Chen Manching Yang taichi shot form (full set)

Ummm.  I thought he lived over a 100.

For a Tai Chi Master he didn't live very long......

That's because he abused his body with alcohol... very unfortunate.

Really? was that when he was young or old?

I don't have any literary sources on hand to sight. However multiple non aquainted individuals have mentioned that Pro. Cheng had become an alcoholic by the time he turned 45. Later he battled with weight problems in addition to his alcohol addiction. He eventually suffered from fatal heart complications. Myles makes a good point though, Cheng lived to 75, not bad... not great either.

MylesAngus: Sorry if you were offended. You can drop the condecending act though. Thanks for understanding.

Syphen888....that is interesting, I didn't know that. Thanks.... The reason why I would take Tai Chi is to live well into my 90's or even over a 100 and manage to live a life not assisted by others ie, living in a nursing home like most old people.

That's a good point about your gandfather, my great grandmother lived to 96, similarly.
Food for thought... flexibility is life, stagnation, death. If you want to remain independent you *must* keep your body supple. There is a baguazhang master in China past 100 who swears by eating a tomato every day. Maybe there is something to it. My personal opinion is that right thinking along with general healthy living will have the best effects.
Very best luck to you, live long and prosper. :-)

@syphen888
Unless you are a person who considers the intake of any alcohol whatsoever as an abuse of the body, how could you possibly know if "he abused his body with alcohol"? Where do you come off with that kind of tripe? Was he a doctor of herbal medicine? Yes he was. He often had well over one or two dozen patients waiting to have him read their pulses and prescribe herbal medicines for them. Did he believe that a limited amount of alcohol could help open a person's internal system? He did.

@Taurus8763
Well, he lived fully for 75 years, in which time he mastered the following arts: taijiquan, Chinese herbal medicine, Chinese calligraphy, painting, and Chinese poetry. He was very highly regarded in all those arts. As I recall, his own main taiji teacher, great master Yang Chengfu, died at 59 years of age.

Thanks for the info, it' just that my grandfather lived until he was 92 and never did any excercise or meditation and smoked until his 60's. I thought that Tai Chi and qigong was supposed to prolong longativity and heal past health problems. I was suprised to read he died at 75 at his desk. Makes you wonder........