Tai Chi Push Hands

Experience Tai Chi Push Hands with Elaine Waters!

Tai Chi Push Hands puts into action the practical application of the tai chi principles. In tai chi push hands we stand as still as a mountain and move as a great river. Push hands emphasizes the value of yielding and relaxing, and the disadvantage of resisting and using tension. In tai chi push hands: softness overcomes hardness, and doing less is more; as we use minimum effort to attain maximum effect. Improve your tai chi skill by learning push hands with body mechanics. Proper neutralization in tai chi push hands, takes little physical upper body force as it has its foundation in correct alignment, timing, and body positions. In tai chi push hands, we adhere and listen to be able to read the opponents’ attack through the point of contact. In push hands, adhering means sticking, blending, or following the opponents’ movements.

How are the Tai Chi Martial Applications different from other Martial Arts?
In Tai Chi, instead of blocking the opponents incoming force, we initially blend with it. We learn to listen to the line of the incoming force, adhere to it, then release the opponents force back at them at a different angle. We let our opponent have the direction of their attack, and take them a little farther than they planned to go, in that direction, causing a loss of balance. In tai chi, the opponents momentum, is gathered in the root, and immediately released at 45 or 90 degree direction from their line of attack. Proper neutralization of your partner’s force will present an effortless push.