I have practiced martial arts for 33 years and meditation for 25 years. I am fluent in Mandarin Chinese, and have lived over two decades abroad, studying meditation, meditative movement techniques such as Tai Ji Quan, Qi Gong, and Ba Gua Zhang, as well as psychology, and mixed martial arts.
I am passionate about reintegrating mindfulness and meditation with martial arts, as historically taught across many cultures by masters such as Samurai and Zen practitioners, Shaolin Temple monks and Chan Buddhism, and practitioners of Traditional Iranian Wrestling and Sufism, among others. I believe the art of martial arts involves inner peace and an understanding of self while having the capacity for and the skill of self-defense.
So why should everyone - not just me - try these incredible movement practices?
Who is Tai Ji for?
Tai Ji (Tai Chi) is for anybody who wants to practice mindfulness and reconnect with their body and mind. And it is especially for people who want to work on balance and posture. Regular Tai Ji practice translates into mindfulness you can carry throughout your whole day. Keeping that connection helps you start to become more aware of when you’re not in your body. You become eventually aware of self talk and your emotional states and reactivity throughout the day toward internal and external triggers. How could this practice NOT be good for all people?
Where did it originate?
The story goes that Tai Ji is an extension of Qi Gong - which is basically energy work. We have energy in our body that is circulating. It originated in China and monks used it as a way to preserve health and to pursue longevity. A lot of Tai Ji (aside from the weird esoteric stuff) fundamentally is all about being present with your body and trying to maintain an awareness and a peacefulness - balance of the forces between your internal and external environments.
And, Tai Ji is different from Qi Gong because it has more martial arts movements included - fine tuning the technique or form using mindfulness and being detailed in the movements.
How Does it Work?
It's all about neural structures - basically, it's a use it or lose it type of thing - the cells that fire together wire together. Practicing Tai Ji allows you to create those neural structures and fire many of your cells all at the same time - channeling that flow.
Tai Ji essentially takes the internal power and awareness you create in Qi Gong and then transforms it into movement patterns to help you move in a much more efficient way.
Why Tai Ji?
Here's the bottom line - Responding to external stimuli is easier when you have balance and peace. You can see things coming from a mile away and be able to choose not to react. What a blessing!
A Little More About My Journey
After graduating from UNC-CH in 2001, I moved to China to deepen my study of Tai Ji Quan and meditation. While in China I was fortunate enough to learn of and apprentice under Yang Chen Long, a humble master of Chinese Traditional Medicine, meditation, and movement meditation.
Stuart with his Tai Chi teacher Yang Chen Long, taken in 2007, 2008, and 2018
While living in China, I began coaching strength and conditioning to my fellow MMA teammates. This organically evolved into helping others on their fitness journeys as clients at local gyms around Yunnan, Kunming.
I later earned my Post Baccalaureate in Clinical Psychology from UC Berkeley and now I integrate elements of Performance Psychology with movement meditation instruction.
I have been a lifelong practitioner of combat sports, training alongside professional athletes and world champion UFC fighters. With decades of experience teaching martial arts in China, Thailand, and at the UFC Fit Gym in San Diego, I now have the opportunity to share my passion and expertise with our community here in N.C.
You can find me coaching Strength & Conditioning workouts, mixed martial arts concepts, and Tai Ji to my clients and in my classes at FIT Carrboro. Reach out to schedule a session for yourself!
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