Economy of motion and short range power

[scotty1]

Two concepts which seem to make good sense, right?

So, as Tai Chi Chuan fighters, does TCC make use of the concept of economy of motion?

And do the body mechanics which you use to develop your power work "short-range" or do they need range to be effective?

Just wondered, as I'm shortly to be studying the art. :)

[TaiChiBob]

Greetings..

Economy of motion? Absolutely! And effective use of energy..

Tai Chi is most effective at close range.. Long range is too "open" and exposes too much territory to be exploited... My personal mantra is "relax and return to center".. but, that's just me.

Be well..

[scotty1]

Excellent!

Thanks for the reply Bob.

[David Jamieson]

The so called internal arts of taiji, pakua and hsing i all employ economy of motion and short power. some styles of so called external martial arts use this also.

at least as far as i have seen.

in taiji, depending on the style you will see some large differences in how it is played, but the same underlying concepts course through each of the different styles.

anyway, imo, there doesn't need to be wasted movement in martial arts and as a fighting mechanism it is not the best thing to perform 3 moves where one will suffice.

In my own observation it is hsing i that adheres to this idea consistently. But when any art is broken down into it's parts, each part is adhereing even though the performer may string it together differently.

cheers