Tai Chi Push Hands From Taiwan

The original film by Oleg Tcherne, founder of INBI World (see site: at http://www.inbiworld.com/ for more info) is around 35 minutes long. I’ve broken it down into 4 sections to meet YouTube’s 10 minute limit for uploads. I’ve had this video for over ten years and was granted permission by INBI World to post them on YouTube for your enjoyment. These are amongst my favorite films on Tai Chi’s Push Hands.

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Tai Chi Pole Work for Push Hands - Part I

One of my Tai Chi teachers was very fond of training with whatever tools were available to him at the time of practice.. From his village in China, the local Gong Fu players developed several training methods using tree branches, poles, stumps, and even twigs.

This video is an attempt to practice a method of training Master Sun shared with me several years ago.

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Squats and Deadlifts: add-ons for Tai Chi

Squats and deadlifts are considered closed kinetic chain (CKC) exercises. Meaning, that the force to overcome the load (barbell), is applied to an unmovable object (the ground) and not to the object being lifted. Open kinetic chain (OKC) exercises differ in that the force applied, moves the load, like in a bench press or bicep curl. In the following article, I will share some thoughts on the common ground these exercises share with tai chi and how, by applying principles of strength training, the tai chi practitioner can develop more muscular strength and endurance.

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Tai Chi Push Hands

Within the martial arts, as practiced in the West, Tai chi has not received the respect it deserves. This may be due in part to the association of Tai chi with other systems of health such as yoga, and meditation. While these systems share similar goals, mainly to enhance the practitioner’s well-being, Tai chi stands apart when viewed as a system of kung fu.

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Gong Fu

The term “Gong Fu” aka “Kung Fu”, can be roughly translated to: “skill acquired through practice”, and its general use in the West, which departs from the etymological meaning of the Chinese characters, is in reference to the martial arts. In the following, I will attempt to share with you some of my current views and understanding of Gong Fu and the role it plays in my overall fitness endeavors.

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