Tai Chi Connections: Advancing Your Tai Chi Experience

by John Loupos M.S., C.H.S.E.

Overview

Tai Chi offers you the prospects of better health and vitality, peace of mind, and increased stores of personal energy. To realize this potential you must delve into the world of Tai Chi minutia, which is exactly where the essence of Tai Chi lays in wait for those ascribing to its regular and correct practice.

This book looks deeply into Tai Chi's technical intricacies and nuances, offering guidance and practice tips, replete with step-by-step directions, on how to bring your Tai Chi to a higher level of correct execution. Seasoned Tai Chi teacher and author John Loupos offers wise and helpful guidance in a personable tone to help you recognize connections, feel connections and keep connections. Tai Chi Connections will help you to narrow the gap between where your practice is now and where you'd like it to go.

Some of the subjects included:

• Opportunities within slowness
• Attention/Intention as dynamic ingredients
• Tai Chi as a path to congruence
• Tapping into earth force
• Putting the brakes on momentum
• Unspoken nuances of Tai Chi stepping
• Training tips to optimize your Tai Chi experience
• Moral / ethical mandates of being a teacher

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781594390326
Publisher:	YMAA Publication Center
Publication date:	05/01/2005
Pages:	210
Product dimensions:	7.25(w) x 9.38(h) x (d)

About the Author

Sifu John Loupos, M.S., C.H.S.E., began studying martial arts in 1966. As a young teen, John inherited a school of his own and has been teaching martial arts ever since. His studies include Okinawan Karate, Chinese Kung Fu, Yang style Tai Chi Chuan, Liu He Ba Fa, Xingyi, and Bagua, and various Chi Kung and energy oriented meditation disciplines.

He holds a M.S. in Psychology and has a background in Classical Homeopathy. In additional to his teaching duties, John also maintains an active clinical practice in Hanna Somatics. John specializes in Tai Chi Chuan as an inter- and intra-personal communication modality, and enjoys traveling to conduct seminars for educational institutions and corporate entities, as well as for other schools.

He currently lives at the shore in Hull, Massachusetts and divides his time between writing, conducting his clinic, and teaching at his main school, Jade Forest Kung Fu/Tai Chi/Internal Arts in Cohasset, MA plus two branch facilities.

Table of Contents

	Preface	vii
	Acknowledgements	ix
	Romanization of Chinese Words	x
	Prelude	xi
Part 1	Points to Ponder
Chapter 1	Opportunities in Slowness	3
	Balance	3
	Proprioception	4
	Rooting	5
	Stress	6
	Chi	7
	Momentum	7
	Breathing	8
	Fitness	8
	Critical Thinking	9
Chapter 2	The Benefits of Group vs. Individual Practice	11
Chapter 3	Loose Ends	15
	Be Fluid, Be Resolved	15
	Three Reasons to Get Loose	16
	Keep Your Mind Loose Too	17
	Loose Ends Beget Loose Ends	18
Chapter 4	T'ai Chi as a Path to Congruence & Congruence as a Path to T'ai Chi	21
	What Does It Mean to Be Congruent?	21
	Let's Get Congruent	22
	Why is Congruence So Elusive?	23
	More Impediments to Congruence	23
	Why is Congruence Important to T'ai Chi?	25
	The Connection Between Process and Congruence	26
	What Steps Can you Take to Become More Congruent?	27
Part 2	Arranging your Body in a Tai Chi Way: Miscellaneous Connections
Chapter 5	Transitions & Connections	33
	There Are No Transitions in T'ai Chi	34
	Stylistic Differences Aside	37
	Your Initial Connection	40
	Your Guy Wire Connection	44
	Follow the Money	48
	Wave Hands Like Clouds, But You Still Gotta Step Right	53
	Your Knee: Turn It or Torque It?	61
	A Shortcut That Makes Sense: The T'ai Chi Punch	65
	Feeling Your Ward Off Connection	72
	How to Develop Spiraling Force-or The World is Our Screwdriver	78
Chapter 6	Moving Force from Your Earth Root	83
	Rootedness as a Foundation for Issuing Force	83
	Getting Started: Part 1	85
	The Return Trip: Part 2	90
	Putting It All Together	94
	Possible Problems	96
Chapter 7	The Role of Momentum in T'ai Chi	103
	Momentum is Unavoidable	103
	Momentum in Lieu of ...	104
	Rid Your Form of Momentum	106
	Momentum in Class	109
	Momentum in Your Mind	110
Chapter 8	The Three-Treasures Guide to Proper Stepping in T'ai Chi	113
	Turn Your Foot to Open the Door	114
	Aligning Your Knee	116
	Opening Your Kua to Pass through the Door	117
	Your Most Elusive Kua Connection	118
Part 3	Other Topics and Lectures
Chapter 9	Optimizing Your T'ai Chi Practice	127
	Size Counts	127
	Move Slow, Move Fast	128
	Be Soft	129
	Bring Your Power to the Surface	129
	Shake to Your Root	132
	External Variables	133
Chapter 10	Other Lectures	135
	Integrating T'ai Chi Into Other Martial Arts Programs	135
	Discernment	138
	Trick or Skill?	139
	Extend, but Don't Reach	141
	Sink Back and Relax While We Discuss Sung	143
	Forget Yourself	146
	Quantitative vs. Qualitative	147
	Auxiliary Practice	150
	Cross Associations	151
	Mining Your T'ai Chi for Gold	152
	Affecting the Mastery You Fancy	153
	The T'ai Chi Learning Curve	155
	What Might You Be a Champion Of?	157
	Simple Ordinary Learning or "Transmission"?	159
	The Value of T'ai Chi Weapons Practice	161
	Pregnancy, Low Back Pain, and T'ai Chi	164
	The Nature of Intention	169
Chapter 11	Thoughts and Musings on Being a Teacher	173
	To Do or Not to Do	174
	Guiding, Providing for, and Educating Students	178
	A Survey	179
	In Summation	184
	References	185
	Resources	185
	Glossary	187
	Index	191

Editorial Reviews

"Heaven and earth are both embodied in word and spirit in this book. A remarkable work."

Mark Mincolla

"Loupos' depth of experience, derived from over three decades of practice and teaching, is abundantly clear...His love for the discipline of tai chi streams from the page."

NAPR ReView Magazine - D. Kate Jewell

"Loupos takes readers on a rich and multi-layered journey to the inner structure of Tai Chi so that we can open to the innate wisdom within our Tai Chi training."

Jampa Mackenzie Steward

"With the help of Tai Chi Connections, students and teachers alike will receive practical guidance"

Roger Jahnke