Locations : Toronto

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Toronto North York Taiji Class on Feb. 2, 2017 i

by Suz on 2017/02/06

Twisting towel – Ning maogin
Straight torso – spine stretched – legs apart –bend knees a bit just to make upside down U shape … Imagine there is a horizontal bar just below navel area, stretched forward and vertical rod from head to ground

Fingers always stretched and slightly open, except the thumb, thumb touching forefinger. Arms at navel level, stretch forward tucking elbow towards the center of your body- keeping wrist locked (wrist doesn’t movie) elbow straight – shoulders locked (moving only within its socket)

North York Feb 2 Class Notes i

by adriennesoles on 2017/02/05

Position of elbow in positive circle: After warming up with what we learned the last 2 weeks, we reviewed the line that the elbow follows in first move of Positive Circle. It should follow a straight line as if it’s in a track. Fingers should still point at same spot. We tried looking at the line the forearm was making in mirror.

To finish positive circle after turning at waist, lead with hand as if forearm is in a tube and sliding out sequentially. Don’t let forearm deviate outwards as it wants to.

Buddha’s Warrior Pounds Mortar:
Read more

Toronto Workshop Notes (Twist Towel) 2

by admin2 on 2017/02/01

By Patrick Hanratty

**Due to my computer crashing these notes have been recompiled using my original written notes, which are somewhat incomplete. As such there are some blank spaces, which I’ve indicated with an asterisk. I would very much appreciate anyone filling in those blanks, as I don’t feel confident enough to do so myself.

Taking notes at workshops is a useful tool for making progress, and going over them as soon as possible (at the end of the day and after the workshop) helps to internalize the most salient points. Furthermore, sharing notes, as well as potentially helping other students in their practice, can also engender a need for the note taker to test the accuracy of their personal understanding of Master Chen’s teaching. A testing strategy that I have recently adopted is to imagine that I have to explain my understanding to other students through practical demonstration. Read more

2017-01-21 – Richmond Hill Class – Twisting towel i

by Mark Hanley on 2017/01/30

Hand starts and 45 degrees and ends at 45 degrees, s the elbow comes to centerline. The energy must come from the foot to the hand. This Is much more difficult then it seems. The tendency for me was to bend the wrist independent from the arm and to move the arm out with no regard for the line. I found it very helpful to stand on a tiled floor which allowed me to better concentrate on the line. By doing this I found that the line allowed me to better keep arm on the line and my wrist better alignment with the rest of the arm.

2017-01-21 – Richmond Hill Class – Six sealing four closing i

by Mark Hanley on 2017/01/30

start in front bow stance , back arm bent palm up front arm bent also palm up, this creates a line, bring hip and shoulder to hand line, be sure hip is up and out, shoulder is down and out, front elbow twists in as action performed. Back also straitens and ass is not out. Do not move wrist independently. I found that I could better concentrate and get more consistent results by starting with the front elbow touching my side. Taking pictures of yourself is also good idea because you see what you do wrong I have started to practise in the mirror so I can see and correct things like raising my back shoulder

2017-01-21 – Richmond Hill – fetch water i

by Mark Hanley on 2017/01/30

IN fetching water, you must be in front bow stance. back arm bent palm up front arm down front kwa hand open, First internally connect front hip to back shoulder around and down to back hip somewhat like suspenders. This little effort to start really helps. Then open front hip moving it to the line. As that happens notice front shoulder goes down twist in the front elbow.

Richmond Hill Class Janaury 21st, 2017 i

by Bruce Robinson on 2017/01/28

Kelvin Ho went over the 3 of the main foundation exercise movements today, twisting the towel, Fetch Water & Six Sealing four Closing

Twisting the Towel:

Horse Stance, Straight Back, & Head Pulling Up
Palm & Wrists streched out and wrists are never to bend in any of the moves including this move of twisting the towel Read more

Teaching Notes for North York Class on Jan. 26, 2017 i

by Kelvin Ho on 2017/01/27

Twisting the Towel, Fetch Water and Six Sealing Four Closing on Jan. 21, 2017 i

by Kelvin Ho on 2017/01/22

Today, we focused on the details of 3 foundation exercises:

Twisting the Towel
Fetch Water
Six Sealing Four Closing

Toronto North York Taiji Class on Jan 19, 2017 i

by Suz on 2017/01/19

Positive circle

Lower body

Legs apart – toes aligned with the other foot heel – foot open 45% outward and the other feet, toes close inward a bit – leaning closer to the front foot – Knee 90% measured at the ankle

Eyes

Choose a focus point and keep your eyes pinned to the focus point always

Upper body and movement

Shoulder and wrist locked- fingers stretched – index finger pointing towards your focus point and not above your eyebrow – start with palm down pointing towards the ground- bring elbow to right ribcage from waist twist all the way inside without losing your focus point.

