Yang Family Tai Chi Discussion Board

Has anyone practice the form from de end to the beginning? That is, like a move running backward in time?

If so, is it of any use?

I've tried the first part and found it very interesting; both to the right and to the left.

Not for a long, long time.
I actually have practiced the form in mirror image much more often than in reverse.
As to whether or not it is a worthwhile practice...
I will leave that for better minds than mine.
I enjoyed it. That, alone, has got to be worth something.

"Not for a long, long time."

Do you mean that a long time ago you were able to do the whole form backwards? Did you learned it by yourself or with your teacher? Did you started learning from the beginning or from the end?

I try it by myself like this:
I do the very first movement and afterwards I undo it. Then I do the first and second movements and undo both and so on.

"Not for a long, long time" means that nearly twenty years ago, when I practiced a different flavor of TCC, a group of folks at that school decided to learn the form from the end backwards to the beginning.
We worked on it for about a year, with much help from our instructor, and we did a demonstration like that at a festival.
It was fun, it was informative and I really enjoyed doing it.
That said...
I sincerely doubt I could do it again to be honest, not without at least another year of practice and instruction.
I do mostly single form training in mirror image, though I just tried it and I can do Section 1 from Cross Hands to Opening without getting flummoxed up too badly.
I wouldn't even dream of trying Sections 2 or 3 though, too many kicks and low forms to work through in reverse.
I shudder at the thought!

A former teacher did the form from end to beginning as a form of training, self development and experimentation. From what he stated, I also so it as a neural-somatic integration to help with discovering form mechanics and memory enhamcement.

We were probably saying the same thing using different language dynamics!
Every time I try it I fall flat on my face!
Certain sections come naturally but for now I do the form from left to right.

[This message has been edited by shugdenla (edited 07-28-2008).]

Greetings,

I think that for a few people, training in reverse could be helpful for the reasons that Shugdenla has stated; however, I would be careful with going to far with this.

Can you learn to un-pour a glass of water? Would you want to attempt to teach your body the reverse of a golf swing or a tennis serve? Pedaling backwards down a hill on a bycicle? Do you want to train your body to continually lift Qi away from the Dantian? The physical parts may be reversable, but the Qi, intent, and spirit may not be reversible or maybe shouldn't be subjected to the attempt of reversal.

Take care,
Audi