Anytime Tai Chi | Tai Chi for Beginners | 30 Minute Flow

Alright, so as always, don't worry about getting the movements perfect. Just follow along the best you can. I'll be your mirror image. You can have a seat at any time. You can even continue to follow along in the chair with the upper body so that you can stay in the flow. Alright, and so today we'll start off a little bit different. We'll start off with the feet about shoulder width apart. Maybe hip width, shoulder width apart, whatever's comfortable for you. Get as tall as you can, rising up through the crown of the head and then soften slightly. Soften the shoulders, soften the neck, slightly soften the hips and knees. Relax the waist. And then very gently begin to turn from the hips and the waist, letting the hands knock against the lower abdomen and the lower back. So this one's called knocking on the door of life. The door of life is an acupressure point in the lower back. When we knock on this point, it stimulates the energy throughout the body, sometimes called ringing the gong. Or in yoga, it's called empty coat sleeves. So imagine your arms are empty coat sleeves just dangling. Let your torso do the movements. So we're moving from our center, learning to soften, moving with efficiency, stimulating the energy, warming up the spine. And then you can slow it down, slowly coming back to stillness. Then taking a moment to feel into the body. You might already start to feel a little buzzing, tingling. That's the energy. And then from here, making two loose fists, the arms come out in front as the forearms come towards each other around the back. Then reverse direction, the arms go out to the sides as you open the shoulders and chest. Breathing out as you round, breathing in as you open. Or you can take as many breaths as you need. Spinal cord breathing. Once again, stimulating the energy throughout the spine, opening the shoulders and chest. Like a good morning stretch. One more time, spinal cord breathing. And then from here, the arms float down by the sides. Then you can place your hands on your hips and very gently beginning to rotate your pelvis in a circle. So loosening up the hips, the lower back, the whole lower body. Just making small circles at first. You can make them a little bit bigger if you want. But just letting go of striving, just loosening up the joints. Then reverse direction, the hip circles. Then coming back to center, letting the arms float down by the sides. Then begin to lift the shoulders up towards the ears and then let them fall back and down. The shoulder rolls. So this one's great for the upper body. It helps to release tension from the neck, the upper back, and the shoulders. It's great to do throughout the day. All right, one more time, the shoulder rolls. And then taking a moment, once again, to feel into the body. You can step the feet together or as close as you can. And then you can bring your hands to your abdomen. Just taking a moment to really feel into the body. Just breathing in and breathing out, whichever way feels good for you. Or you can do the belly breath. As you breathe in, the belly expands. As you breathe out, the belly returns toward the spine. Coming into the present moment. Arriving in the body. Just letting the thoughts come and go, like clouds in the sky. And then if you like, on the next inhale, you can hold the breath at the top, just for a moment. And then let it out with a big sigh. Just letting out tension and stress. The hands can float down by the sides. And as you breathe in, the arms float up. They circle in front as you gather in the energy. Bring it into the heart. Then send it down towards the earth, sinking the chi. Breathing in, gather. Breathing out, directing down. Once again, take as many breaths as you need. Just moving nice and slow. Feeling the sensations in the body. One more time, sink the chi. And then step one foot out to the side, either foot. The arms float up in front. The arms float down. The knees and hips soften. Breathing in, rising up, like mist from the lake. Breathing out, floating down like a gentle rain. Opening the door. Start of the journey. Breathing in, breathing out. One more time, open the door. This time, the arms float out to the sides like you're spreading your wings. The arms float down. The backs of the hands face each other. They float up the midline of the body and then drift out to the sides, the fountain. Breathing in, floating up. Breathing out, letting go. How much can you let go? Letting go of tension. Letting go of anything that's no longer serving you. We move like water, soft but powerful. Breathing in, breathing out. One more time, the fountain. And then this time, the fingertips point up. And very gently begin to turn to one side. One hand spirals forward, the other spirals behind. Coming back to center, rotating the other way, making the tiger claws. So very gentle rotation. Breathing in, breathing out. One more time, the tiger claw. This