I have, over the course of my life, taken five different Tai Chi (Taiji) classes. The two I took as school type classes (one at the U, and one through Granite's continuing ed program) didn't go too far. They were nice at the time, especially the one at the university, but they were both presented as just a taste of Tai Chi since they had limited time. The private lessons I took with George were... well, not terrible, but not great either. My opinion could have been colored because they were so expensive. Still, for it being a class of two, I really didn't feel like I got any more instruction than I had in my first class.
I didn't really expect to find myself enrolling at yet another dojo. Actually, I was all for branching out and finding some other class, martial art or just exercise, just a few weeks ago. I went as far observing an Aikido class- which I think would be a fun martial art if I were just looking for a fighting style. As for getting in shape and generally getting healthier... well, it was a bit too much of 'wait in line so that you can get thrown to the ground' for me to feel that this was the right class for me at this time.
That's what had me googling Tai Chi and finding a studio with a name that appealed to me. I was invited to try out a class, which I did, and afterwards it was an easy decision to join up. It felt right- and I'm generally only inclined to make decisions on feelings after I've exhausted facts and general pragmatism. Facts and pragmatism did help me out a bit, of course. Before I called to check out the class I saw that the price was something that I could afford, and that the class actually meets five times a week (we're free to go to as many or few classes per week as we choose). I haven't gone to the slightly longer class on Saturday morning yet, but four classes is a lot better than any of the other classes I've signed up for. It's a huge help since I'm really not a great self motivator when it comes to exercise. I'd been doing a bit better lately with my walking (which has sort of been replaced with Tai Chi, except for the weekends when I still walk), but really pushing myself when there's not someone there who could potentially nag me, I don't tend to really challenge myself, so I don't really get that much better.
I decided to write this up when I was driving home earlier this evening. In class today I showed off the fact that I am the least flexible person in class. I managed to stand on one foot for a total of 16 seconds (we were going for 2 minutes). My forehead was sweating so heavily during form practice that it seemed like my own body was trying to blind me. We weren't doing anything close to sparring, but I'd still say that I got my ass kicked today. The thing is though, that when I got in my car, turned on the AC, and started driving home, I noticed that I felt fantastic. I didn't hurt anywhere. I was sitting up straight without any mental reminders. I had more energy than I'd had for the rest of the day. I remembered feeling like that after the first time I'd taken a Taiji class and realized that must have been what I'd been thinking the entire time when I shied away from other classes for this and that reason. I wanted to do this, and because I want to do it, I'll be able to keep at it and actually improve things for myself.
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