Jailhouse Tai Chi Form, in 5.5 feet of water, front view - 08/12/09 (Summer)
Once in a while, during the summer, when there are no other people in the local pool, just me and the lifeguards, I get an opportunity to take some videos of myself exercising in the water.
On this day, I had an opportunity to try out my compact "Jailhouse" Tai Chi Form in approximately 5.5 feet of water.
The water was deep enough that the only way I could touch the pool floor with my feet was to hold my breath for a while, and become submerged. My nose, my mouth, and at times, even my entire head were completely covered by water. Water deep enough that I had to make a significant effort to rise above the waterline to take the next breath.
What's clearly obvious in this video is that in 5.5 feet of water, the Tai Chi Form DISINTEGRATES! Many of the tai chi principles that work so well on dry land don't work any more when my body is completely surrounded by water.
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What were the most important lessons that I took away from this unusual experience, which I continue to focus upon during my dry-land Tai Chi Chuan practice?
Breathing, just getting air regularly into my lungs to power my muscles, became a major task in this much water. I had to exert a great deal of energy to keep surfacing, just to get a gulp of air. A large proportion of my body energy was being diverted to merely breathing, to not having my lungs fill with water.
When doing the tai chi form on dry land, don't take breathing for granted! Remember to BREATHE deeply. Without respiration - - continuous movement of oxygen into all the cells of the body, and carbon dioxide out of the cells - - the body can't function for more than a few moments. On the simplest level, "circulating chi" means moving air / oxygen through the body!
One very simple, primary meaning of "chi" is AIR! The body needs air to stay alive! Cut off a person's air supply and they can't function!
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In this much water, I had a hard time trying to keep my feet connected to the pool floor. Even when I didn't have to rise up above the waterline to take a breath, even if I held my breath for a while under water and tried to keep my feet attached to the pool floor, I found myself floating upwards.
My lungs, filled with air, acted like inflated balloons, and buoyed me up towards the surface. Despite my intention to keep standing on the pool floor, I found my whole body rising in the water, like an inflated rubber raft.
It became impossible to ROOT in this situation.
When my feet couldn't make a solid connection with the floor, it became very difficult, if not impossible, to generate "total body power."
When practicing tai chi chuan on dry land, ALWAYS PRESS FIRMLY AGAINST THE EARTH TO INITIATE THE PROCESS OF GENERATING TOTAL BODY POWER.
First and foremost, the feet must have a solid connection with the ground, a firm root. Everything else follows from that.
The waist by itself has very little power if at least one foot is not solidly connected to the ground!
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When surrounded by water, keeping my spine upright became a problem. I found my legs flailing in various directions without making contact with the floor. No power. I could not deliver any kind of useful punch, kick, or strike.
When doing the tai chi form on dry land, remember to ALIGN BODY CORRECTLY WITH GRAVITY - - spine upright; head held "as if suspended by a string from above;" gravity line dropping through weighted foot.
When at least one foot has a solid connection to a solid supporting surface, correct alignment of the skeletal system in relation to gravity becomes possible.
More about this here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Azt2-gpm7r0
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Whenever my feet pushed against the pool floor, I floated up and away. My own muscles propelled me away from the floor.
When doing the tai chi chuan form on dry land, to remain solidly rooted to the ground, it's important to sink downward, in the same direction as gravity, to create an opposite force to the upward pushing-off-the-ground force created by bent legs straightening.
More about this here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQZ8b4a13xo
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As the end of this video clearly demonstrates, when completely surrounded by water, it's better to forget about using tai chi principles, and just SWIM! A completely different dynamic propels the body efficiently in this different medium.
ChiGuy396
ChiGuy396@yahoo.com
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