Tag: Tai Chi

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The Art Of Listening

Steve Rowe

When I was in the Fire Brigade and worked in the Security Industry before the advent of mobile phones we used to use ‘RT’ (Radio Transmitters) where you would talk with the ‘transmit’ button pressed down and take your finger off the button to listen to what the other side of the conversation had to say.  This procedure has great relevance to learning and training in the Martial Arts today. Do you ever have that conversation with someone where you are acutely aware that they’re not listening to what you are saying but are only waiting to talk?  Or maybe … Continue reading The Art Of Listening

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Connecting Hands And Feet

Steve Rowe

On the wall in our training centre facing the students when they train is a list of 8 words, these 8 words represent the 8 principles that we need to fully understand to make our Martial Arts work. The first of these words is ‘Feet’.  Our feet is our contact to the ground that we stand on and the pressure of our feet to the floor is what gives us the power and energy to stand upright and move around.  Most people usually do this mindlessly not realising that the skill as a Martial Artist starts at this point.  Each … Continue reading Connecting Hands And Feet

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The Training Bank

Steve Rowe

Be a saver not a spender. Every training session good or bad, Is a penny in the Training Bank. Day after day, Weeks after week, Year after year, The pennies accumulate; Until you have great martial arts wealth. Every seminar, course and lesson adds to the value. Every note you take, Every time you pay attention, Everything you contribute to your teacher and classmates, A penny drops in. Every meditation, Every time you stand straight, Every time you breathe deep, Every time you focus your mind, Another penny drops in. Bit by bit your power comes from within, And you’re … Continue reading The Training Bank

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Are You Really Trying?

Steve Rowe

“I’m really trying…” This can have more than one meaning – and therefore what’s in your head is really important.  Are you ‘trying’ to attempt to do something with failure already written into it?  Are you seeing it as difficult and frustrating?  Are you ‘trying’ because you think it’s difficult or hard’? These are all responses that we commonly get from students and the problem can lie with our upbringing, as a child we are constantly told that we must ‘try’ and are told off for ‘not trying’, my school report often said ‘must try harder’, meaning that I needed … Continue reading Are You Really Trying?

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It’s A Kind of Magic

Steve Rowe

A Magi is a wise person, Magic is knowing how something works. Magic fools the ignorant, Because it’s ‘special power’ they don’t understand, But to the wise it’s normal science. Does this make magic less? Should we not be in awe of the ‘ordinary’? Is not every day astounding? The sun rising and setting, The fact that we exist? Earth, water, air and fire are all magical; Every breath we take should inspire us with awe. We know how it works, We know the ‘trick’; We become wise to what’s happening; But we should not become complacent. Science should not … Continue reading It’s A Kind of Magic

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Who Are You Kidding?

Steve Rowe

After 40 years of training nothing anyone says surprises me anymore.  However all through that time I have been constantly amazed at how easily people write failure into their training ideas and schedule without even realising it. I thought it might prove useful to pick up on the most common misconceptions I have heard and seen during those years. Success in the Martial Arts is no different to success in any other sphere of life.  If you practiced swimming, cycling, ballet dancing, gymnastics, guitar, piano, archery or any normal skill based art or sport you would have to go through … Continue reading Who Are You Kidding?

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3 Most Important Points In Martial Arts Training

Steve Rowe

If you had to name the 3 most important things to remember in the Martial Arts that would the biggest difference to your training what would they be? When teaching beginners what are the 3 most fundamental things to stress and continue to stress so the student doesn’t ever forget? Number One:  Stand straight – good postural alignment is essential!  The body must be pulled up to it’s full height, the classics say that the head should feel ‘as if suspended from above’, for every inch the skull moves off the top of the spine it doubles in weight, as the head … Continue reading 3 Most Important Points In Martial Arts Training

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The 13 Dynamics Of Tai Chi

Steve Rowe

Often called the ’13 Techniques’ or the ’13 Postures’ this list can really confuse Tai Chi practitioners and therefore they often get sidelined or bypassed, but when understood, they lie at the heart of Tai Chi practice.  To understand that they are ‘fighting’ dynamics that are held in the mind that are trained with the potential to be used instantly, reflexively and spontaneously in response to the opponent’s actions at any time  and although some are linked to certain techniques they are not the techniques, they are fighting strategies of ‘aliveness’ and are therefore dynamic because they are used to … Continue reading The 13 Dynamics Of Tai Chi