time, the fingers keep on going all the way up overhead, staying neutral. Then the hands spiral out and away from each other. Silk reeling, the upward spirals. Breathing in, rising up. Breathing out, softening down. Once again, taking your time, feeling all the sensations that you can, bringing mindfulness to the body. Really tuning in. You don't want to miss a thing. One more time, silk reeling, upward spirals. Then we'll reverse direction. The arms float all the way up and over. The fingertips point down. They come down the midline and then spiral out and away. The downward spirals. Once again, silk reeling. Spiraling the energy throughout the body, lubricating the joints. Feeling the flow. Breathing in, breathing out. One more time, silk reeling, downward spirals. And then circle in front, hug the tree, and soften. From here, the arms open up wide. The hands float down. The palms face up and they float up to the heart. One hand pushes up, the other pushes down. Connecting sky and earth. And then switching sides. Keeping the spine neutral at first. And then this time, you can do a side bend if you like. One more time, connecting sky and earth. And then the bottom hand floats up, push to the corner. The other hand pushes behind. Coming back to center, push to the other corner. The dragon spreads its wings. Gentle rotations, pushing to the corner, nice and easy. Nice and slow. One more time. And then from here, hug the tree, bring it to center. Shift your weight over to one side. Draw the hands in towards the heart as you step in. Step out to the corner as you push forwards in space. Drawing back in as you shift back. Pushing forwards, pushing the mountain. Breathing in. Breathing out. One more time. This time, the hands float up. They come up and over and then down in front of the body. Scooping under, gathering the energy, gathering the breath. Letting it wash through the body. The Tai Chi circling. All right, one more time. This time, step the front foot back in. The hands come back in towards the heart. Shift the weight, step in. Step out to the other corner. Pushing forwards in space. Pushing the mountain. Once again, taking your time, no rush, nowhere to go. Just being here now. Breathing. One more time. Pulling in and then pushing out. This time, the hands float up. They drift up and over, down in front of the body. Scooping under. Gathering the breath. Gathering the energy. Just imagine it. Washing through the body, giving us healing and vitality. Breathing in. Breathing out. One more time, Tai Chi circling. This time, step the front foot in, hug the tree. Bring it back to center and soften. From here, both arms float over to the side, drifting down, floating up to shoulder height. Other side. Once again, just taking your time. And then from here, the palms face away. They drift across the horizon and then down. Floating up, drift across, painting on the canvas. It's like you're making nice, gentle brushstrokes with your hands. One more time. This time, the hands float up and over like a big wave. The chin circles. Opening the shoulders, lubricating the joints, creating freedom of movement. One more time. And then reverse direction. The arms float up to shoulder height, palms face away. Then the hands drift across the horizon and down. Floating up, drift across, painting on the canvas. One more time. This time, the hands float up and over. The chin circles like a big wave. Really tuning into the hands, feeling the sensations. Feel the air between the fingers. One more time. And then circle around, hug the tree, head out in front. From here, the arms open wide. This hand here scoops under, step in as you catch the moon. And then step out to the corner. The bottom hand tosses the moon into the sky. The other hand pushes down. Circle it around again. Parting the wild horse's mane. Toss away. Breathing in. Breathing out. One more time. This time, the bottom hand floats up. The wrists cross. The arms float down, circling out and around, back up top. The princess on the mountaintop. Breathing in. Breathing out and just coming up as much as you can comfortably. Once again, letting go, striving. Just being here is enough. One more time. The princess on the mountaintop. And then step the front foot back in, hug the tree. The arms open. This hand here scoops under, step in as you catch the moon. Step out to the corner. Bottom hand guides the moon into the clouds. The other hand floats down. Circle it around again. Parting the wild horse's mane. Moving from your center. Letting the arms be soft. Feeling rooted into the earth. One more time. Parting the horse's mane. This time, bottom hand floats up. The wrists cross up top. The arms float down, circling out and around, back up to the mountain peak. Breathing in. Breathing out. And once again, take as many breaths as you need. One more time. The princess on the mountaintop. And then step the front foot back in, hug the tree. I'm here with the arms open wide. This