Repeat- in with elbow – turn with waist – out with hand. Keep elbow bend all the time. Torso straight- knees turn up and down but not up and down.

45% in and out finger always pointing

Power comes from the heel

Group Yilu in Toronto on Jan. 15, 2017 i

by Kelvin Ho on 2017/01/16

Teaching Notes for Richmond Hill Class on Jan. 14, 2017 i

by Kelvin Ho on 2017/01/16

Ken Lang joined the class for the first time. He started learning about twisting the towel. He has been doing taiji for 10 years, and went to study at Chen Village for 6 weeks. His initial impression was that the Practical Method elbow-in was similar to what he learned in Chen Village. His teacher there was Master Chen Zhaosen.
We reviewed twisting the towel, and how the hand is to be connected to the foot, and how to push the foot against the ground to squeeze out the hand.
We did an exercise with one person pushing the other person’s hand up the arm, and how to prevent the shoulder being popped up, and how to stretch through the back to the rear foot to find the connection.
We practiced taking out the space.
I told Bruce during push hands, at this point, make it a focus to simply maintain the desired posture regardless of what the opponents does to him.

2017/01/14 – Richmond Hill – First 7 moves of Yilu with feedback from instructor i

by Mark Hanley on 2017/01/14

Kelvin Ho gave us feedback on the first 7 moves of Yilu today. some examples to remember

Buddha’s warrior attendant pounds the mortar – in first move both arms move from the elbow. The right arm is a negative circle. Elbow is down and palm faces floor when you stretch out after grind out. To lift foot twist right elbow even more to connect and lift foot.

Block touching coat. – in step out adjust weight to front foot before arm moves and positive circle starts

Single whip – hands start at 45 degrees and end at 45 degrees as the elbow comes to centerline and fingers and forearm follow the same strait line rubbing against an imaginary vertical finger. The end of single whip the left hand out is a positive circle.

Brush knee – the left open hand drops down crossing knee. The end of brush knee when both arms are extended squeeze in on chest and down back as to not cause a rise in the chest. I found this very significant feedback because this is true in so many of the moves. It also seemed to have an impact on my next move to keep my back steady in initial closing.

Today I realized how significant independent practice is in this practical method. Your body needs time to adjust to perform proper alignment and stretches. If your elbow has limited mobility or you cannot convert the squeeze in the chest to the back and downward, you need practise before you can move forward with more constructive feedback.

2017/01/07 – Richmond Hill – Review of 13 moves of Yilu Jan 7 2017 i

by Mark Hanley on 2017/01/07

Instructor Kelvin Ho worked through a number of items in today’s class today with me and Bruce Robinson.

All Movement – keep elbows pointed to the ground, open hand position and stretch through to fingers

Buddha’s warrior attendant pounds the mortar – start with right hand against chest as you turn hand releases from chest, front hand does not retreat. after ground out completes keep elbow pointing down as you stretch to fingers at end of stretch right elbow in.

Block touching coat – left hand is negative circle , right is positive circle. adjust lower body outward before starting positive circle.

White crane spread it’s wings – As part of stepping back adjust your back so that it is solid before moving the left leg back and raising and stretching the arms from the back outward to the finger tips. Easier said than done the idea of fixing the back against an imagery wall so that it does not move is very difficult. However by working with Kelvin today I can see what I am working toward.

Practical Method Toronto 2016 Review and 2017 Plan i

by Kelvin Ho on 2017/01/06

In 2016, two Practical Method workshops were held in Toronto in January and September, with over 20 participants coming from Toronto and its surrounding cities, Ottawa, Montreal, New York, Michigan and as far away as California.

