I just got news of an upcoming workshop hosted by Chen Zhonghua in my area.  It has been a *LONG* time since I have worked on any Chen taiji related material, but this is an opportunity that I can’t pass up. For a while, I thought about jumping over the the Chen Taiji Practical Method , but never made the jump as I have not received any formal instruction in the material.  Sure, I have done Chen before, but the Hong Junsheng method as taught by Chen Zhonghua is a whole new ball of wax in terms of taiji principles and concepts.

One of the main draws to the Chen Practical Method, is it’s practicality. The method is all about making things work and making applications effective. Practicality is the emphasis from day 1.  I have dabbled a bit with the applications of the Hong Method using 6 Sealings 4 Closings, can I can say that it does work.  The feedback loop in this method is nutty in that you can feel/test right away what works and what does not and learn why.

I am very excited and pumped up about the workshop and will definitley kick my training into high gear.  Since I already have a rough idea of what the workshop will cover, I will use videos and other related materials to learn the gross movements in hopes of having corrections on the detailed aspects.  I believe gross movements can/should be practiced at home so when times comes for hands-on corrections (or getting tossed to the ground), the emphasis can be put on higher level aspects.

One exercise I have already began working on is the idea of only moving the knees up and down, not side to side. This is easier said than done.