An observation since arriving is that I only see older people in the parks doing Tai Chi. Do younger generations do Tai Chi or is it something that is fading?
Or is Tai Chi something that more focus on once they get older?
It’s dying very slowly.
8 Likes
Tai Chi is actually a good exercise for elderly people. Helps maintain mobility and stimulates the muscles to prevent muscle loss. Possible psychological benefits.
As an martial art…it’s useless.
2 Likes
I dunno. If you speed it up a bit it’s not bad. The actual positions and movements aren’t in themselves a problem.
You must have done the slow movement thing before a fight, yeah?
1 Like
They are imo. No one fights like the way they fight. The movements are too big and ridiculous, and no one plants there feet like in tai chi in a fight.
The same could be said for any traditional martial art, IMO.
However, I’m not arguing with you as I believe you are more knowledgeable than I am, and I’m convinced you are considerably harder than I am.
1 Like
I do not know enough about Tai chi to say there are no useful things, i wouldn’t be surprised if there was. But from what i’ve seen, they plant their foot too much and you’ll never see an actual fighter do that. And this is imo the major reason why most traditional martial arts are mostly useless in a real fight.
This is interesting, because in boxing you need to plant your feet to land a power punch. There won’t be many wins other than points otherwise.
Yes during the punch. But 99% of the time they have to be light on their feet.
He used zero Tai chi though. A kick boxing stance, saw some Muay Thai checks with the leg, karate style kicks.
I will defer to your expertise on the subject matter. That knockout kick looked pretty tricky. Don’t think I’ve ever seen any “tai chi” like that. I guess he probably has training in other martial arts as well and probably reacted off of instinct.
Is it my elderly eyesight or was the Spanish (?) guy going down before he’d taken the kick to his thigh?
EDIT: He clipped the top of his head. My mistake.
Not sure if I saw it correctly, but I think that guy is Iranian.
1 Like
Skills learned in Tai Chi can actually be very useful in a fight…things like sticking, feeling your opponent’s force and redirecting their energy. Tai Chi used in a fight doesn’t look much like what you see in the forms…it’s much more free form. Of course when it’s used in tournaments it’s usually combined with one or more other fighting style.
There are several youtubers talking about taichi in street fight scenarios. If your goal is just to keep your opponent at bay without getting you or your opponent hurt, then it looks like a good idea. Many of the forms end up looking similar to Judo or Akido throws in a fight.
Yes. There are a full range of strikes available, but more often than not it’s about neutralizing an opponent by taking them off their feet.
Another benefit of taichi is balance. Maintaining balance gets harder as you age since you tend to spend too much time off your feet. Not keeling over is a big deal for old people.
A great number of old people die when they fall, break a hip or a leg, and then contract pneumonia while recuperating in bed on their back.
I’d say yoga is a better alternative. Swimming is great, too.
Combat yoga styles are definitely dying out too. Nobody does that these days.
last yoga class I went to, they chucked me out and called the cops on me when i tried.
2 Likes