In the early years of my Tai Chi training my instructor would demonstrate a technique quickly and wait for a reaction from the class.

If we were confused at what we had seen he would say ‘clear as mud?’ and then laugh.

I’ve been thinking of what he’d said and now realise there was depth in that remark besides the humour.

As a beginner, the techniques and most of the classical Tai Chi sayings were as ‘clear as mud’ to me.

I couldn’t see the correct technique or the meaning of a saying because of my inexperience and my tendency to analyse too much.

I now realise it’s about the doing rather than the anlaysing that will clear the mud away.

23 years since I started I still make pleasant discoveries of what appears to be a simple technique or saying by practicing more and analysing less.

It’s something I teach beginners – just do – and you will discover the meaning.

For safety reasons I keep a close eye on beginners so they don’t injure themselves.

As long as they’re within the safety limits of a technique I let them discover the meaning for themselves.

And this can be achieved by constant practice.

Otherwise, it will be ‘clear as mud’.

Put these two words ‘if only’ together and you have an instant recipe for regret and negativity.

Here’s my ‘If only …. list.

If only my knees were in good shape …

If only I was learning from a Wu Style Tai Chi grand master …

If only I had more time …

If only I was younger …

If only I had a regular training partner …

If only I had talent …

If only I had more hair …

If only …. ad nauseam (pass the smelling salts)

It’s easy to fall in the ‘if only’ trap and it is something that should be avoided if you are to stay positive and get the most from your Tai Chi training.

‘If only’ can demotivate you and lock you into the past and keep you there.

So the next time you catch yourself saying ‘if only’, challenge yourself and focus on where you are and what you can and are willing to do.

That way, you will get the most out of your training. And your life.

Hmm, now if only I can stop saying if only ……….

A few years ago I ran short courses in self defence for women.

The courses were 6-8 weeks in duration, one hour per week.

When I sat down and created these courses I looked at my Tai Chi background to develop simple and practical techniques.

One technique I taught was  from the Tai Chi essentials (body alignment).

That technique was ‘chin’ alignment.

You simply tuck your chin slightly in.

How can that be used as a self defence technique?

Well, it’s a preventative self defence technique that anybody can do.

Here’s my rationale.

Sticking your chin out can be interpreted as a sign of arrogance or you are looking for trouble (it tends to be a guy thing). You are actually inviting a reaction, particularly from an attacker.

Now, if your chin is tucked in too tightly, it will force your head downards into a submissive pose. Something that attackers tend to look for.

The Tai Chi chin alignment is not only correct body posture but it also gives out an assertive look that may cause an attacker to have second thoughts.

Inwardly you may feel nervous or fearful but when you adopt the correct body posture it can help deter attackers.

I made sure the course was fun by using the following exercise to practice the ‘chin’ technique.

I had women work in pairs. They walked past each other three times.  Each time they would either  adopt an aggressive, passive or assertive chin pose.

I got them to exaggerate the aggressive and passive chin poses to tap into the feel of the correct chin technique. And it also helped them to loosen up and have fun learning.

Oh, I did teach basic strikes, kicks, strategies with specific Tai Chi themes in these short courses but the emphasis was always on prevention.

And prevention to me is the ideal form of self defence.

In case you don’t know, Tai Chi is a self defence art and here’s a demonstration by Grand Master Cheng Tin – Hung.

It takes talent, dedication and several years practice to be able to use Tai Chi as a form of self defence.

However, from my experience most women neither have the time nor interest to learn self defence to that extent.

That’s why short self defence courses are ideal for many women.

It provides them with basic skills, strategies and confidence they may otherwise never have.

Don’t be fooled by this fellow.

In the photo he was on his best behaviour.

I was in Nepal recently for the World Appreciative Inquiry conference where Sue and I delivered our ‘Power of AQ/KQ workshop.

After the conference, a group of us travelled to the Chitwan provence, which was a 5 hour drive from Kathmandu.

I saw this calm looking buffalo at one of the villages we visited and took his photo.

On the way back I was about to cross a narrow footbridge when I stopped to take another photograph of the water buffalo who was by now in the creek.

As I raised my camera he started to splash about and came charging towards me.

I did what any Tai Chi person would do.

I used one of the 8 powers.

I retreated. And fast.

To add insult to injury I ended up drenched by the spraying water and no photo.

The classics say ‘4 ounces leads a 1000 pounds.’

No it doesn’t.

When 1000 lbs comes charging at you, forget 4 ounces.

And forget about brush knee twist step.

Just run.

In the opposite direction!

What does Zorba the Greek and a dedicated Tai Chi practitioner have in common?

Passion.

And that’s what will sustain you through your Tai Chi journey.

You need to do a Zorba and put a lot of ‘Oopa’ in your Tai Chi training.

Otherwise you will become a technician without heart.

So enjoy this clip, my favourite scene from ‘Zorba the Greek’ movie (1964), and watch Zorba do his fast form, with passion.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Discovered this clip from Jordan Keats who is doing a good job of promoting Chen style Tai Chi.

Although I do Wu Style Tai Chi I can appreciate the talent and skill of Master Chen Zhonghua’s demonstration of fajin.

