> Picking your T’ai Chi wardrobe

> Preparing mentally and physically for class

> Knowing what is expected of you

> Learning the terms

Choosing Your Tai Chi Wardrobe

Ultimately you can do Tai Chi in any kind of clothing, but certain clothing is suggested for class. Typically, Tai Chi students wear anything they want. It is helpful to wear something loose and stretchy and to leave jewelry at home; however, the rest is often up to you. The most common Tai Chi suit is a T-shirt and sweat pants. Spandex or body suits, although not prohibited, are not typically worn in Tai Chi.

Also, longer dresses can make it more difficult for an instructor to see posture or leg placement, but if your class is in an office environment, don't worry about it.

If you practice Tai Chi at the office, everyone will likely be wearing office clothes, but they will kick off their heels. If you go from the office to a studio or community class or if your company holds classes in an exercise area, bring some sweats and tennis shoes to change into.

Some studios, especially martial arts studios, may require more formal attire. If they do, they will direct you to a martial arts supply store that sells the appropriate garb, or the studio may provide them.

Considering External and Internal Hygiene

T’ai Chi has very few external hygiene rules, but internally, it is good to prepare yourself mentally |and emotionally by letting go of some myths about yourself and exercise.

External Hygiene

Unlike most other martial arts, Tai Chi usually requires no contact between participants. Therefore, hygiene rules are pretty much like daily life. You will be in fairly close proximity to others, so if your job leaves you a little ripe, you may want to shower prior to Tai Chi class. However, if you come to class from the office, there shouldn't be a problem. The only concern might be if you attend class at a studio that requires you to go barefoot. If you go straight from the office to one of these classes, you might just buy some handy-wipe wet towelettes and clean your feet off prior to going into class.

Don't wear heavy cologne or perfume into class because the deep breathing in Tai Chi may make it overwhelming to others. Again, jewelry should be left at home, especially jangly jewelry.

Internal Hygiene

The clutter in our mind, heart, and body is the most important thing to cleanse prior to attending your first, or one hundredth, Tai Chi class.

In the long run Tai Chi will help relieve allergy problems, but if you have heavy allergies and are heavily medicated, it may be helpful to lighten up on the medications prior to Tai Chi. That is, if your medications make your balance more difficult or make it harder to focus. However, never adjust prescription medication without your doctor's approval. If you haven't tried acupuncture for your allergies, try it. It can be a terrific nonpharmaceutical way to alleviate allergy symptoms with great results. Acupuncture treatments cannot harm, but can enhance your clarity or balance.

Tai Chi and Massage Therapy

Tai Chi is meant to loosen the mind and body and increase internal awareness (see the beginning of the DVD insert's Moving QiGong Warm Ups Excerpt for more on internal awareness). Tension disconnects the mind from the body. Therefore, you may find it very complementary to begin massage therapy prior to your first Tai Chi class and to continue massage therapy for the rest of your life. Most good Tai Chi teachers will advocate massage therapy as part of your Tai Chi training, just as many good massage therapists will recommend Tai Chi to their clients. You also will find that massage therapy will be helpful in relieving chronic problems such as allergies.

Sage Sifu Says As T’ai Chi teaches the body to move and change more easily and effortlessly, it provides a model for the mind and heart to change more easily, too. Therefore, as you continue with T’ai Chi, you may discover you eat healthier, drink more water and less soda, get better rest, adopt habits like regular massage therapy, and spend more time with people who make you feel good about yourself.

Resistance to Change

Tai Chi helps us change. Our mind and body get accustomed to the way we have always
done things, even things that are not really that good for us. Therefore, on a subconscious level, parts of us resist good changes that Tai Chi fosters because we don't want to let go of the way we have always been. Part of us likes to be a "couch potato" and doesn't like the way Tai Chi is getting us more involved in an active life. Resistance to change may manifest itself in many ways.

Resistance may do the following:

> Cause you to scold yourself, to tell yourself you are too clumsy, too uncoordinated, too slow, or too tired to do Tai Chi.

> Tell you Tai Chi is for other people who are better, smarter, stronger, or more coordinated than _you are.

> Tell you that the teacher doesn't like you or that Tai Chi is dumb and useless.

> Tell you that it would be much more fun to watch TV and eat potato chips tonight,
    rather than going all the way out to your Tai Chi class.

> If you miss a class, resistance will tell you, You're already too far behind; don't go back there.

If you hang in there long enough, however, you will discover that after nearly every Tai Chi class, you will feel much better than you did before going. If you become conscious of the voices of "resistance," you will be more likely to stick with Tai Chi.

"Wrongness" Is Our Culture's "Resistance"

Your Tai Chi progress will be held back by something that affects our entire culture. If you understand this, it will take a great deal of pressure off of you and your instructor. Most Western students are obsessed with learning the Tai Chi movements "perfectly," and this causes them stress, which slows their ability to learn and enjoy Tai Chi. In fact, we often convince ourselves that our attempts to learn are so "imperfect" that it is pointless to continue with our study.

