Tai Chi Bag Drills Video Series - Elbow Strikes Video

Here is the most recent video to go up on Youtube in our "Tai Chi Bag Drill" series.  This is the first video of the elbow strike section of this series and it focuses on elbow strikes that are directed forward.  We you you all find this video useful in your training at home.  Enjoy!  :)

Tai Chi Punching Bag Drill Video: 1 Inch Power Generation

This morning a new Tai Chi punching bag drill instructional video posted.  This video will teach you how to use a punching bag to generate good striking power over a short distance, which is a very important skill to have in Tai Chi, or any other martial art.  A new video for this free instructional series will post on my YouTube channel every Saturday at 9:00am until this series is complete.  We hope you find this video very useful in your practice and wish you the best in your training.  Enjoy!  :)

Settling Into the New KSW Karate Dojo

We have been holding our Tai Chi classes are the new KSW Karate Dojo in Jackson, CA since March of 2015 and we are absolutely loving the new location.  Each week there are little improvements made here and there as both the Tai Chi and Karate classes are settling in to their new training environment.  Today we took a little time after class to put up the Tai Chi students' rank certificates and a few old pictures.  :)

Yang Tai Chi Posture: Snake Creeps Down Video

In Yang Style Tai Chi the posture "Snake Creeps Down" is one of the postures that gives new students a lot of trouble.  It is a fairly complicated set of movements to coordinate when you first attempt it and it can be very beneficial to break the movements down and take them piece at a time.  In this video Andrew takes this posture from the Yang Tai Chi 24 Form and shows it as a line-drill (where a move is repeated over and over while moving in one direction for the purpose of perfecting the move) and breaks it down into smaller pieces.  He also shows a couple of variations for those who have strong, flexible legs and like lower stance, as well as for those who prefer higher stances.  This video is a part of the free Tai Chi and Qigong lessons that Andrew has available on his YouTube Channel.  We hope you find it very helpful in your training.  

A Beautiful Training Guide

We came across this picture today and had to share it.  It is a beautiful reminder of the proper mind set with which to approach any type of training, but most especially Tai Chi training.  There is a vast difference between mentally understanding how a technique should be done and actually being able to do it.  One of the most common things we hear from new students who are learning a new technique is, "I understand what I am supposed to be doing, but I can't seem to get my body to do it..."

The good news is, such a difficulty can be overcome through repetition, repetition, repetition......with a little extra practice in between.  You will receive little or no benefits from only understanding a move mentally, but if you do that move over and over and over, your body will be strengthened to perform the move more powerfully, you will begin to naturally understand how to do the move more efficiently, you will become more aware of your body's position and gain much better control over your body (which will not only improve things like balance, but will allow you to learn new movements more easily).......simply put, you will begin to actually experience, in a very deep and profound way, all of the benefits of Tai Chi that you have heard about.

Even more importantly, you will begin to experience the benefits that you don't often hear about, because they are not easily expressed in words and in most cases can only be experienced through determined practice and lots, and lots, and lots of repetition.

So, if you are waiting to hear the deepest, darkest, most profound, game changing, secret of the ancients that will catapult your Tai Chi training to the next level and help you realize all of the benefits that attracted you to Tai Chi in the first place......here it is....."Follow the advice in the picture below and don't ever stop following that advice."  ;)

New Dojo Pictures

This month the Pine Grove Karate Dojo moved to Jackson and began holding classes.  Today's morning Tai Chi class completed the first week of Tai Chi training at the new dojo location and we would like to share some pictures of the new facility with you.  :)

Here is the sign that we have up on Hwy. 49

This is the driveway leading up to the new Karate Dojo

Heading up this driveway, turn in the second parking lot on the right.  We are very excited about the large parking lot for training outside on days with nice weather.  We've had two classes outside so far and it has been amazing.  :)

The smaller portion of the building in front is the indoor training area.

Here is what it looks like on the inside.  

We are thrilled to have this new training area and we hope you will come join us for classes here. 

There have been some rumors that the Karate Dojo in Pine Grove closed, but the truth is, we just moved the Karate Dojo to Jackson and we are continuing to offer Tai Chi classes at the new location.

Help us spread the word about our new location, and stop by to try out a Karate or Tai Chi lesson if you live in or near Jackson.    

Pine Grove Tai Chi Classes are Moving to Jackson

The classes at the KSW Karate Dojo in Pine Grove will be moving to the new KSW Karate dojo location in Jackson in March 2015.  The classes at the Pine Grove location will continue through Friday, Feb. 27, 2015.  They will be put on hold until the move to the new location is complete and they will resume again on March 12, 2015.

There will be a schedule change at the new location.  The Friday evening Tai Chi class will be cancelled as of Feb. 28, 2015.  

The new schedule as of March 12, 2015 is:

Thur. & Fri. mornings from 9:00 to 10:30

The address of the new location is:

1510 S. State Hwy. 49

Jackson, CA 95642

Specific Dates Available for Private Lessons

Due to a heavy schedule, private lessons have been suspended indefinitely.  However, there are a few specific dates coming up on which private lessons may be scheduled.

The dates are as follows:

• Sun, Dec. 21, 2014
• Mon. Dec. 22, 2014
• Tue. Dec. 23, 2014
• Mon. Jan. 12, 2015
• Tue. Jan. 13 2015
• Wed. Jan. 14, 2015
• Thu. Jan. 15, 2015
• Fri. Jan. 16, 2015
• Sat. Jan. 17, 2015

For more details about private lessons, please visit the "Classes" page.

