The Tai Chi Notebook
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The Tai Chi Notebook features Reflections on Tai Chi, Xing Yi, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, and martial arts studies. Author Graham Barlow is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ), and a teacher of Tai Chi and Xing Yi based in the UK.
The Tai Chi Notebook
11h ago
I had a chat with Alan Wycherley from the In Defence of the Traditional Martial Arts YouTube channel for my podcast and the episode is now live. We talk about how Tai Chi can be used as a realistic self-defence system and Alan’s encounters with traditional martial artists from different kung fu systems ..read more
The Tai Chi Notebook
1w ago
No, it’s not scary clowns… or is it? I often wonder what most people’s biggest fear is in Tai Chi. Or what it is that stops them trying it out? Is it looking silly? Is it the fear of other people in the class looking at you as you struggle to get the movements? That ..read more
The Tai Chi Notebook
2w ago
Tai Chi as a grappling art Doing both BJJ and Tai Chi I love seeing moves from one art crop up in the other. Imagine my surprise when I happened across this BJJ seminar clip where the coach seems to be cycling unawares through a variety of Tai Chi moves. At one point he says ..read more
The Tai Chi Notebook
1M ago
A video that brings into question the legitimacy of traditional Chinese martial arts as real fighting styles was brought to my attention recently: The video by Rantwo is called “No, Pak Mei is NOT For Fighting”. And here it is: It’s a breakdown of a recent video by the Karate Nerd about sparring with Pak ..read more
The Tai Chi Notebook
1M ago
One of the first things I talk about when it comes to alignment is: Head over shouldersShoulders over hipsHips over ankles These three are the basic alignments for standing upright at the beginning of almost all Tai Chi forms and looks something like this (ignore the arm positions): Image taken from a free Zhan Zhuang ..read more
The Tai Chi Notebook
2M ago
The UK is having a bit of a women’s safety moment right now, and since I’m in the UK and it’s a topic that crosses over into my blog, I think I should address it. As well as being about self-defence it’s also about how women and female perspectives are often ignored by a male-focused ..read more
The Tai Chi Notebook
2M ago
My guest for episode 35 of the Tai Chi Notebook podcast is Edward Hines, a long time Baguazhang student of Lou Dexiu. Ed started training Bagua in Taiwan way back in 1991, and has continued ever since. He now teaches online at I-bagua.com and has books about Baguazhang you can find on Amazon. To frame ..read more
The Tai Chi Notebook
3M ago
It’s all about the needles Emei Mountain is the latest hot Kung Fu trend coming out of China, and a group of Kung Fu girls is leading the charge, according to a new article in China’s GlobalTimes. In April 2024 a video appeared showing nine female Kung Fu performers doing Kung Fu moves against the ..read more
The Tai Chi Notebook
3M ago
I’m pleased to announce I’m partnering with XMartial for BJJ and general gym-wear clothing. I’ve gone with XMartial because they have a genuinely fun range of designs, and also their website is full of people I actually recognise from the world of BJJ, like John Danaher, Jordan Preisinger from Jordan Teaches Jiujitsu, and B-Mac. Plus ..read more
The Tai Chi Notebook
3M ago
You can think of the Tai Chi form as an exercise in claiming your space. We rarely think of the space we occupy or move around in as part of ourselves, but it is. We often let others take our space, or give it away needlessly. We move out of the way when people walk ..read more