Free online tai chi lessons

[Dmitri]

http://www.learn-tai-chi-online.com/

I've no comment... that thing speaks for itself. Literally.

[Darth Rock&Roll]

well, as teh saying goes..."you get what you paid for"

[BruceP]

Thanks for posting that, Dmitri.

Just did my first lesson. It's actually very well thought out and has the right kinds of physical emphasis to get the feel.

Should be interesting to see how it progresses into the separating and defining the energies. The whole-body exercise in the first lesson is pretty cool.

[Dr.Rob]

Thanks Dmitri..I needed that bowel movement.

Hey don't knock the guy, atleast he is trying his hand at marketing.

[Doc Stier]

Well, damn! Where do I sign up, Bubba?

[Dmitri]

Thanks for posting that, Dmitri.

Just did my first lesson. It's actually very well thought out and has the right kinds of physical emphasis to get the feel.

Should be interesting to see how it progresses into the separating and defining the energies. The whole-body exercise in the first lesson is pretty cool.

Well, I guess if one can't POSSIBLY get access to a teacher, this might be a barely OK idea. My concern is that people might go for that sort of stuff INSTEAD of seeking a good hands-on teacher (an altogether much better option as IME this work requires hands-on adjustments "personalized" to the student.)

[BruceP]

Had to go to a training session so I didn't have much time to comment on the lesson earlier, but I did want to give a more detailed review.

The technique Mr. Simon uses ('overdriving') is something I use a lot when I work with others. IME, it's a very sound approach to making certain methods readily accessable to folks who might not have sensitivity or 'coordination' to chain movement smoothly and efficiently with power. Gawd knows I have no clue about strength or how to use it efficiently, or how to tap into the power potential, though, so...

Anyway, I also use the 'overdriving' technique on a cerebral level in creating failure so that others can make their own discoveries in their personal combat. I never had a name for that kind of work so the term is new to me. And gawd knows I have no clue how to train people to actually apply the material in a combative context, so another bowel movement might be in order after reading this.

After working through the first lesson some more, the movement definitely sinks the energy as the arms rise - as it should, according to my meager understanding of tai chi anyway. The really cool thing is how the drill gets the body bypassing the upper hinges. Everything coordinates in the same way I was shown when I first started learning tai chi. The technique Mr. Simon uses in the first lesson is meant to educate the body and is similar in some ways to the way I've seen other tai chi instructors impart those same internal insights.

IMO, so far so good. These are the kinds of ideas I really like reading about. I'm always interested in other peoples' methods that allow folks to access material on an experiential level from mere text, and Mr. Simon's first lesson, at least, fits that bill.

I'm glad I'm so clueless about tai chi or I might not have tried it out. I wonder why none of the really authentic, knowledgeable tai chi practitioners on RSF have never outlined a drill like Mr. Simon's before? Too busy pushing others beneath themselves, I guess. It must be cool to be so full of 'knowledge' that you don't have to even try something before you know it's bullshit. Maybe I can be that awesome too, someday

[bailewen]

Just tried the wall thing.

Fucking brilliant.

Such a "stupid" little exercise I can't believe I never thought of it myself. I mean, I've certainly done the same thing in a doorway before but just with a different movement. Applying it to the commencement is a great idea. Now it's got me thinking what other stationary immovable objects I might be able to use to get the same feeling for other movements.

[BruceP]

Well, I guess if one can't POSSIBLY get access to a teacher, this might be a barely OK idea. My concern is that people might go for that sort of stuff INSTEAD of seeking a good hands-on teacher (an altogether much better option as IME this work requires hands-on adjustments "personalized" to the student.)

Yeah. Al Simon goes into a fair amount of detail on all of those points. Have you taken your first lesson?

Quality of instruction is in degrees and is relative. Ask some whom I won't name and they'll tell you that there are only a handful of tai chi teachers on this whole continent who are able to teach real tai chi. Ask me and I'll tell you that there are only three or four tai chi guys in North America who can teach the fighting method. Ask me again and I'll tell you that what I just referred to as 'fighting method' is actually antithetical to tai chi.

The tai chi world is a fucking mess. Look at the 'jin' thread on the main forum. How many pages have people been arguing in circles on the frickin horse-stance for chrissake? Who's to say what's quality and what isn't? Not me. You?

Al Simon has some very good ideas from what I've seen so far. But then again, what do I know?

[chud]

Thanks for sharing your insights Shooter, sounds interesting.
I think that we are going to be seeing more and more of this on the web in the coming years. If businesses conduct meetings online, and major universities teach classes online, then it's not much of a leap to think that other types of instruction can occur online as well. We are all used to viewing martial arts DVD's, so online instruction is not much different, and can be more dynamic than a static video.
Of course the buyer must beware, some teachers will be better than others (and some will be completely worthless), but I have seen some decent content popping up online. I don't think a complete newbie can benefit from anything other than face to face instruction, but if you have a few years of training already, these online courses may be able to supplement or reinforce your practice pretty well, when you're between live classes.

[Darth Rock&Roll]

well there is the issue that martial arts is best learned with a more visceral style.

You have to do it, and to get the most out of it, you have to do it right.

so there is a problem with new people learning in this way as they do not receive immediate correction and will do more to ingrain or cling to their own bad habits than to enforce the good structure as a good teacher would. Who will tell them to keep their back straight, but not straight? Hmmmmn?

Kungfu is almost dependent on the tactile learning style to be transmitted. I think video has as much value as a book in tat it is a good reference or it is seeds/keys for someone already versed but almost useless for a beginner.

[chud]

I think video has as much value as a book in tat it is a good reference or it is seeds/keys for someone already versed but almost useless for a beginner.

Yes I agree, that is what i was trying to say.

[Josealb]

How do you get to be a three time inductee in the martial arts hall of fame? Do you have to make them throw you out twice?

[BruceP]

Like Omar said, fucking brilliant.

I think the product is a bit of marketing genius and the 'kinesthetic' approach circumvents the stylistic bullshit that feeds the varied and often opposite viewpoints of what's proper from style to style, and within the styles themselves. Everyone's right and everyone else is wrong. Fuck it

The kinesthetic experience of doing one thing carries the lessons of that experience into other things. Educating the body in the way Al Simon is doing it keeps things current and fluid, yet it's always fresh and new. I'm biased of course, because I've been training folks using similar methods for a long time and it seems to work - the training manifests under pressure.

There's some good reading provided after the first lesson that gives a good overview of the man's ideas and how everything is put together. If someone is looking for healthful movement practice and internal exploration, it looks like some good stuff. Can't say anything about the martial, but it couldn't be any worse than mine. Before anyone dismisses what Al Simon is offering, they might want to look a little deeper first. The free lesson takes less time than it does to compose a witty fucking rip. At least then they'll know what they're talking about.

[zenshiite]

Holy shit. This dude's right up the road from me.