Or Contact Us

Congratulations to Our New Purple Sash!

On November 8, 2014 Kathy spent 5.5 hours testing for her first intermediate sash.  She worked so hard and earned every bit of her new rank.  Congratulations, Kathy!

13th Move of the Chen Tai Chi 27 Form (Video)

Here's the most recent upload for the Chen Tai Chi 27 Form instructional video series.  We hope you all enjoy it!

Move 12 of the Chen Tai Chi 27 Form (video)

Today the instructional video for the 12th move of the Chen Tai Chi 27 form went live.  We've posted it below in case you missed it on our YouTube channel.  Enjoy!  :)

Pan Gen Qigong Video Series (23 videos)

After several weeks of working on this series it is finally finished and available for everyone to enjoy.

As with the other video series we have posted, the first several videos in this series walk you through each stationary and moving posture of Pan Gen Qigong.  The last 6 videos are follow-along videos that contain no instruction and are simply meant to make it easier for you to schedule a video into your day, to make practicing easy to time and accomplish. 

Pan Gen Qigong (roughly translated as "Turning Foundation" Qigong) is for developing internal power and a strong root for internal martial arts training (such as Tai Chi).  However, the benefits of developing internal power and a strong root extend beyond martial arts training into everyday life.  It is believed in traditional Chinese medicine that ailments are a direct result of imbalanced energy flow through the body.  Because this Qigong set places a great deal of importance on developing your internal energy and circulating it through your body, and the postures aid in directing the energy to break up blockages, this Qigong set can easily be used for health purposes, as well as martial purposes. 

For the internal martial artists, the stationary postures aid in developing your root while stationary and the moving postures help you maintain that root while walking in a particular pattern.

I hope you all find this series and this Qigong set useful and I hope you enjoy practicing it as much as I do.  Enjoy! 

Foot & Ankle Strength, Stretch, and Balance Qigong Video

Here is a video of a short, simple exercise that helps strengthen and stretch the feet and ankles.  It's usually practiced after an extended standing Qigong session, but it is excellent for those who wish to improve their balance, loosen up first thing in the morning, or cool down after a run/standing workout.  We hope you all find it useful and enjoy it immensely as you practice.

Chen Style Tai Chi 27 Postures Form Videos

Here is another set of videos showing the Chen Style Tai Chi Chuan (Taijiquan) 27 Form, from the front and rear views.  This one is up at the request of those students who are currently learning this form in the morning Tai Chi classes at New York Fitness in Jackson, CA.  We hope these videos are very helpful as you all practice in your spare time.  Enjoy!


This video is a demonstration of the Chen Tai Chi 27 Form, from the front.




This video uses "line recognition" effects to help reduce distractions in the video and focus more on the movements only.  It is the same video as above, except for the added effects.




This video is a demonstration of the Chen Tai Chi 27 Form, from the rear.




This video uses "line recognition" effects to help reduce distractions in the video and focus more on the movements only.  It is the same video as above, except for the added effects.

Only 2 Days Left

If you have been following our drawing for a jar of Pure Gardens Skin Cream on facebook, you are already aware that there are only 2 days left to enter for a chance to win.  For those who are not following this drawing, or missed our last post about it, we want to let you know that there are still 2 days left to enter.  You can enter by visiting our facebook page and following the directions in our post from March 3, 2014.  Or by using the following embedded facebook post.

Post by Ancient Wisdom for The New You.

Best of luck to you all!

March Product Giveaway

During the month of march we have decided to run a product giveaway, via our facebook page, for a free jar of Pure Gardens Skin Serum.  This is an all-natural skin cream that your skin will fall in love with instantly.

To find out more about this giveaway and enter for your chance to win follow the link below.  We wish you the best of luck! :)

Post by Ancient Wisdom for The New You.

Basic Tai Chi Videos for Balance and Rooting

I have good news for my students.  I have just finished uploading a video series to Youtube, that covers the basic balance and rooting exercises that are among the first things students learn in class.  If you need to work on your balance, the exercises in these videos will be invaluable to you.  I hope this will be a helpful resource while you are practicing at home.  Enjoy!

Video #1


Video # 2


Video #3


Video #4


Video #5


Video #6

A Thought for Today

This picture says "kung fu" which is commonly thought of as a fighting style, but in Chinese it actually refers to any skill that take hard work over a long period of time to master.  So you can think of Tai Chi as your kung fu. 

Patience and  mastery are always more important than learning the next move.

Tai Chi vs. Arthritis Pain, a New Study

Here is an interesting video of a new study that is being conducted on the effectiveness of Tai Chi on arthritis pain.  Have a look.

Class Schedule Change

Effective AUGUST 19, 2013 classes at the KSW Karate Dojo will be changing.  The new class schedule will begin on August 19 and will continue indefinitely.

The new class schedule is as follows:
Monday 6:00pm  to 7:00pm
Wednesday 6:00pm to 7:00pm
Friday 6:00pm to 7:00pm

If you have any questions please contact us.  Thank you for being understanding and helping us make this transition smoothly.  We enjoy having you all in class and appreciate all of the hard work and dedication you put into your training.  See you in class.  :)