tai chi chuan

Every few weeks a new student walks into class carrying a two pound high carbon steel cutting jian they bought because someone on a sword forum told them all stainless steel is wallhanger junk. By week three of the Yang 32 form, two things happen. First, their wrist aches every time they...

A beginner question I hear every season: should my first jian be stiff or flexible. The honest answer is that flex is neither good nor bad. It is a job description. The trouble is that sellers use the same words for three very different swords, so let me sort them out, then give you a ten second...

A new jian showed up at my door last week, and before I even cut the tape on the box I caught myself doing what I always do: no scale, no ruler, just hands. Most buyers are in the same spot. The sword arrives, the spec sheet is buried in an email somewhere, and the kitchen scale tops out at a...

The question I get most often from new students is what length jian to buy, so here is the chart most schools use, plus the old way to check without a chart. 5 foot 0 and under takes a 26 inch blade. 5 foot 1 to 5 foot 6 takes a 28 inch. 5 foot 7 to 5 foot 11 takes a 30 inch. 6 foot and up...

I thought I'd share an article I wrote in around 2014, regarding footwork in Taijiquan, and how it might relate to the 5 elements creative/destructive cycle.

Laura Bonthuis is my girlfriend and a Dutch martial arts practitioner. Besides martial arts she was a very good Badminton player and won many tournaments and titles. She practised full contact kickboxing under a famous Dutch teacher Wim Scharrenberg ( brother of Koen Scharrenberg a Kyokushinkai...