Jose Figueroa - Tai Chi for Kids

one

WHAT IS TAI CHI?

T ai Chi is a Chinese martial art that was created about 400 years ago. It was originally created for combat, but many people practice Tai Chi to improve their health, calm their mind, and better their life.

PHILOSOPHY

Tai Chi is based on the notion that all things have a way of balancing themselves through the laws of yin and yang. Yin and yang are opposites, and nothing exists without its oppositeup and down, left and right, front and back, hard and soft, fast and slow.

Yin and yang are complex ideas. You may not understand them completely right at the beginning, but these important terms will become clearer to you as you practice Tai Chi. Yang is an active, giving energy. People also think of it as the light in the duo light/dark or the male in male/female. Yin is a passive, receiving energy. It is the dark in light/dark and the female in male/female. It is important to understand that each person has both yin and yang energy and yin and yang aspects. The flow of energy in a persons body is called qi. This energy is constantly changingmoving in and out of balance, ebbing and flowing. Like yin and yang, qi is something you will learn to understand better the longer you practice Tai Chi. Tai Chi balances your internal energy, your yin and yang.

Tai Chis exercises are made up of a series of complicated movements that embody the opposition of yin and yang. When you practice Tai Chi correctly, you will experience both effort and tranquility, agility and power.

Tai Chi provides the benefits of exercise without the dangers of high-impact sports. It is famous for building energy and helping you recover from injuries. It can strengthen your joints so that you are less prone to injury. It can also increase the level of oxygen in your blood (which helps your athletic performance) without the stress of other training methods.

Tai Chi will help you get your body and mind working together as one. Your breathing will improve. Youll have better balance (because of the motor skills you practice), better emotional health (from the peace and serenity youll find in practicing the slow, measured movements), and heightened senses (from your concentration on the movements), and youll be able to deal with pain better (through deep breathing and better body alignment).

Along with these mental and physical benefits, Tai Chi is also a great method of self-defense. It uses the laws of physics and the principles of circular movement to help you balance the forces within you against the forces coming from an opponent.

In Tai Chi, you deflect, absorb, and redirect forces brought against you. This makes it possible for you to defend yourself against an opponent with superior strength. In fact, the stronger your opponent, the more energy you have available in a countermove.

Tai Chi also emphasizes evasive techniquesways to skillfully avoid attacksas a healthy alternative to combat in our often confrontational world.