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Chen tai chi is an athletic martial arts system which providesexcellent daily exercise. Its health benefits include lowering bloodpressure, toning muscles, building strength, gradually openingtight joints, and improving circulation.

The true meaning of a given movement in a form is not itsapplication, but rather the unlimited potential of the mind toprovide muscular and skeletal support for that movement.Gregory Fong

History

Tai chi chuan was originated by Chen Wang Ting of Wen county,Henan province, China in the middle of the seventeenth century

as the Ming Dynasty gave way to the Qing. The Genealogy of theChen Families of Cheniagou village has the following entry underthe name of Chen Wang Ting, their ninth ancestor: Wang Tingwas a knight at the end of the Ming Dynasty and a scholar in theearly years of the Qing Dynasty. Known in Shandong province asa master of the martial arts, he was a born warrior who favoredthe sword in combat. The Chen families of Chenjiagou villagehanded down Chen Wang Tings tai chi routines and pushhands techniques from one generation to the next. After five

generations, what has come to be known as Chen tai chi chuanwas passed on to Chen Changxing (1771-1853) who taught it toYang Luchan (1799-1872), a native of Yongnian county, Hebeiprovince. And from there it has been passed on to us in thepresent day.

Features

The basic principle of training in Chen tai chi chuan is to practicewith a serene heart and a concentrated mind. This allows the

nervous system to recharge in such a way as to improve thecoordinated function of the various parts both internal andexternal of the body. Relaxation of the whole body, deep andnatural breathing, smooth arc-like actions originating inmovements of the waist, and a training method aimed atconveying ones inner force to the ends of the limbs by means ofboth mental and physical exertion all result in the harmoniousfunction of the inside and the outside of the body: circulation ofblood and lymph is facilitated, skeletal structure is enhanced,ones musculature is toned, and metabolism becomes more

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efficient.

The spiraling movements of Chen tai chi alternately expand andcontract the body. The ability to execute such movementsdemands that the student learn to control his or her muscles evermore precisely. One must know exactly when to tighten and whento relax those muscles, when to make the body firm and when tolet it be soft. The student must learn to direct the chi literally:the breath; more metaphorically: the inner vital energybothmentally and physically. Ones chi in this sense should be bothconcentrated at ones center and also spread throughout theentire body. It originates at the tan tien and is made to travelthrough the body by the gradual twisting of the waist. As the body

turns on its axis in this way, each side alternately expands andcontracts, thus allowing the chi to pass through the Du, Dai, andChong channels. Thanks to the spiral movements of the arms andlegs which keeps the joints open and active, the chi then travelsout toward the fingers and downward toward the toes, at whichpoint it travels back to the tan tien and begins the cycle all overagain. Such practice improves the students offensive anddefensive capabilities and enhances the distinctively explosiveforce of the movements of Chen tai chi chuan.

Finally, Chen tai chi requires as well that quick actions (strikes,kicks, and blocks) be both preceded and followed by slowermovements. Indeed, one should train in such a way that onesquick actions will be quicker than those of ones opponent, whileones slow actions will be slower. This emphasis on inner ratherthan outer force provides a valuable additional training methodfor raising the level of ones martial arts skills. And in this way,ones consciousness, breathing, and movements are more and

more closely coordinated with one another.Benefits

Although the basic principles of most tai chi forms are similar,Chen is typically a more obviously martial form of practice thanis Yang style, which tends instead to focus on the health aspects oftraining. More specifically, the emphasis in Chen training is onlearning to express ones inner force in external movements. Thisis why students of this style are taught to vary the speed and

strength of their movements throughout the form, whereasstudents of Yang tai chi practice at an even speed and concentrate

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on making their movements as smoothly continuous as possible.The student of Chen tai chi can, of course, practice much of theform in this way, but as he or she passes from simpler to morecomplicated movements, the Chen form demands a greater level

of skill so that power comes from within and inner energybecomes outward power.