How to Use Tai Chi for Combat

A common mental image of tai chi is of a group of people in a park going through a series of slow movements. Tai chi is a means of health and exercise, but it has its roots as a deadly martial art. On the surface, it doesn't look deadly at all, but the fundamentals of balancing forces in tai chi can be applied in a common self-defense situation by using the following technique to counter a straight punch.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Loose, comfortable clothing
• Training mats or a soft landing surface
• Sparring partner

1. Stand with your feet two shoulder widths apart and bend your knees. Turn your upper body to face your partner and position your right foot a shoulder width in front of you, with the toes pointed forward. Position your left foot directly under the left side of your body and point your left toes out to the left. Stand on the balls of both feet so that your movement is unhindered.

2. Shift your weight back onto your left foot. Catch your partner's oncoming straight right punch with your open left palm. Allow your palm to give under the force of the strike---the basic patterns of tai chi rely on receiving an opponent's force and fully negating it before counterattacking.

3. Push his fist to the right across your body. Step forward with the right foot, aligning your instep to his. Place your right hand on your opponent's throat. At this point, your partner should be noticeably off balance and incapable of an effective attack. Redirection of momentum, as you have just done with his punch, is another fundamental self-defense technique in tai chi.

4. Push on his throat with your hand and rotate your upper body counterclockwise to give it more force. This motion should send your partner to the mat. Keep your hand on his throat. If you were in a life-or-death situation, you could severely damage the trachea or larynx with a blow. In self-defense practice, the main goal is to simply ward off his attack, and that has been accomplished.

Tips & Warnings

• Avoid tensing the muscles of your left arm when blocking your opponent's punch. It uses more energy than is necessary, and only hurts when your hands collide because a tense object can't yield to force. Breathe in through your nose when defending, and breath out through your mouth when countering. In tai chi, most of the movements revolve around this simple breathing rhythm. Breathing is linked to chi---spiritual power---in almost all Chinese martial arts. Chi works in tandem with the physical body.

Resources

• Tai Chi Basic Techniques

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