S-curve is really the circle 7

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/12/31

Initial Closing i

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/12/26

2016/12/15 – Richmond Hill – Beginner – positive circle i

by Mark Hanley on 2016/12/15

The instruction is very simple elbow in turn the waist out with hand

I found that I had bent my wrist in Block touching coat and that I repeated this wrist turn in the positive circle. Kelvin helped me understand what I had done, after correction suggested I use a mirror at home to reinforce the elbow rotation without moving my wrist independently. I took this advice and found that It really helped.

So now I bring my elbow in, it rotates more easily by turning the waist and then the straighter arm always the hand to extend better

2016/12/15 – Richmond Hill – Beginner – Block touching coat i

by Mark Hanley on 2016/12/15

The instruction is very simple sink kwa rotate elbow and open without using force. I found that I could sink the kwa easily but then turned to force to open the grip.

Kelvin helped me first by holding my arms but then changed the grip to using a single finger against my arm instead of holding the arm. He indicated that I should warp around the finger. This helped, I found that after I sank by stretching my fingers and wrist open it allowed me to get a better movement in my elbow which in turn allowed me to better wrap around the finger.

Exercise: Lock the front knee 5

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/12/10

Practical Method Toronto – Students’ Single Whip Postures i

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/12/10

Notes for Ottawa Workshop Nov. 12-13, 2016 1

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/11/20

IMG_5611a

This is the first time I attended the Ottawa Workshop. Great group! Thanks Rachelle, James, and Daniel for organizing the workshop, and Rachelle for my stay at her place. Here are my notes:

Move the feet. When we train, we fix the feet. When you push hands, we move the feet. Our feet are often not mobile enough, we must force ourselves to move them, e.g. getting in changes the pivot.
The only way to connect is not to connect. Connection means moving and non-moving parts have a relationship. Read more

Stay on the line i

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/11/19

At the Ottawa Nov. 12-13, 2016 workshop, Master Chen Zhonghua talked about when doing twisting the towel or six sealing four closing, our hands and elbows must stay on the same line. Where was that line exactly? We often just imagined where that line was. He told us to use a physical object to guide us, and he used a stick to show us. In today’s class in Toronto, we started with twisting the towel and covered what I learned at the Ottawa workshop. We went on to use the railing at the community centre to do the six sealing four closing exercise.
Six Sealing Four Closing - 1 Six Sealing Four Closing - 2

Kelvin Ho Yilu in Toronto on Nov. 6, 2016 i

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/11/06

Toronto Workshop Photos 9-2016 i

by admin2 on 2016/10/16

Brennan Toh and John Dahms Push Hands 2015/2016 i

by Brennan Toh on 2016/09/28

The difference in push hands 1.5 years training can make.

Laipeng Rong Yilu in Toronto on June 15, 2016 i

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/06/15

Kelvin Ho Yilu in Toronto on June 15, 2016 i

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/06/15

Practical Method Toronto Class on June 11, 2016 i

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/06/11

Instructor: Kelvin Ho

Topics:

Footwork
– Shoveling out with Front Heel, Land the Front Foot, Pull up the Rear Foot
– Jumping across to cover distance
Aiming
– Aligning Front Hand with the Rear Foot

Dot in space i

by Kelvin Ho on 2016/05/24

Master Chen Zhonghua has demonstrated numerous times of having a fixed point (dot) for rotation in his action. Recently, I start to understand the pair of contacting points which can be used to create a stick/lever. I have been able to rotate an opponent using a dot in the middle of the stick. Today, I realize this dot can, in fact, be in space, and not necessarily in the opponent’s body. It depends on how I contact the opponent, e.g. which body parts I use to create the stick. This kind of rotation is vertical, and can take the bottom support out from the opponent.

The right side is considered the front side, and the left side is consider the rear side.
Find a line that is parallel to your chest on the ground.
Put your right foot at 45 degrees to the line with the heel touch the line.
Put your left foot at 90 degrees to the line with the toes touch the line.

Practical Method Positive Circle 101 i

by Kelvin Ho on 2015/12/06

PositiveCircle_KelvinHo
Positive circle is likely the first thing one learns in Practical Method. The following are some starter instructions for a right-side positive circle:

The right side is considered the front side, and the left side is consider the rear side.
Find a line that is parallel to your chest on the ground.
Put your right foot at 45 degrees to the line with the heel touch the line.
Put your left foot at 90 degrees to the line with the toes touch the line.