constructive rest

  10. Reading

3-7 times a week

  1. Walking stick form (regular & mirrored)

  2. Sabre form (regular & mirrored)

  3. Jian form (regular & mirrored)

Staggered across the week

  1. Standing qigong
    - horse stance (2-5 mins) or
    - full circle qigong (30 mins) or
    - qigong development (40 mins)

  2. Assignments

  3. Chin na applications (set 1, 2 & 3) (solo) (regular & mirrored)

  4. Shuai jiao applications (solo) (set 1 & 2) (regular & mirrored)

  5. San sau (regular & mirrored) (2-3 mins)

  6. Pushing peng exercise (2 mins)

  7. High circle qigong (5 mins)

  8. Qigong on 1 leg (2-5 mins)

  9. Knife drills (regular & mirrored) (2 mins)

  10. Small stick drills (regular & mirrored)

  11. Stick drills (set 1, 2 & 3) (regular & mirrored)

  12. Sword drills (regular & mirrored)

Once all 4 forms have been learned, standing qigong is optional but not necessary. The student may choose not to perform standing qigong.

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Instructors

An instructor's routine may exceed 2-3 hours overall but much of the additional time is spend reading and meditating. The Tao Te Ching teaches: master self before attempting to master others.
As an instructor, if your own training is lax, you are not doing the art (or yourself) justice. You owe it to your students to set the example. Your skills cannot ever be mediocre or unrefined.

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school database

Page created 2 March 1995
 Last updated 11 November 1998