Welcome to the Rochester T’ai Chi Ch’uan Center, and welcome to the world of T’ai Chi Ch’uan.

T’ai Chi (which you will also see spelled Taiji Quan) is somewhat unique and mysterious to people in the western world.  It has been given credit for its curative powers, for helping people to relax, for helping people improve their balance, and for its function as a martial art.  T’ai Chi is also a connection to a different culture, one of great richness and one whose thought processes adds a different dimension to our own.

In learning T’ai Chi, you will practice a “form.”  A form is a series of postures linked together.  It is from this form that you will learn the body alignments and connections necessary to reap the rich benefits of T’ai Chi.

At first, and for a little while, you may feel a little awkward.  That is to be expected.  T’ai Chi has its own learning curve, and that curve varies from person to person.  What is essential is that, especially in the beginning, you do not judge yourself by your perceptions of how fast (or slowly) you are learning compared to others.  Do what you can as best you can, and eventually your body will understand what is expected of it, as will your mind.  This is an important point: ultimately, the benefits that can be obtained from T’ai Chi come as a result of moving properly with the mind and the body in harmony, and this takes time.

There have been many clinical studies citing the benefits that can be obtained from practicing T’ai Chi.  Among these are lowered blood pressure, reduced stress, relief from arthritis and other muscular pain, better balance and reduced risk of falling, improvement in the immune system, and an overall improvement in mind body co-ordination which carries over and helps improve performance in sports such as tennis, golf , and skiing as well as other sports