Tai Chi Hybrids

[GeneChing]

Is Buda Khi another April Fool's prank? Who cares? I thought it'd be useful to have a place to put stuff like this. It's akin to our Nia thread.

Horse stance to upper block
Posted: April 1, 2008

This exercise is among 650 moves created as a part of cardio fitness program called Buda Khi, originated by L.J. Easley of Indianapolis about 13 years ago. Buda Khi is a martial arts-based exercise programs consisting of kicks and punches, followed by core exercises, stretching and calming Tai Chi moves.

Easley has studied martial arts for 25 years and was a three-time silver medalist in martial arts at the 2000 World Cup Games. He offers Buda Khi classes at his World Training Center, 140 S. Girls School Road (www.ljeasleyswtc.com), Core Fitness Club in Mooresville, Brick House Fitness in Indianapolis and Microtel Inn & Suites. He describes the class as a total body workout, concentrating on the upper body and core. He also offers private and group karate and self-defense classes.

This exercise, demonstrated by instructor Tara Shepard-Long, strengthens your quads, inner thighs, abs, forearms and shoulder muscles.

Step 1: Stand with your feet about two feet apart in the "horse stance," as if straddling a horse. Bend your knees at a 45-degree angle and hold your arms at waist level, slightly bent, with your fists facing upward and elbows back.

Step 2: Bring left arm up above the head at a 45-degree angle, with the palm facing down and the other hand at your waist. Keep your knees bent.

Step 3: Reverse arms, bringing your right arm up and the left arm back to the waist level, with your fist facing upward.

Repetitions: Repeat exercise rapidly for at least 30 seconds.

Tips: Keep abdominal muscles tightened and your back straight. To make the exercise harder, spread your feet ****her apart.

[MasterKiller]

I would Buda Khi a few of his students.

[sanjuro_ronin]

I would Buda Khi a few of his students.

I hear those hand/wrist wraps are good for Carpal Tunnel syndrome

[Lucas]

or maybe the Buda Khi bowling team...

[GeneChing]

Does this mean you run really really slowly?

Chi running a new way to pound the pavement
By Krista Charke, Daily NewsAugust 6, 2009

Efficiency and relaxation are the focus of new running clinic workshops popping up in Nanaimo, across Canada and around the world.

Chi running is the brain child of American ultramarathoner Danny Dreyer, who after several years of practicing TaiChi, began to combine the techniques used in TaiChi with his running. The new running style is said to be easier on the body and benefits are noticed immediately. There are only five certified instructors in Canada and Nanaimo's Donna Spencer of Women's Pace is one of them.

The 53-year-old running coach has put hundreds of thousands of miles on her legs and body over the years, pounding the pavement because of her passion to run. But it has not been so easy and pain free since she discovered the practice of Chi running.

The main idea is to work with gravity and let it pull you forward, while the position of your feet will stop you from falling. It sounds a little scary, being a bit of a klutz myself, but I always say I'd try anything at least once, especially if it might make me feel lighter on my feet. Instead of pushing off the ground with your toes, the mid-foot is supposed to peel off the ground. That is just one of many techniques to learn.

When it comes down to it, it's about paying more attention to ones physical alignment and mental relaxation during a run, than speed. Although, Spencer proclaims her pace has actually increased since she began studying Chi running in September.

"Now I feel like the earth is spinning underneath me. It makes you a faster and more efficient runner. " she said.

Spencer's Chi running workshops are open to all levels of runners from beginners to advanced. The next class will be at the Nanaimo Aquatic Centre from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Aug. 23.

For more information or to register call 250-713-9453.

[GeneChing]

Chi Running is impossible to search on this forum. Danny Dreyer is easy.

Chi running marries method and mindfulness
By Dorene Internicola
NEW YORK | Mon Sep 17, 2012 5:41am EDT

(Reuters) - Chi Running evolved when a tai chi-practicing ultra-marathoner decided to apply principles from the Chinese system of slow, smooth movement to his running.

The resulting method, which enthusiasts hail as effortless and injury-free, is as specific in form as it is insistent on going with the flow.

"My goal is to turn running into a mindful practice, like tai chi or yoga" said Danny Dreyer, the runner and coach who developed Chi Running and wrote the "Chi Running" book.

"We teach focus: how the arms are held, why the hips and shoulders are relaxed," he said. "It's about learning to pay attention."

Dreyer, who is based in Ashville, North Carolina, said more than 200 instructors worldwide teach his technique, which enlists the Chinese principle of "chi," or energy flow, to reduce injury and enhance ease of movement.

