Posture: Keep the lower legs vertical when practicing Chair Chi exercises.
Tai Chi Tip #67
Align your body against a wall to get a feel for correct standing posture alignment.
Tai Chi Relaxation: Scan and Breathe
Here’s a way of relaxing the body when you are practicing standing postures such as Embrace the Tree.
- Scan your entire body and check for any tense muscles
- If you discover a tense muscle direct your attention to it and then breathe into it and exhale
- As you exhale, feel the muscle completely relax
Tai Chi: Line Alignment
When I’m practicing Tai Chi or Chair Chi exercises I sometimes use a visualisation technique to make sure my body is correctly aligned.
For example, if I’m in the preparation stance in Tai Chi and about to commence the form I imagine there’s a straight line from the BaiHui point (middle of the skull) through to my hui yin point (perenium – between the anus and genitals).
Feedback for a Tai Chi Teacher
I was practising my ’embrace the tree’ posture the other morning and wasn’t sure if my knees were behind my toes or over them.
I looked in the mirror but I still could not determine whether I was practising correctly; the knees should be just behind the toes otherwise you will strain your knees.