What is Tai Chi Chuan?
Tai Chi Chuan (Taijiquan) is a traditional Chinese martial art that blends slow, flowing movements with powerful internal principles to cultivate balance, health, and self-defense skill.
At Cloud Forest Martial Arts, we teach Tai Chi as both an internal martial discipline and a holistic practice for wellness. It is built on the concepts of Yin and Yang—softness and hardness, yielding and issuing force—allowing a practitioner to neutralize strength with structure, sensitivity, and timing rather than brute force.
Key Aspects of Tai Chi Chuan:
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Martial Art:
Though often practiced slowly, Tai Chi is a complete fighting system. Its techniques include strikes, joint manipulation, takedowns, and rooting methods. The slow practice builds precision, internal power, and whole-body connection.
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Health & Longevity:
The gentle, continuous movements improve circulation, breathing, joint health, and stress management. It’s widely practiced for balance, relaxation, and energy cultivation.
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Internal Power (Nei Jin):
Tai Chi trains the practitioner to generate power using intention, alignment, and coordinated body mechanics instead of muscular tension.
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Forms & Applications:
Students learn structured sequences (forms), partner drills like push hands, and martial applications that reveal each movement’s purpose.
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Inclusive for All Ages:
From beginners to seasoned martial artists, Tai Chi offers something for everyone—calmness, clarity, and effective self-defense rooted in softness.
At Cloud Forest, we proudly teach Sun Style Xing Yi Quan and Baguazhang Chuan alongside our Tai Chi Chuan curriculum, helping students explore the full depth of the internal arts under the guidance of Sifu Michael Johnson—8th Duan, Jing Wu Headquarters instructor, and expert in Dim Mak Vital Striking.
You will Learn Push Hands
Push Hands—known in Chinese as Tui Shou (推手)—is a two-person training method used in Tai Chi Chuan to develop sensitivity, structure, balance, and real martial skill without relying on brute force.
At Cloud Forest, we describe Push Hands as the bridge between form and actual combat.
What Push Hands Teaches
1. Sensitivity (Ting Jin – 聽勁)
You learn to feel your partner’s intention through light touch. This lets you read incoming force before it becomes dangerous.
2. Yielding & Redirection (Hua Jin – 化勁)
Instead of blocking strength with strength, you guide force away safely—Yin neutralizing Yang.
3. Rooting & Balance
Push Hands trains your ability to stay centered while unbalancing your partner. Proper structure and alignment become more important than muscle.
4. Internal Power (Fa Jin – 發勁)
Short, explosive issuing power comes from whole-body coordination. Push Hands is where Tai Chi’s hidden martial power is awakened.
5. Real-Time Application
Even though it’s cooperative, it teaches how to adapt, move, and respond dynamically—key skills for self-defense.
How It Works
Students maintain contact—usually wrist to wrist or palm to forearm—then move together in circular patterns. Gradually, the drills become more spontaneous, leading to free-style Push Hands, takedowns, joint manipulation, and practical applications.
Push Hands at Cloud Forest
Under Sifu Michael Johnson, our Push Hands training emphasizes:
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Structural integrity
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Softness overcoming hardness
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Dim Mak awareness of vital points
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Natural Fist and Tai Chi principles
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Control over domination—never using force to harm
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Respectful training that unites martial artists from any school
Push Hands is not about “winning.”
It’s about listening, timing, harmony, and refined martial efficiency.
How Tai Chi Teaches You to Handle Force—
Pushing, Pulling, and Pressure
In Tai Chi Chuan, “force” doesn’t simply mean physical strength. It includes pressure, intention, momentum, and the way another person directs energy toward you. At Cloud Forest Martial Arts, we teach Tai Chi as a practical skill that helps students respond to force with intelligence rather than tension.
Instead of resisting force, Tai Chi teaches you to understand it.
1. Sensitivity Over Strength
Through slow, precise training and partner drills like Push Hands, you learn to feel pressure the moment it arrives—whether someone is pushing, pulling, or shifting their weight. This early detection allows you to respond calmly instead of reacting with panic or stiffness.
2. Yielding Without Losing Structure
Tai Chi does not meet force head-on. When pushed, you learn to soften and redirect. When pulled, you stay rooted and balanced. This creates a dynamic blend of flexibility and strength that protects your body and keeps you in control.
3. Redirecting and Neutralizing
By using circular, coordinated movement, Tai Chi guides incoming force safely away from your center. This means a strong push becomes harmless, and a sudden pull becomes an opportunity to regain advantage.
4. Staying Rooted Under Pressure
One of the core lessons in Tai Chi is developing “root”—the ability to stay stable and centered. As you grow stronger in your structure, you become much harder to off-balance, even when someone uses significant strength against you.
5. Real-World Application
Whether dealing with physical contact, workplace stress, or emotional pressure, Tai Chi’s method of listening, adapting, and responding smoothly becomes a life skill.
You learn not only how to handle force—you learn how to remain calm in the presence of it.