Posts by Heather

A few years ago, I was talking with someone about tai chi and she said she couldn’t do it because she was clumsy and had no balance.  I told her, “This is exactly what tai chi improves, which is why you should consider it” but she dug her heels in deeper – she was clumsy…

One of tai chi’s distinguishing characteristics is the challenge it presents communicating all the subtle concepts contained within it.  You’d be hard-pressed to find a tai chi blog or book anywhere that doesn’t have some version of the sentence, “This concept is difficult to describe.”  A direct example of this challenging aspect of tai chi…

You’ve seen me use the word “player” in regard to one who practices tai chi.  There are a few reasons for it which are worth going over. The first and most important is that it’s the word the Yang family uses.  Since I’m a dues-paying member of the International Yang Family Tai Chi Association and…

Recently my friend Annette Evans, author of the “On Her Own” blog and website, referred to activities like going to the doctor, undertaking therapy and taking time for oneself as “radical self-care” and “the ultimate form of self-defense, defending yourself against your most intimate potential enemy: the demons in your own mind and the gremlins…

A prospective student asked the studio not long ago what the difference was between tai chi and qigong.  I probably should have addressed this question earlier so people answering the phones would have a ready answer.  But since experience is a thing you don’t get until right after you need it, here we are. The…

Now that we’ve begun in my Monday class to explore the possibilities and potential inherent in push-hands, the time has come to discuss “peng jin” or “ward-off-energy.” Like many Chinese words, “peng jin” is highly contextual.  A meaningful direct translation to English is all but impossible.  This author comes as close as I’ve seen to…

There’s a public Facebook group for the Tai Chi classes now:https://www.facebook.com/groups/240945434106562 It’s a better way to interact when we’re not together – if you have questions, that’s an ideal place to ask them as they occur to you.  Likewise, it’s easy and quick to post resources, links and learning materials in a timely manner. The…