Deepen Your Practice • Strengthen Your Structure • Build Confidence in Movement

This 4-part workshop series is designed to help both new and continuing Tai Chi students deepen their understanding of the essential foundations of Tai Chi. Each session focuses on a different pillar of Tai Chi form, structure, and coordinated movement. Whether you’re just beginning, looking to refine your skills, or wanting to catch up after missed classes, these workshops offer the kind of detailed breakdowns and guided practice that go beyond what a standard class can provide. Each workshop is followed by the regularly scheduled 4:30–5:15 PM Tai Chi class, giving students a chance to immediately apply what they’ve learned.

Workshop 2 of 4 — The Trunk: Upper Body Alignment & Movement Flow

Building upward from the roots, this workshop focuses on The Trunk—the waist, spine, shoulders, arms, hands, and head—and how upper-body structure supports smooth, coordinated Tai Chi movement. Participants will explore proper spinal alignment, shoulder positioning, head placement, and basic hand structure, along with fluid transitions between movements.

This second session also introduces and practices several foundational Yang Style Tai Chi hand energies, including Ward Off, Roll Back, Press, Push, Pluck, and Split, with discussion of their martial origins (for context and understanding only, not self-defense instruction). Emphasis is placed on the idea that the hands do not perform the technique—they express what the body is doing. By the end of the workshop, students will have a clearer understanding of how upper-body alignment, intention, and structure create whole-body harmony in Tai Chi. STAY for the regularly scheduled 4:30 -5:15PM Tai Chi class.

Registration: Tickets are $20 for this second part of the 4-part series ($25 for non-members). To register, please click the link below, call (818) 961-5353, or email info@q4-active.com. It's best to reserve your space early as space is limited.

Instructor: Andre Cronje is a Wildlife & Documentary Cinematographer and Tai Chi instructor. He has been studying and practicing Yang Style Taiji for over 20 years it has also earned his instructor certification in Wudang SanFeng Taiji-Kung Fu in China under Master Shen ShiXing. Andre believes that regular Tai Chi practice provides a solid foundation for regulated health and longevity in a disregulated world. Tai Chi and kung fu practice has been a fundamental part of his daily life as these principles are practically often used when stalking, tracking and filming wild animals.

Future Topics and Dates:

• Part 3 of 4: "Grasp the Sparrows Tail" (Date TBA)
• Part 4 of 4: Yang Style 24-Step Standard Form (Date TBA)