hand here drops down and drifts over to the other side. The hands switch positions. They float across like clouds in the sky. The hands switch again. Wave hands like clouds. Softening the shoulders, softening the neck. Using only what you need. So we learn to move with efficiency and grace. Continuous flow. It's like the rivers in the ocean. Strong but powerful. Or soft but powerful. All right, one more time. Drift across. This time, the top hand makes a hook. Bottom hand comes up and then floats across the horizon. Palm turns out. Circle it around again. We call this one single whip. Drift across, palm turns up. This time, you can step in if you like. And then step out as the hand floats across. One more time, single whip. And then release the hook. The hand drifts over. Wave hands like clouds. Once again, taking your time as you step in. Drift across. Breathing. Letting go. This time, the top hand makes a hook. Bottom hand comes up, floats across the horizon. Palm turns up. Circle it around again. Single whip. This time, you can step in if you like. Step out as the hand floats across. One more time, single whip. And then release the hook. The hand drifts over. Wave hands like clouds. Once again, take your time as you step in. Drifting across. Staying nice and soft. Breathing. Moving from your center. This time, step in as you make a hook. Step out, single whip. And then circle around once more. Then this time, reverse direction. The back foot turns out. The front hand comes up and over, presses down, scoops through, and then back up. Circle it around again. The snake creeps through the grass. And as always, just going down as much as you can comfortably. One more time. And then this time, the hook floats up. It scoops down the back and leg, and all the way through. Other side. The hand floats up, scoops down through the dancing dragon. Breathing in, breathing out. One more time. And then from here, the back hand drops down and drips over. Wave hands like clouds. Once again, taking your time as you step in. Breathing. Letting go of tension, letting go of stress. This time, step in as you make a hook. Step out, single whip. Circle it around once more. Taking your time. And then reverse direction. The back foot turns out. The front hand comes up and over, presses down, scoops through, and then back up. Circle it around again. The snake creeps through the grass. All right, one more time. This time, the hook floats up, scoops down the back and through. Other side, the dancing dragon. And you can stay nice and tall if you like, or you can hinge from the hips, softening down slightly. All right, one more time. This time, back hand floats down, drifts over. The hands become clouds. Stepping in, drifting across. Just letting go of any tension you don't need. Breathing. And we'll drift across a few more times like a moving meditation. Wave hands like clouds. You can sigh out at any time, too. It's always encouraged. It's like a release valve for stress. One more time, wave hands like clouds. And then both hands float down, and then just keeping them nice and low as you drift side to side. Just being kind to the shoulders, letting go of tension. Soothing the nervous system. It's the gentle rocking motion. And then when you're ready, you can circle all the way around and hug the tree right out in front. And then from here, the arms open wide. This hand here scoops under. Step in as you catch the moon. Step out to the side. The bottom arm floats up until it's parallel with the earth. The other hand floats down, warding off. Circle it around again. Lifting and expanding. One more time, ward off. This time, bottom hand scoops under. Fingertips slide down. Circle it around again. Rolling back. Yielding. Receiving. Breathing in. Breathing out. One more time, roll back. This time, toss it away. The arms float out to the side. Then the hand folds in, pressing palm to palm. Shift the weight forward. Slide down. Toss away. The heels of the hands meet as you shift forward. One more time, the press. This time, the hands separate. Draw the hands in towards the heart and then push back out. Pushing the mountain, just like we did in the beginning. Coming full circle. One more time, breathing in. Breathing out. And then sit back and open. Wipe across the horizon. Take your time as you step in, catch the moon. Step out to the other side. Bottom arm floats up until it's parallel with the earth. The other hand floats down. Circle it around again, warding off. Tuning into the sensations we normally tune out. Bringing mindfulness to the bottom. This time, bottom hand scoops under, fingertips slide down. Circle it all the way around again. Rolling back. Receiving. Going with the flow. This time, you can toss it away. The arms float out to the side. Then the hand folds in, pressing palm to palm. Shift forward. Slide down. Toss away. Fold it in. Press forward. One more time, the press. Then the hands separate. Pull the hands in towards the heart