Tai Chi for Beginners

[MUSIC PLAYING]

Today we're going to learn some very simple tai chi techniques, just three basic steps. You don't need to have any experience to do it, just very, very basic.

Let's begin first by just doing a little bit of warming up, just to release the tension from your muscles, especially your shoulder muscles. You can gently bounce your shoulders and also your lower back. As you bounce, just imagine you're releasing everything down through the soles of your feet. And please, breathe out. It's OK to exhale through open mouth. Breathe out. Just relax your body.

Start to feel your legs more. Feel your feet more. Tai chi is very beautiful, but the fundamental is the legs. So keep focusing on the legs. Very good. Slowly stop.

Let's start the three postures. First, archer stance. Bring your feet together. Shift your weight to the right foot, and then open left foot out and turn. Shift your weight into the left forward foot. Bend the knee, but straighten this leg.

It's archer because you can see this is a bow, and here is the straight arrow. Push the heel of the back leg into the floor. Waist twists as if you're closing a jar tight. This will help you to develop strength in the pelvic area. Straighten the spine. Look straight ahead.

Very good-- now to the other side. Bend the forward leg, in this case my right leg. Straighten the back leg. Push the heel into the floor. Now, it's OK for this back foot to be a little bit angled. Waist, twist closed a jar tight. More weight in the forward foot. Relax the shoulders. Through this posture, you can open up a lot of circulation through the back legs and also align your hips and pelvis better.

Next leg posture. Step out a little wider. Sink your hips down, down to the heels. This is horse riding posture. Feel your weight evenly on both feet. That's very important. Remember, the legs are the foundation, the fundamental. When you can use this posture well, you can make balance in your body. Feel your weight evenly on both feet. Horse riding posture.

Next, empty stance. Shift your weight over to the right leg. Left toe just tapping down, and sink into this back leg. Through this posture, you may already feel your ankles shaking. You're building strength in this leg and letting the ankle develop as well. Sink deeply. Switch. Sink deeply, all the weight in this left leg. Forward leg empty-- empty.

Return. Shake out. Breathe out. Now let's add the arms. Archer stance. Switch. Horse riding posture. Sink. Open the arms. Beautiful posture. To me, I imagine I'm holding my heart and delivering it to the world. Open. Empty stance. Beautiful posture. Building my leg strength, opening. Open circulation to my legs. Switch.

Return. Let's breathe to finish. Horse riding posture. Breathe in. Breathe out through a smile. Breathe in. Breathe out through a smile. One more time, breathe in. Breathe out through a smile. Return. Shake out. Through tai chi, you can practice releasing a lot of your muscle tension, stabilizing your muscles, and also just enjoying your body. Love your body. Practice well. Enjoy.