About Tai Chi
Tai Chi is a Chinese martial art that is typically practiced for health and longevity and as a means for dealing with tension and stress. There are two basic types of Martial Arts, the hard martial arts and the soft martial arts. Karate, Kung Fu and Wushu are examples of hard martial arts, while Tai Chi is a soft martial art – an art applied with internal power.
Unlike the hard martial arts, Tai Chi is characterized by soft, slow, flowing movements that emphasize force, rather than strength. Tai Chi focuses on coordination in relaxation, and is often considered “meditation in motion”. Many of the movements were derived from marital arts. When performed in Tai Chi, the movements are is soft, slow, and graceful with smooth transitions, yet they are precisely executed.
A number of traditional and modern training forms exist, some of which include:
Bagua
Chen Style
Chi Kung
Feng Shui
Medical Form DoYin
Meditation
Pa Kua
Push Hands
Retreat Centers
Sun Style
Taoism
Weapons
Wu Style
WuDan
Wushu
Xing Yi
Yang Style
Yiquan