Tai Chi Chuan

Valerio Bellone practicing Tai Chi Chuan on a wooden walkway

Practice · Principles · Classics

From practice to the Classics

Tai Chi Chuan articles on practice, principles and the classical writings of Taijiquan. Explore balance, structure, release and the martial context of the art, alongside reading guides to the Tai Chi Classics and related books.

Written by Valerio Bellone to connect study with what can be observed and tested in practice.

how to start tai chi
26Set

How to Start Tai Chi: A Beginner’s Guide to the First Weeks

You do not need to be flexible, fit, or familiar with Chinese martial arts to start tai chi. You do need a little patience. From the outside, the movements can look simple; from the inside, you are learning to coordinate posture, attention, balance, and timing...
14Giu

Best Tai Chi Books for Beginners: Choose by Your Goal

The best tai chi book depends on what you want it to help you do. A visual guide may be useful when you are learning a particular sequence. A book on principles can help when the sequence makes sense but the movements still feel empty....
tai chi principles for beginners
09Mar

Tai Chi Principles for Beginners: Six Ideas to Practice

It is possible to learn the order of a tai chi form without understanding very much about tai chi. The sequence matters, but so does the way you move through it. Two people may perform the same posture while organizing their weight, attention, and effort...
03Dic

Is Tai Chi a Martial Art or Moving Meditation?

Watch a group practicing tai chi slowly in a park and it is reasonable to think you are seeing gentle exercise or meditation. Ask a martial arts teacher and you may hear about balance, contact, timing, and responding to another person. Are they describing different...
can you learn tai chi from a book
18Ago

Can You Learn Tai Chi from a Book? An Honest Guide

You can learn a great deal about tai chi from a book. You can also use one to deepen what you are already practicing. But if by “learn tai chi” you mean developing the physical skill of moving with balance, coordination, and sensitivity, reading alone...