People often ask "how or why I got into Tai Chi "- 17 years ago, it was "why would a fit and relatively healthy 23 year old want to do Tai Chi ?"

Well, I was fit and doing heaps of high impact sports, but I needed something to centre myself. Added to that, all those high impact sports were giving me quite a few injuries and even then I was starting to get arthritis.  But my woes didn’t stop there, I was unemployed and stressed to the limits, my concentration span was possibly 5 minutes and my balance was atrocious due to all of the sporting injuries...

I had always wanted to do a martial art, so when the flyer came in the mail offering to solve my stress, balance, concentration and muscle tone problems and kick-start me into a martial art. Wow, I wasn’t going to say no.

This was the theme of NMIT’s Faculty of Business Professional Development Conference 2009 held in Melbourne.

Over a hundred participants gathered to discuss their professional needs and goals, such as marketing business courses to prospective students, project management, innovation and creative thinking for vocational and higher education teaching staff. The buzz words were ‘quality’ and ‘flexibility’, also reflected in their invitation to the Celestial Tai Chi College of Australia to conduct a workshop.

‘Relax, refocus and rejuvenate with Tai & Chi Kung’ was one of the four workshops that attracted a large number of enthusiastic participants. They were introduced to the basics of traditional Yang Style Tai Chi, Shibashi Chi Kung and self-massage with relaxation. None of them except one person attempted Tai Chi before, so the room was filled with excitement of learning a new skill that does not merely focus on their professionalism at work, but their mental and physical well-being as well. In that one hour and a half the participants experienced their body and mind in a new way, leaving  the workshop reinvigorated, relaxed and happy.

Snezana Dabic
Senior Tai Chi Instructor

The first step can be overwhelming, confusing or even daunting. Your eyes are filled with question marks and you are asking yourself, “Will I ever get there?”

After the first level you look back and ask yourself again, “Why did I think it was so difficult?” Level two can look as difficult as the first level, but this time you know you can get there and steadily reach level six, which gives you a real sense of achievement.

Please stick with it, because your hard work will bear fruit.
These steps will melt into one continuous flow of movements like a river, giving you tranquillity and enjoyment for the rest of your life.

To reach this goal, enjoy your practice!

Dagmar Reuther
Assistant Instructor, Box Hill Centre

My journey with Tai Chi started in 1979 when I was studying at Taiyuan University of Technology (TUT) in China. One morning I noticed a group of senior and middle-aged academics practising Tai Chi with a master on a basket ball court next to our students’ dormitory building. Later on I learnt that the master was Yang, Zen-Duo, the fourth generation of Yang’s Family and the son of master Yang, Chang-Fu who was one of the most famous martial artists of the last century in China.
Knowing about the benefit of Tai Chi for one’s health, I longed to learn Tai Chi only because I wanted to teach my father who had been ill since I was a little girl. I wanted to help him improve his health through Tai Chi. So, I waited there patiently until they finished their practice and asked Master Yang if I could be allowed to join them. I was so happy when he said “yes”! I became the youngest member of the TUT Tai Chi group.

Given the pressures of modern living it is difficult to learn Tai Chi as most of us are beset with responsibilities and full timetables. If you are fortunate enough to begin to learn Tai Chi from a proficient instructor, then it may help to be aware of the following common errors.

Lack of perseverance
There is a Chinese saying: ”If a person is without patience, they should not learn the art of healing. If they practice healing, it will not be medicine, it will be witchcraft”. In learning Tai Chi, the same applies - patience is required because Tai Chi is philosophical as well as scientific. It requires time for substantial study.

Tai Chi can be regarded as a fusion of Chinese philosophy and Western science. It can benefit both mind and body.  If we are learning Tai Chi but are impatient, we are wasting our time. The Chinese say, ”It is like going to the mountain full of treasure and returning empty-handed - what a pity”.

One should learn Tai Chi properly and steadily and practise consistently. After a while, practice becomes a habit, a part of your daily routine.  In addition, a profound interest in Tai Chi is developed, reinforced by the pleasure derived from psychological involvement with the movement. I urge you to practice Tai Chi earnestly because in the end you will be rewarded both physically and mentally.

Students from the Celestial Tai Chi College are taking part in an Australian Federal Government funded (through the National Health and Medical Research council) research program to look at the scientific basis of the health benefits of Tai Chi.  The research is being done by researchers from the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute at the Royal Children’s Hospital.

There have been some studies showing the benefits of Tai Chi for those with arthritis, diabetes and other chronic conditions and it may reduce stress.  However none of these studies have looked at the mechanisms behind these reported benefits.  Before the Australian Government can recommend Tai Chi as a health-promoting practice, scientific evidence has to be gathered. This study is to try to study the mechanisms of Tai Chi practice at the level of cells in the body.