Archives for 2010

Improvised Tai Chi

When there is little space one has to improvise.

In this photo I had to jump up on a chair so the back row could see me.

There were 40 people in the room at the Abbotsford Convent here in Melbourne, Australia.

I was one of the organisers of the first Australian Appreciative Inquiry Forum and helped out with Tai Chi energisers throughout the day.

Plus I took photographs and recorded short interviews for a flash slideshow of the event. We hope to have that completed and up on the AI website soon.

I’m glad the chair was stable otherwise I would have been demonstrating Big Goose Falls to The Ground (secret technique).

Feeling Is Believing – Part 2

By Chris Leave a Comment

In the previous post I discussed my approach to Tai Chi presentations I deliver.

That is – demonstrate a skill, get participants to do it and then ask an open question such as ‘do you feel any sensation in any part of your body’?

Usually I get someone answering the question.

But sometimes no one answers and what follows is silence.

And that silence can feel like an eternity.

Rather than give in to temptation and make excuses I simple move on and say something like ‘just practice more in your own time and see how you go’.

This is a practical approach as usually in a speech or presentation I only have a maximum of ten minutes to introduce, demonstrate, get participants involved and ask the open question.

If I was running a workshop I’d have much more time to teach and develop the flow of Chi so most participants can actually feel it.

So even if a participant in a presentation does not feel the Chi at the very least they have been introduced to Tai Chi and challenged to practice and see what happens.

And if they do practice I’m confident that most will feel and believe.

Feeling Is Believing – Part 1

By Chris Leave a Comment

They say that ‘seeing is believing’ but in Tai Chi I’ve found that ‘feeling is believing’.

Whenever I run Tai Chi presentations I first demonstrate a skill and then get the participants to perform the skill.

Then I always ask ‘do you feel any specific sensation in your body’.

I never ask a questions like ‘do you feel the chi in your hands’ because that insinuates that they should be feeling something in their hands. A leading question such as this is biased and will not always get an honest answer due to politeness.

But asking a question such as ‘do you feel any specific sensation in your body’ is unbiased and usually I get one or more people saying they feel something and can describe where they feel it.

If they feel something then there is no need to try and convince someone in words.

Because feeling is believing.

Gift Of Tai Chi

By Chris 2 Comments

I stumbled upon Tai Chi many years ago when a friend of mine suggested I give it a go.

After my first lesson I was hooked for life.

It’s a fascinating journey which still continues because there are still higher mountains to climb in learning and teaching Tai Chi.

I don’t think I will ever reach a destination in Tai Chi but that’s okay because I don’t feel the need to ‘get there’ anymore.

Entering the many gates to continue the journey makes it a challenge and it’s also worthwhile from a health and self defence point of view.

Lately I’ve been reflecting on what Tai Chi means to me. What is it about it that resonates the most that encourages me to continue practicing and teaching?

Well, I feel it’s a gift that has been given to me. As it has been given to many many others over the centuries.

And I feel the responsibility to give the gift of Tai Chi to as many people as possible.

Why?

Because if you do then your Yin Yang energies are balanced in regards to giving and receiving.

That to me, in simplistic terms, is what Tai Chi is all about.

Tai Chi: Placebo – Dodo – Hawthorne Effect?

By Chris 2 Comments

When I started Tai Chi in 1987 there was little scientific research of it that I was aware of.

Now there are more scientific studies which tend to show at least a correlation between Tai Chi and good health.

Currently I’m gathering scientific studies on Tai Chi and health and will create a section with links on this blog.

As I’ve been doing this I came across three psychological terms that are used by some sceptics about the validity of Tai Chi.

Placebo effect
Dodo Bird verdict
Hawthorne effect

Here is my explanation of these terms in laymans language in regards to Tai Chi.

A placebo effect in a Tai Chi sense is where one believes in the benefits and and therefore experiences benefits.

The dodo bird verdict is where one gains a positive benefit because of a positive relationship between the student and the teacher.

The ‘hawthorne effect is where a teacher has shown an interest in the student which causes an improvement in the student.

Here’s my answer to the sceptics.

So what.

Not a scientifc term but in abscene of ‘proof’ it will do me.

I don’t mind taking my daily Tai Chi ‘placebo’ pill if it makes me feel good just because I feel good about it.

I don’t mind being a ‘dodo’ and having a positive relationship with my teacher which makes me feel good.

And I certainly don’t mind the ‘hawthorne effect’ where a teacher shows interest in me and I improve.

I’m sure, give it time, that science will catch up with what has been known and experienced for centuries.

That Tai Chi is an excellent discipline for improving ones health and wellbeing.

But then again I can’t ‘prove’ that.