and then push back out. Nice and easy. Nice and slow. One more time, just like the ocean. The tide rolls in. The tide rolls out. And sit back and open, wipe across. We'll do each movement one time, grasping the bird's tail. Step in, catch the moon. Step out, ward off. Roll back. Toss away. Press. Release. Pull in. And push. Sit back and open, wipe across. Other side, grasping the bird's tail. Each movement one time. Step out and ward off. Roll back. Press. Pull in. And push. Sit back, this time hug the tree, bring it to center. And then from here, the arms open wide. The hands float down by the sides as you step one foot in, coming on the ball of the foot. The arms float out to the sides like a beautiful bird. We call the crane. You can keep your foot down, or you can lift it up. As always, just meeting yourself where you're at. This time the arms can float up and over just as much as you can comfortably. And then stepping down, other side, the crane. Just the arms at first. Breathing in. Ah, breathing out. This time you can lift your leg if you like. Touching down as needed. Then the arms can float up and over. And then stepping down to center. And then reverse direction with the arms, circle in front, hug the tree. And step one foot out a little bit wider. And then from here, the hands come together in front of the heart, softening down. Then the fingertips guide the way as they go out to the side. And then scooping around to the other side. The dragon pierces through. We're shifting the weight, gentle rotation side to side. Really feeling into the body, nice and slow. Like you're piercing through the clouds. And then if you want, you can start to go up the mountain trail all the way to the mountain peak. So very gently, very gradually, the hands float up. And then going back down the mountain trail to the base of the mountain, nice and gradually going down the mountain trail. And then going back side to side. And then really tuning into the body. And then letting the energy guide you, the spontaneous dragon. Moving in any way that would feel good for you, that would bring you joy. You can continue to go side to side or just exploring. Bringing curiosity to your experience. Letting go of judgment the best you can. Breathing. One more time, spontaneous dragon. And then release, round out, hug the tree. And then step one foot in a little bit closer. And then from here, both hands float over to the side, drifting down. And once again, drifting side to side. It's a nice gentle sway. Breathing. And then making two loose fists. One fist goes overhead, the other in front of the waist. And then switching sides. Two loose fists, one overhead, the other by the waist. And you can look to the side if you like to. This time you can even lift your leg if you like, touching down as needed. Other side. The tiger hugs its head. This time, you can keep your foot down or even lift up a little bit higher. It's okay to wobble. Breathing in. Breathing out. One more time, the tiger hugs its head. Then the arms float out to the sides, drifting down. Palms face up, one hand on top of the other. This hand floats all the way up and over, down the center line of the body. Other side, breathe in as the hand floats up. Breathing out, centering. Calming the heart, calming the mind, centering. One more time. This time, both hands float all the way up and over just as much as you can. The hands float down to the waist as you soften. And circle the hands in front as you gather in the energy, bring it into the heart, to transform into loving kindness and self-compassion. One more time, opening the heart. Floating up, drifting down. This time, making a diamond shape with the hands in front of the heart, and then press out, sending out all your loving kindness to the world. May all beings be free from suffering. May they be happy. May they be healthy. May they live with ease. And then turning your palms to face yourself, the hands come to the heart. May I be kind to myself. May I feel connected with all beings. May I love myself just as I am. And the hands can float down to the lower abdomen. You can step your feet together, or as close as you can. You can close your eyes or just keep a soft gaze. Letting your body rock and sway like bamboo in the wind. Feeling the sensations in the body. Feel the sensations of the breath. And then bring your attention into your heart, creating an inner smile, expressing gratitude to yourself for being here today. And if your eyes are closed, you can slowly open them. The hands can come together in front of the heart. And we can finish with a bow. All right, and today's quote is from Thich Nhat Hanh, who said, sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy. So I really like that idea of not just smiling even randomly, but sometimes maybe at a stranger who you normally wouldn't, just thinking of it as an act of generosity. And if they think it's weird, most people will smile back, actually, I've found.