the Form in a small space


Tai Chi is verstaile: it can be executed amongst peers, or alone. It can be practised in any space without the use of specialised equipment - outdoors, in a hall, at home. The Yang form can however, take up a reasonably large amount of area during the course of its entirety. Whilst this is fine for a hall or dojo, doing it indoors at home may present problems due to space limitations, especially if you cannot go into a garden instead. Different practicioners will find different ways of overcoming this, and indeed some may forsake the Yang form altogether for the Lee form, which in theory can be executed inside a square metre. For myself, I have adapted the Yang form only very slightly, in order that the complete sequences may be executed within an area of only 7 to 8 feet by six feet.

This is quite a small area for the complete Yang form (we have in fact done it within a smaller area than this!), however is feasible by following a basic tip: for each move that requires you to step forwards/back, etc. reduce the length of the stride by up to a third. This will not compromise the move, and your other body actions will find a balance for the decreased step. The following list describes the form using the tip above, plus key points where slight adaptaions are neccessary to keep within the space over the course of the following moves. They are the method by which I practice at home - others may differ or you may find your own way - so use this guide as a start only.