• Tai Chi

    Culture

    Tai Chi, touted as Meditation In Motion, represents a cornerstone of Chinese culture. It's the only stigma-free martial art in the public eye.

  • Tai Chi

    History

    Tai Chi has been practiced for exercise and for combat for at least a thousand years, especially widely within the last few hundred years.

  • Tai Chi

    Founders

    Chen Wangting founded modern Tai Chi 400 years ago, while legendary Daoists spawned the basic art before records began.

  • Tai Chi

    Today

    Tai Chi is the most popular Chinese martial art in the world. As popular for spiritual exercise as Yoga while also a deep system of martial art.

  • Tai Chi

    Famous people

    Keanu Reeves has been practicing for his 2013 movie Man Of Tai Chi. Bruce Lee did Wu Tai Chi. Most martial arts involve basic Tai Chi.

  • Tai Chi

    Style

    Tai Chi covers the whole martial arts spectrum. Striking, grappling, handwork, footwork, pressure points, massage, meditation & philosophy.

Tai Chi in Birmingham...

Tai Chi is about moving in an optimally balanced way. In combat application, the focus is usually on using soft moves to gracefully deflect hard moves, however, if the opponent is soft & weak, we may be stiff & strong to overpower them. It's all about good posture and keeping bodyweight centred. Push Hands is a great pairwork exercise; a way for students to develop fast. Chi Kung (Qi Gong) breathing exercises are synchronised with body movements for spiritual harmony. Tai Chi forms (solo movement sequences) cover various ways to move, suitable for combat but also in everyday life, when lifting things, pushing things, pulling things, in all directions. Tai Chi's combat techniques are very dynamic and still well-organised by Birmingham's best teachers, covering the whole spectrum of striking, grappling, handwork & footwork.