Hi,
I was wondering if anyone here had ever tried combining their Taiji Quan training with Aikido. I recently started at a local dojo in town and one thing I noticed about Aikido is the lack of striking techniques but I also noticed a similarity to Taiji Quan with philosophy and mechanics. Both systems heavily rely on circular movement and the opponents motion and momentum which is why I was curious as to if anyone had tried this before, I guess using Taiji Quan (any style) to fill some of the gaps in their overall martial arts training. If you have could you lend some advice or experience, thanks,
-Baihu

Hi XiaBaihu,
I think in the core taijiquan is way different from aikido although they share some principles. I know some people cross trained successfully with taijiquan but only after they mastered the other style first.

Hmmm, that is interesting about the founder of Aikido, I didn't realize that he went to China... lol it does explain quite a bit about the system though. Aikido tends to utilize Ki or Chi quite a bit and heavily emphasises Spiral movements from the core or dan tien.
I was wondering though if anyone had some advice as to forms or styles of Tai Chi that would supplement Aikido training. I've looked at Chen, Yang and Sun but I honestly can't decide (they all look like so much fun ) Does anyone have any insight or ideas? Thank you all for all of your advice
-Baihu

If I can give an advice it is to begin with the fundamentals of taiji first and silk reeling, before studying a style.