Choosing a School

[ROCK]

New to the discussion board. If this has already been asked, please excuse me.

When looking for a qualified Tai Chi school, what characteristics and/or questions should I ask to insure I get good quality training and not some fly-by-night instructor?

Thanks.

[JerryKarin]

This is a very good question and I'm sure you'll get some great suggestions here. One thing that conditions the answer is another question: what are looking to get out of taiji? Taijiquan is a multi-purpose exercise and people come to it with different goals. Some are interested in taiji as a martial art and want to learn self-defense and other fighting techniques. Some just want a solo exercise to get in shape. Some want to improve their health or treat some physical symptom, such as arthritis. And so on. How you reply to this will change the nature of the criteria you use in your search for a teacher.

[ROCK]

My primary requirement is for health and conditioning and for stress relief. I was a powerlifter for 10 years; I have a lot of joint ailments since I have stopped heavy lifting. I would like to stay one step ahead of arthritis. Secondly, I have taken sveral different arts from Kickboxing to Wing Chun style Kung Fu. I would like to draw from it some good additives to compliment my self-defense and fighting techniques.

Thanks for the reply.

[JerryKarin]

OK, sounds like the martial part of it is not your main goal, but it is something you would like to have included in there (sounds like me). In that case you should proceed as though you were looking for someone who does self-defense and applications. In other words you want a teacher who is competent in all aspects of taiji, not just health.
We used to have a teacher database on the yangfamilytaiji site, but it seems to have disappeared.

[ROCK]

Great, thanks for the reply. I came across a teacher last night who actually lives close to me. I have attached his website.
Thanks again!

www.flyingeagleacademy.com