Tai Chi with John Richmond

Cost and venue
About John
About the TAO
Contacting John

What is tai chi?

Tai chi chuan is an ancient Chinese heath practice which balances the body and mind through deceptively gentle exercise. The exercise removes tension, improves muscle and organ tone, and balances the life-force or chi.

It also makes you stronger and fitter than you might expect for such gentle exercise

What style of tai chi is this?

John is a member of the T.A.O. and teaches the Lee Family style, sometimes spelt Li Family and sometimes referred to as the Yin and Yang Style. The Lee style was brought to the UK by Chan Kam Lee who passed the knowledge on to his protégé, Chee Soo, who went on to write a number of books on tai chi and related arts.

Lee style tai chi uses stances and movements that are based on normal standing and walking. It is possible to do the Lee style form in a way that is fairly upright and unaffected compared with some styles that require lower stances

What happens during a training session?

The class begins and ends with a bow. Other than that, the atmosphere is informal. A typical session starts with a warm up exercising each part of the body in turn. This is followed by k'ai men exercises which are the Chinese equivalent of yoga. Usually these are followed by dao yin exercises which are a form of traditional Chinese medicine for toning internal organs.

A warm-up exercise which also makes the wrists more supple
A k'ai men exercise (taoist yoga)
The Archer Declines; a dao yin exercise

Then comes the tai chi proper: exercises are done, singly or in pairs, which improve posture and balance, remove tension and teach relaxed movement. We also practice The Tai Chi Form - a set of 140 movements which teach posture, balance and movement and which are the popular image of tai chi.

Part of tai chi form
Gather Celestial Energy (from The Form)
The Stork is Aroused (from The Form) Final exercise
The Five Lotus Blossoms (brings you back to your centre)

Before bowing out, there is a breathing exercise (usually The five lotus blossoms) which brings the body's chi energy back in to your centre.

What is the relationship between tai chi and kung fu?

Lee style tai chi is about how to stand up and move. The ability to move properly can be used as a basis for an effective style of kung fu named feng shou. However, kung fu is not taught in these sessions. The martial applications of movements are explained in slow-motion exercises though, because they provide subtle clues about how your body is operating

About John Richmond

John has been studying tai chi since 1986. He trained under the late Chee Soo and now trains under Tony Swanson (head of the Taoist Arts Organisation). He took over the two tai chi classes he now runs about five years ago. He is also interested in other related arts and runs occasional taoist meditation classes

About the TAO

The Taoist Arts Organisation or TAO was created by students of Chee Soo following his death in 1994.

The TAO teaches t'ai chi (movement and posture), k'ai men (Chinese yoga), and dao yin (health exercises) as described above, plus other taoist arts including feng shou (kung fu), chi shu (throwing), and shuai chiao (wrestling). It is a member of the British Council of Chinese Martial Arts (BCCMA) National Governing Body

All TAO instructors have passed Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) checks, have professional indemnity and public liability insurance, and hold First Aid qualifications.
All TAO Instructors:
- are monitored by the TAO and BCCMA and are regularly assessed by external assessors
- follow a grading syllabus approved by TAO

The TAO is an equal opportunities practitioner.

For more about the TAO including the qualifications of instructors and information on the other taoist arts, visit the Taoist Arts Organisation Web Site

Cost:

You can try a single class with John for £7

If you like it, the price is £70 for each term of 10 weekly sessions. You will also have to join the Taoist Arts Organisation (TAO) which has an annual membership fee, currently £42, which includes insurance

Where and when:

Wednesdays 7:00pm - 9:00pm

Complementary Health Centre
172-174 Manor Lane
Lee
London SE12 8LP

Nearest stations: Hither Green, Lee (both British Rail)
Parking in the road nearby is available free

(Lee is near Bellingham, Blackheath, Catford, Grove Park, Hither Green, Ladywell, Lee Green and Lewisham)

Please contact John before turning up

Contact details

Contact John Richmond on his mobile phone: 07811 297 079

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Last update 29th June 2010