Your Questions, Answered

Sifu William C. Phillips, direct student of Professor Cheng Man-Ch’ing and Tai Chi practitioner with over 40 years of experience, answers YOUR Tai Chi questions!

March 15, 2017

Two Types of Tai Chi Pushing

There are several types of pushing in Tai Chi Push Hands. Here we go over two ways which are opposites of one another in the way […]
March 15, 2017

Is Tai Chi a Martial Art or Health Art?

The argument of the purpose of Tai Chi has come up time and time again. Here, we share what Professor Cheng felt about this matter. My […]
March 15, 2017

Is Tai Chi Practice Enough for Good Health?

Does Tai Chi alone satisfy all of one’s needs to for maintaining good health, or should other exercises be considered? Maritza C. from Peru asks: “I […]
March 15, 2017

Basic Information on Swords and Sword Form

Are you considering purchasing a sword and studying a Tai Chi sword form? If so, it’s good to be aware of the basics. An anonymous reader […]
March 15, 2017

Dueling with Light Contact

We are all used to seeing dueling in movies with the heavy clanking of swords. But applying the principles of Tai Chi transforms dueling into something […]
March 15, 2017

The Order of Learning Tai Chi Skills

People have a natural tendency to want to progress as quickly as possible, and sometimes take shortcuts. But in Tai Chi, there really are no shortcuts, […]
March 15, 2017

Practicing Tai Chi at Night

We addressed practicing Tai Chi in the morning a couple of weeks ago. Now, we will talk about practicing at night. Keith in Staten Island pointed […]
March 15, 2017

Cheng Man-Ch’ing’s Spinal Tilt in Push Hands and Form

A very strong characteristic of Professor Cheng’s form is having a vertical spine. However, one very observant reader noted that he did not always maintain this […]
March 15, 2017

The Best Time and Place to Practice Tai Chi

At PTC, we don’t think there’s such a thing as a “bad time” to practice Tai Chi! But what’s the best time, for optimal benefit? Christian […]
March 15, 2017

How Do You Teach Tai Chi?

A reader asks specifically about Sifu Phillips’ style of teaching Tai Chi. Patricia from an unknown location asks: “How do you teach Tai Chi?” Dear Patricia, […]
March 15, 2017

How Important Are Warm-Up Exercises?

Experts have been stressing the importance of warming up before working out for many years. For those of us who practice Tai Chi, though, is warming […]
March 15, 2017

Avoiding Back Bends in Tai Chi

The Tai Chi classics speak of avoiding bending the spine. This is very important for a number of reasons. Rose from Chicago, IL asks: “I have […]