Whenever I see masters such as Chen Zhonghua demonstating aspects of Tai Chi, it  inspires me to continue to practice and try to improve my skills.

Click here to view the embedded video.

I suppose I can always blame my male ego for the 450 Monkey Climbs exercise but really it was just dumb.

This was how it happened.

Several years ago I was training with a small group of students in our instructor’s garage. It was a regular Friday event.

We did our self defence drills and then we had to do a few Monkey Climbs exercises to finish off the session.

Now Monkey Climbs is an exercise where, from a standing position you crouch down until your thighs are level with the floor and then you raise your body up, end up on your toes while extending your arms straight above your head.

About 50 of these is a good workout.

So, we all started Monkey Climbs and the male ego kicked in. We all looked at each other and then it was on.  A  challenge to see who could do the most repetitions.

Well, we got to 50, a couple of guys dropped out. 100 another dropped out. 200 and another student collapsed. Not me. I was determined to beat everybody. You see, I wanted to be a ‘winner’.

Anyway, 300 Monkey Climbs, more drop outs. I hung in there.

350 Monkey Climbs and then there were  two of us left.

I pushed myself harder. Like a demented monkey I kept going until the last student dropped out at 400.

I kept going,  up and down, up and down until I reached 450.

The result.

I ‘won.’

My male ego was satisfied.

But there is always price to pay for being the ‘winner’.

I managed to somehow shuffle out of the garage even though my thighs were on fire and felt like dead logs.

We went to our  usual Vietnamese restaurant after training.  I sat down but when it was time to leave I couldn’t get up for a while.

I was sore for a few days, But, hey, I ‘won’ the contest.

Now I couldn’t do more than 50 with my knees, but really why would I want to.

I not as dumb as I used to be and now realise if you push yourself to the extreme you pay a price.

Too much Yang is not healthy.

Oh yeah, thought you’d be pleased to now I’ve overcome my monkey addiction. Whenever I see a monkey I no longer feel like jumping in the enclosure and challenging him to 450 Monkey Climbs!

The therapy worked.

The moral of this story?

Don’t make a monkey out of yourself by damaging your body because of overdoing it.

Remember, always  balance your  Yin and Yang energy when training.

‘Invest in loss?’

When I first read this Chinese quote years ago it didn’t make any sense.

How can you invest in loss?

But several years later in my Tai Chi training I finally understood what this quote really meant.

And when I made that realisation I looked at every opportunity to ‘invest in loss.’

The losses are essentially my mistakes and the investment is in learning and applying the correct technique.

Here are some examples how I invested in loss.

Push Hands
-  thrown head over heels – sink the chi

Form
- too rigid in my movements – relax, let go but maintain the correct structure of the posture

Self Defence
- sparring and getting hit on the nose – maintain seven stars posture

There is a lot of wisdom in Chinese quotes and it is only through practice, awareness and examination can one really understand a quote such as ‘invest in loss.’

Lately, I’ve been thinking about the work I do with Sue in our AQ/KQ seminars and the way I describe myself.

In the past I’ve described myself as an instructor in Tai Chi but eventually I stop doing that  because now  it infers all I do is give instructions.

I now use the term ‘Teacher’ because that suggests a deeper sense of helping people to learn.

It’s not about giving instructions, its about finding different ways, depending on the learning styles, for participants to learn a Tai Chi concept or skill.

For example the three basic learning styles are:

• Visual – learn by watching
• Auditory – learn by listening
• Kinaesthetic – learn by doing

But I discovered another term to use when I was recently talking to Sue about facilitation.

The word facilitation’ is not easily understood by most people but it can be described  as ‘to make easier, to help bring about.’

When asked what do I do I sometimes use the words ‘teach Tai Chi’ because for most people it is easier to understand.

But, what I really am is a ‘Tai Chi Facilitator’ because I ‘make it easier and help bring about’. And that leads to change in awareness, feeling and understanding of a Tai Chi concept or skill I’ve explained to a participant in our AQ/KQ workshops.

And once you are aware, feel, and understand then you  have captured the essence of that concept or skill.

I suppose in some ways  I am a facilitator of change.

When I started Tai Chi 22 years ago I was like a little kid in a lolly (candy) store.

I wanted all the lollies, every colour except the black ones and I wanted them now.

In my first year I watched various students practice weapons, do some boxing drills, push hands and I wanted to do all of that straight away.

Well, all I did was learn the Tai Chi form and basics and it took a while before I was slowly introduced to push hands, weapons forms and self defence.

I realised that Tai Chi was not something you can knockover in a few months. If it was I’d be bored and leave.

So 22 years on I feel I’ve hardly scratched the surface. In the early years it worried me because I didn’t feel I was making much progress.

As the years crept by I stopped worrying about comparing myself to others who were more experienced and talented.

I just kept plugging away, practicing and now realise there is no end to the journey.

Just as soon as you feel you have climbed a mountain top, you look up and there are higher mountain tops.

I can now understand it is the journey that is important not the destination.

I haven’t trained at a club or with a partner for some time now because running our business has taken up most of my time.

However I will get back into training with a partner in the near future and until I do I will keep practicing on my own.

So I suppose I’ve come a long way from that little kid in the lolly store who wanted everything now.

I’m more patient now.