bad qi?

[zultan]

Im new to internal martial arts(just started chen taiji) ive heard some people can actually get negative effects from taiji/qigong
.Internal arts are cool but i have to say alot of the chi/mystical stuff is a turn off.just wondering if this is something to be aware of in training

[Yaksha]

Qi is not mysterious and mystical. Whats the mystery in energy? Surely you know you have energy in your body? Then you know you have qi. What is so mysterious?

[zultan]

the way you state it is not mysterious at all.i think it tends to be made complicated.superstition comes into play also.its more the way its explained.to me it just seems like air,blood,gas,etc.i just wonder if some of qi gong stuff is good for you or not.perhaps playing with things you do naturally like breath can work against you. with that said these are just ramblings from a newbie.im sure these things can be explained simply so feel free to do so folks

[foolinthedeck]

balance is the key IMO,
drink too much water and it will harm you
take too much vitamin c can kill you
...
so just take what people tell you with a pinch of salt,
train, but dont train too hard.
work on your qi, but also let go of it.
meditate, relax, release.
use external and internal.

[zultan]

i hear ya foolinthedeck.ive probably been hearing too much new age tai chi crap or something.

[Felipe Bido]

Qigong, if done without proper instruction, can be harmful, not only to your body, but it could bring problems to your mind, from simple mental stress to pure mental disorders. Relax, don't force anything, don't pay too much attention to sensations, and keep the practice natural. To learn, find a person with experience.

There's nothing mystical about Qi. Energy is part of nature.

[blooming lotus]

and now taiji is harmful???.bs.it's the intention behind the person practicing, in which case your qi is harmful regardless of what it's doing

[Brad]

To answer your original question zultan, I've never heard of correct taiji forms practice being harmful to anyone... but on the other hand it is a martial art, so there is some risk of injurey(esp. when learning to apply it). Like any physical exercise though, practicing taiji quan incorrectly can lead to health problems. Letting the knee go out to far on forward stances and incorrect allignment on stances seem to be some of the more common beginer mistakes that can cause problems.