Tai Chi will show you on a very basic level that you are never "wrong." You are growing and learning how to do things better and better each and every day of your life. Tai Chi is simple enough to use the very first day of practice, but its richness is so subtle that you can refine your Tai Chi movements for the rest of your life. Therefore, you do not need to "perfect" the first movement before learning the second. You learn a layer of the movements, and learning that layer changes who you are and how you function. Your new and improved self can then learn the movements at yet a deeper, more subtle level, and so on for years and years. Tai Chi leaves you in an endlessly blooming state of perfection.

Attending Your First Class

When entering your first class, you probably aren't sure what it will look like, how to treat the instructor, or what is expected of you. So let's look at these expectations one at a time.

Mainly, you will be expected to relax and enjoy yourself. You will also have a little homework, but as you'll see, this could be the best homework you ever had.

How to Address Your Instructor

The question of how to address your instructor has several possible answers. The safest way to find out what is right for the class you enroll in is to simply ask the teacher how they would like to be addressed.

The formal Chinese term for Tai Chi teacher is Sifu (pronounced see-foo), meaning "master of an art or skill." However, many Tai Chi classes in the West are very informal. Most instructors simply go by their first name.

If a Chinese teacher asks you to call him or her Sifu, this is not because of an ego trip. Actually, this is a great compliment. This means that they consider you a worthy student, and that is an honor.

Class Structure

Tai Chi is informal, and each class is different. Some classes begin with a sitting QiGong exercise, using chairs forming a circle. For this relaxation exercise, the instructor will likely lead the group through an imagery exercise as they sit quietly with their eyes closed. Other classes will not use chairs and may begin with a standing relaxation exercise, also with the student's eyes closed. Still other instructors may begin the class by leading students in warm up exercises without practicing a QiGong or relaxation exercise.

Ouch ! Your main goal in Tai Chi class should be to relax and breathe. By not trying too hard, you learn more easily. Students who frustrate themselves by mentally repeating that they "can't get it" usually prove themselves right. If you really can't learn the movement, just follow the other students as you breathe and relax. You'll feel good after class, and you can repeat the session again, and you'll be the expert in class the second time around.

How Are Tai Chi Movements Taught?

Tai Chi forms involve a series of choreographed martial arts poses that flow together like a slow motion dance. How these movements are taught can vary. Some classes are taught by example. Meaning, the instructor will lead the group all the way through the entire Tai Chi form, and the students mimic until over time they remember all the movements.

However, many classes are taught for different levels, whereby the movements are broken down into one or two movements per class. If you are an average learner, these classes are preferable. It is much easier to learn one movement at a time and practice it all week than it is to try to assimilate an entire Tai Chi form. I'll mention here that your learning will be much easier if you don't miss classes. It's easier to memorize movements in smaller bites. For each class you miss the bites get larger. View the Lesson Excerpts on this book's DVD insert to get a feel for how movements may be broken down in classes.

The following points lay out how Tai Chi is taught or might be studied, in an effort to help you get the most out of your classes.

> Warm-ups and relaxation techniques are usually repeated weekly, although if you practice these everyday on your own you will be all the better for it.

> The actual Tai Chi movement of the week must be learned and practiced on your own that week.

> Each week a new Tai Chi movement will be added to your growing form or repertoire.

> The form will get longer and longer each week until you learn the entire form.

> Long forms of 20 minutes take between 6 and 8 months to learn.

You Mean There's Homework!?!

Tai Chi class exposes you to the movements, then you must practice those movements at home. There are two ways to look at this: either as another burden on your life's full plate or as a chance to take a break from the rat race and let all the weight of the world roll right off your shoulders.

The very first movement you learn on the very first day of class is a fantastic QiGong relaxation exercise that can help you begin to dump stress, if you do it in the right frame of mind. If you only do the Tai Chi movement to prepare for the next Tai Chi class, it won't be that relaxing. However, if you breathe deeply and let every muscle of your body relax, allowing the burdens of the week to roll off your shoulders each time you practice the movement, it'll feel great! Refer to Tai Chi Long Form Lesson 1 Excerpt on this book's DVD insert to see how the first movement can be used as a relaxation therapy, even as you learn it, by including deep full breaths. Learning in this spirit can make all the movements become relaxation therapies even as you learn them. More on deep breaths in the DVD insert's Moving QiGong Warm Ups Excerpt section.

To learn Tai Chi, you will need to practice at home. But the reason we learn Tai Chi is because it feels good, so why wouldn't we want to practice something that makes us feel good?

Tai Chi Etiquette

Most instructors are happy to get questions during class. The rest of the class, or at least some of them, are probably facing the same uncertainties or challenges as you. A good instructor has been studying many years and may not remember all the challenges new students have, so your inquiries help him to help you and the other students. If your questions are criticisms of the format or structure, it would be best to offer them to the instructor personally after class. The instructor may not be able to fix it, but he may explain why it is done the way it is.