Tag Archives: exercise

Yang-style 28-step Tai Chi Fan

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This relatively new Tai Chi fan form, created in 2014, is elegant and short. It has many intricate and enjoyable movements, but no physically challenging moves, so it is appropriate for people of all abilities. It’s not very difficult to learn, so it would be a great one to start with, if you want to learn Tai Chi fan.

Above, Yang Li demonstrates the whole routine (beautifully!) in the first session of a video teaching series that used to be on a YouTube station called China Wushu. The series now resides on the Chinese Wushu Association YouTube station. The series:

Here’s the full playlist.

The name of the form is 杨氏28式太极扇:Yáng shì 28-shì tàijíshàn (Yang-style 28-step Tai Chi Fan). In my group, we call ited èr shì bā shàn (28 fan) for short. As you can see from Professor Yang’s demo, this form makes a very nice solo performance. It makes a good ensemble piece too, for group practice or a performance by three or five persons.

Here is a list of the 28 movements: PDF. Here’s my demo:

More Wu-style Tai Chi

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In my last post, on the Wu 45, I didn’t include the list of movements. Here it is.

吴式太极拳45式竞赛套路 (Wu-style Tai Chi 45-step competition routine) [PDF]

The Wu 45 is the competition form, so it’s pretty demanding. For beginners, a very short routine—just 13 movements, no kicks, no low form—makes for an easy introduction to some of the most important movements. When I practice this one, I add Cloud Hands after Fair Lady Works the Shuttle, before Single Whip.

  1. Qishi (beginning)
  2. Lanquewei (grasp the bird’s tail)
  3. You zuo lou xi au bu (R/L brush knee push)
  4. Jin bu ban lan chui (step forward, block, parry, punch)
  5. You zuo ye ma fen zong (R/L part the wild horse’s mane)
  6. You zuo dao juan gong (R/L go back whirling arms)
  7. Hai di zhen (needle at sea bottom)
  8. Shan tong bei (flash the back)
  9. Zhuan shen pie shen chui (turn around strike with back fist)
  10. Jin bu zai chui (step up and punch down)
  11. You zuo yunuchuan suo (R/L fair lady works the shuttle)
  12. Danbien (single whip)
  13. Shou shi (close form)
Amin Wu demonstrates the Wu-13

Master Wu also teaches Wu 24, which is very much like Wu 13 but adds opposites sides of needle at sea bottom and flash the back, plus both directions of cloud hands. She offers instructional videos on this form as well.

Traditional Wu-style Long Form

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[See my previous post introducing Wu-style Tai Chi] Each of the major styles of Tai Chi has a traditional long form, and all of the long forms follow the same deep logic. The Wu-style long form tracks the Yang 108 quite closely, so if you know the 108, the sequence of the Wu is easy to learn.

Outstanding video instruction on this form is available from Master Amin Wu. Here is a video of the whole form, demonstrated by Master Wu.

Her instructional series, very reasonably priced at just $20, consists of eighteen segments of about 12-15 minutes each. Purchase the series on Vimeo.

The instruction is in Chinese, but Master Wu’s demonstrations are so clear and detailed that you don’t need to understand what she’s saying. I have transcribed her list of the movements, totaling 93, to arrive at this list:

吴式传统93式太极拳 (Wu-shi Chuantong 93-shi Taiji – Wu-style Traditional 93-step Tai Chi) (PDF)

One note on the names: the instructional word 措 (cuò) is new to me. It’s used with 掌 (zhǎng) palm in moves 87 and 90. None of the usual definitions makes much sense–“to handle/manage/put in order/arrange/administer/execute/take action on/plan.” What you do is much like 抹 (mǒ), smear. I translated as “apply.” It’s a term of art; you just have to copy what she does. [But see George’s comment below!]

Instructional videos by Jesse Tsao are available in English from Taichihealthways.com.* I have studied these as well. Master Tsao grew up (from the age of six!) practicing Wu-style Tai Chi at the temple in Penglei. He teaches the long form in two hour-long videos priced at $24 each, also a bargain given the quality and detail of the instruction.

*At this writing, Jesse is revamping his website, but you can still get the videos here.

Here’s another demonstration of the full long form, by Master Fayi Chang: