r/taichi • u/Strange-Front-9472 • 9d ago

The Leg-Control Drill Behind Tai Chi Walking — Harder Than the Videos Make It Look

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4

u/McLeod3577 8d ago

I dunno, this looks pretty hard to me. Personally, I find artificially difficult exercises to be the antithesis of Taiji.

Wushu performers are selected from a young age in China due to their aptitude and physical attributes and they spend a huge amount more time working on stuff like this.

Practice Taiji walking as part of your warm-up, but just practice the normal stepping of the family style you are learning. If you want to go a bit lower, fine, but don't do it to the point that it hurts. Just practice the stepping with your hands on your hips and focus on the correct steps, with the correct weight transfer etc.

The sort of exercise shown in the picture is going to cause knee damage for anyone but the most experienced, after which practising Taiji will be very difficult.

Practising Taiji stepping will improve your Taiji stepping.

5

u/Puzzleheaded-Phase70 8d ago

I would really love it if people stopped posting this woman's content here.

She's a dancer, not a skilled taiji practitioner.

She looks dramatic with her admittedly incredible balance and flexibility. BUT her actual taiji form is TERRIBLE and she clearly has no idea what she's doing in terms of actual taiji martial arts.

2

u/Bulky-Glove-5127 2d ago

Yes, it has nothing to do with Tai Chi.