"In tai chi, everything moves from center," Dreyer said. "Runners are used to running from their legs. When I switched to (running from) the core, it changed how I ran. I felt better."

Correct alignment is a tenet of chi running. Posture is the first thing Dreyer works on with clients.

"If posture isn't good, the support system isn't good," he said. "Any weakness or misalignment will really affect you because you're always on one leg," he said, noting that running injuries happen from the knees down.

In his method a forward tilt from the ankles moves the runner's center of mass ahead and allows gravity to take on more of the body's weight.

"The body gets to fall," Dreyer said. "All you have to do is lift your legs."

He also teaches landing with a mid-foot strike to engage and balance the entire foot.

If you're new to running, Dreyer suggests starting with a walk/run sequence to allow the muscles to adjust.

"Run 'til you feel tired, walk 'til you feel recovered," he said. "Our system is based on sensing your own body. If your body says it's too fast or time to go home, you listen."

A runner for 20 years, Chris Griffin said before he discovered Chi Running he was getting injured "on a regular basis." Now he's running injury-free, and faster.

"I knew how to use my body but not how to listen to it," said Griffin, who teaches the method in Marin County, California. "Being focused changed my running from a sport to a practice."

He no longer waits for his body to "crash" to pay attention. Griffin said he doesn't do tai chi but is always "playing around with the energy," and cultivating mindfulness in non-running situations.

"How do I stand in line at store? How do I interact with people? If I'm picking up a bag of groceries I'm trying to be emotionally and mentally aligned," he said.

Connecticut-based exercise physiologist and running coach Tom Holland is a fan of the mind-body connection Chi Running cultivates, but falls out of step with what he sees as the one-stride-fits-all method.

"I think there's no one way to run," said Holland, author of "Beat the Gym" and "The Marathon Method."

He cited a recent study that placed a camera at the 20-mile (32-kilometer) mark of the Boston Marathon.

"It showed all the top runners and not one of them ran the same way," he said. "The truth is there is no one way to do it." Holland believes modern runners' injuries stem mostly from imbalances brought on by inactivity.

"Running is the purest example of what our weaknesses are," he said, most commonly in strength or balance or flexibility. "If we go out for a run and I'm not correcting form people will feel it. Then we fix it."

Sports-specific, strength training exercises work for many people, he said, adding that there's a wealth of such programs available in books and online.

"So many peoples say ‘just run,'" he said. "No one taught the cavemen how to run...But if you're not built for it you're going to have problems."

Dreyer wants his method to connect us with how we ran as children.

"Kids have gorgeous running form and they don't get hurt," he said. "As kids we all ran really well."

[GeneChing]

I poached all the threads above this one from our New Hybrids because these incorporate Tai Chi. Hopefully I'll remember to post future Tai Chi Hybrids here and not there.

Eccentrics combines ballet, Tai Chi, Pilates and more
POLLY KOLSTAD 10:09 p.m. MT March 14, 2017


(Photo: TRIBUNE PHOTO/RION SANDERS)

Kimberly Woodring moved north from Albuquerque last June and brought Eccentrics with her. Eccentrics is a form of fitness that stretches muscles dynamically, incorporating ballet, tai chi, Pilates, physical therapy, and chiropractic therapeutics.

“We use imagery tasks as examples and work on 650 muscles, the joints, the neuromuscular system,” said Woodring, who started with just a few clients and now has 20 to 3 people, as young as 12 and as old as 90.

Eccentrics is part of athletes lives: National Hockey League, pro golfers, divers, squash players, and many performance athletes. Eccentrics is designed to help every person.

Eccentrics involves intensive training in order to teach. There are 1000 instructors worldwide. It takes four years to be fully certified.

Kimberly defines Eccentrics as a scientific technique of which she is a “stretch specialist.”

Question: How long have you been doing Eccentrics?

Answer: I have been doing Eccentrics for five years and teaching for four years. I am now a mentor and have 1,000 hours of practice.

Q: Why did you start doing Eccentrics? How did you get started?

A: I was really sick and quit my job. I couldn’t sleep. I had severe balance issues and my weight had dropped to 89 pounds. I looked on TV to see what I could do. I found Miranda White on PBS. I saw the benefits.

Q: What is your weekly training routine?

A: I spend two days a week, two hours a day practicing and standing with doctors and instructors. I spend a lot of time practicing what I want to teach like rehabing a shoulder, choreographing what the client needs. We do everything in a pumping motion, but keep the heart rate low (120 -130, like Tai Chi) slow controlled motion. I also teach spring board classes, resistant training and stretching classes.

Q: What other activities do you do?

A: I used to be a special education teacher. I like to fish, boat, hike. My husband is military. We just retired here. We have a houseful of animals.

