Tai chi workout?

Question

What is a good workout or exercise plan to prepare for starting tai chi?

Answer 1

From your question I guess you are very new to martial arts.  I would say you should start with the most basic principals and build up.  Most tai chi workouts are slow, and based on balance, power, and focusing the "chi".  The main things you will need in order to start a tai chi training are core strength and balance, but flexibility will help as well.  

For core strength, situps, knee bends, crunches, pilates style leg lifts will help you build your abs, back, and glutes.  

For balance, simple exercises like standing on one foot for 30 seconds, standing in a "horseshoe" stance, or walking across a balance beam will help.

For flexibility, again keep it simple at first.  Basic stretches, neck rolls, shoulder rolls, and yoga poses will be great for a beginner. (Reference images are easy to find online.)

Good luck, and I hope this gives you a good general idea as to what you need!

Answer 2

Tai Chi is about relaxation mind, body, and balance of body movement, once achieve the above points, they will help your body's chi move healthily.  Most of Tai Chi's martial arts application are also based the above principles.  

To prepare yourself to study Tai chi, I recommend doing meditation, body stretching, and squatting.  Meditation helps relax your mind and body.  Body stretching helps reducing rigidness of your body movement, and squatting helps to build up your lower body which is critial to many Tai Chi movement.

Good luck and have fun!

Answer 3

No need to do anything.

Nothing you would do would prepare you because the training is completely different from external training.

You will be doing exercises that rebalance and strengthen you from your bone marrow - outwards.

Unlike external exercises that begin strengthening the muscles first.

(Bluto - LOL!!! - real tai chi where you are actually fighting and training against someone with intent and resistance or "old fogies in the park" tai chi?)

Answer 4

Good jibengong (basic kungfu) is essential before beginning any martial art.  Most traditional schools should offer a comprehensive jibengong program.  In this program flexibility, strength training, basic coordination, and balance will be addressed.  But what makes this stand apart from simple calisthenics and weight lifting is that it is directly related to the martial art.  In other words these are skills that you will specifically need for your training.  You do not need to work out before you begin your Taijiquan (another way of spelling tai chi chuan) training.  A properly run class will prepare you from day 1.

To give you a better idea check out Mike Martello on Youtube.  He has a very good jibengong program.

Answer 5

real tai chi where you are actually fighting and training against someone with intent and resistance or "old fogies in the park" tai chi?

even though many teachers in different ma schools (including boxing coaches) are against it, stregth training is something you should do no matter what if you are a serious martial artist.

yes, the rigid movements in lifting do contradict the flowing and absorbing of tai chi, but that is something you learn and if you can't keep two concepts seperate then you should probably just give up on life and commit suicide now becasue that means that you can't multi task.

saying that weightlifting is bad because it weakens your technique and flexability is like saying a pitcher can't throw a breaking ball because it ruins his ability to throw a fastball, and that a fastball pitcher shouldn't make throws to the bases.

its ridiculous.

just develop a weight training plan and make sure your school it training with resistance. Granted, by resistance with tai chi you are supposed to meet an opposing force from a different angle and not directly oppose it. but it should be trained "for real".