The Tai Chi Healthways Discussion Board

Is anyone familiar with Master Tsao's "Tai Chi Warm-Up 18 Forms" DVD?

http://www.taichihealthways.com/v_warmup.htm

Are the exercises able to be practiced by all ages and fitness levels? Could they be adapted to someone's fitness level if needed? How long do the 18 forms take total as a warm-up?

Thanks in advance for any responses!

Hi,

You may want to look on Youtube Master Tsao's DVD excerpt :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZ0Wi-OAB4g

You will be able to see.

There are two parts in this 18-form. Part One warms up the major joints to open the body's energy channels. Part Two works on inner energy flow.

We have been doing these exercises for a while with Master Tsao and they work wonders. The warm up is easy and efficient and the energy gathering is quick and cleansing. You are also working on postures and flexibility. All in the same time!

Well, it's been about a week now of practicing Master Tsao's 18 Form Tai Chi Warm Up DVD and well, I think it's absolutely wonderful! It's really improved my form practice by helping me feel much more relaxed and flexible.

I would highly recommend it to anyone. It's just as pertinent and useful for non-Taiji practitioners as it is for Taiji practitioners, and the routines can easily be adapted to varying levels of fitness and flexibility. Thank you Master Tsao!

In Master Tsao's "Tai Chi Warm-Up 18 Forms" DVD he demonstrates a full 360 degree neck rotation to prepare the neck joint. I've been practicing this and haven't had any problems or issues, but recently someone told me that the "new method of thinking" is not to rotate the neck 360 degrees fully but only from side to side. Full 360 degree rotation is supposedly harder on the neck long-term and has greater potential for injury. I asked a local public school physical education teacher and she stated that she was taught the same thing; to only perform the side to side movements for safety and not the full 360 degree neck rotations. I can't seem to find anything online about this specifically?

I'm just very curious and confused now, but has anyone else heard this? Is this thinking correct or old and out-dated? Does anyone have any additional information?

For now I plan to continue to follow Master Tsao's example.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Oolong wrote:In Master Tsao's "Tai Chi Warm-Up 18 Forms" DVD he demonstrates a full 360 degree neck rotation to prepare the neck joint. I've been practicing this and haven't had any problems or issues, but recently someone told me that the "new method of thinking" is not to rotate the neck 360 degrees fully but only from side to side. Full 360 degree rotation is supposedly harder on the neck long-term and has greater potential for injury. I asked a local public school physical education teacher and she stated that she was taught the same thing; to only perform the side to side movements for safety and not the full 360 degree neck rotations.

Follow-up to my own question for those that might be interested (IANAD):

I further discussed this issue of full versus half neck rotations with an athletic coach, a Health Sciences teacher, and Exercise Trainer. All of them agreed that if done as Master Tsao states in the Warm-Up video (slowly and deliberately) a full neck rotation is actually the preferred method to stretch the neck and maintain joint mobility. Because the neck is basically a pivotal joint, it is designed to rotate, pronate, and suponate. However, again, you don't want to do the rotations too quickly or without proper control over the movements.

I probably shouldn't have even asked this question in the first place, but I did and I thought it would be good to follow-up and share my findings.