Q: What keeps you motivated?

A: My clients: every single day they hug, cry, saying “you have no idea what it is like to have no pain.”

Q: Have you faced any setbacks or had any injuries with Eccentrics?

A: I have not had any injuries or setbacks.

Q: What tips do you have for someone who wants to get started with Eccentrics?

A: Eccentrics is designed as a healing form. There are no prerequisites. You can come to my classes. Eccentrics can help every person. Eccentrics is part of athletes lives: National Hockey League, pro golfers, divers, squash players, many performance athletes take Eccentrics classes. It involves intensive training in order to teach. There are 1,000 instructors worldwide. It takes four years to be fully certified.

You can do a lot online. Miranda White’s class is the No. 1 fitness show on PBS. You can also check out White’s books: Aging Backwards, and Forever Pain Free. There is a massive online college at Estes Park and Cancun, Mexico. Come to class. Don’t be bashful; come in and see it is a feel good exercise; two way stretches teach you so you are not going too far. You will feel amazing afterward.

Q: What health benefits have you seen since you started doing Eccentrics?

A: I am super flexible; it has made me stronger; I have lengthened my muscles; I look like I have lost weight; my balance is much better. My range of motion has improved. Overall, I feel healthy.

Q: Do you have any warm-up or cool down exercises for Eccentrics?

A: I always warm-up for three to four minutes to loosen and relax. Relaxing is the only way to go deeper into a stretch. I have to teach people how to relax; how to loosen the entire body. For the cool down: I do some floor work, some barre work, and some standing work. This is all good for hips and ham strings. Everybody lies down. You must become aware of your body, which can be tight or stiff. We do a lot with connective tissues.

Q: How do you incorporate nutrition into the practice of Eccentrics?

A: For me I use Isogenics, one shake a day because I’m working out in the gym. I am healthy as possible. I have Celiac disease, so I have to cut out all grains. I don’t eat much sugar. I get natural sugar from fruit.


Eccentrics classes at Access Fitness

Monday: 6:30 - 7 a.m.

Tuesday: 10:35 - 11:35 a.m.

Wednesday: 6:30 - 7 a.m.; 6 - 7 p.m.

Thursday: 10:35 - 11:35 a.m.

Friday: 10 - 11 a.m.

Classes are free with Access Fitness membership or $6 per class.

Private training with Woodring is $35 per hour or package of 10 for $250.

Other classes are taught in Montana in Bozeman and Billings.

[GeneChing]

Get Moving: New Zen Fit class combines tai chi, cardio
A brand-new fitness program will begin at Capital Ritz Dance and Banquet Center at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 21, and the first class is absolutely free to attend.
by Hu Cheng For the News Tribune Feb. 4 2020 @ 12:05am



A brand-new fitness program will begin at Capital Ritz Dance and Banquet Center at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 21, and the first class is absolutely free to attend.

Zen Fit is a unique fusion of peaceful yet powerful, traditional tai chi movements and light cardio training set to motivating music.

Is your mind full all the time?

Do you need a break to recharge?

Yes, we all do.

A short break can reset your energy and guide you in the right direction in your work or life.

Zen Fit was created by local martial arts instructor, Hu Cheng, who drew inspiration from Jet Li’s program ‘Tai Chi Fit,’ traditional, yang-style tai chi and cardio fitness classes he has taken since moving to the United States in 2014.

In October 2019, Cheng demoed this program for the first time and is excited for the positive feedback and opportunity to teach it regularly in Jefferson City.

This class was intended to fuse together what he has learned about American fitness classes and what he learned in a traditional setting in China, and is suitable for ages 10 and older. It is easily modified for all levels of experience.

Find out more about the Zen Fit event by finding it on Facebook. Check out the Shifu Martial Arts Center at Facebook.com/shifumartialarts. You can also check out the Tai Chi of Holts Summit Lions Club page on Faceboook for more information, or email taichimidmo@hotmail.com.

Hu Cheng spent five years learning martial arts at The Shaolin Temple in China before competing internationally. He held the lead role of ‘Chun Yi’ in The Legend of Kung Fu show, now permanently homed in Beijing, China, at The Red Theatre. Cheng has been teaching tai chi locally for four years at the Holts Summit Lion’s Club every Tuesday evening and also offers individual shaolin kung fu lessons. Email taichimidmo@hotmail.com for full details or visit Shifu Martial Arts Center page on Facebook.

I had issues with Jet Li calling his program 'zen'. It's kinda like lasagna sushi mixing cuisines. Actually, being Californian, lasagna sushi is probably a thing.