2026-07-12 Forum Qi You Can Feel: Tai Chi from a Chinese Medicine Perspective

We are excited to have Glenys Savage sharing her expertise with us. With nearly 50 years of experience, Glenys Savage is a respected practitioner of traditional Chinese Medicine and a Principal Instructor of Tai Chi and Martial Arts. Enjoy her presentation, you can contact her via our Institute’s email at service@tchi.org Dr Paul Lam’s Presentation Below is my presentation, I did not have time to go through all. Enjoy reading it, as it complements the video recording. Hello everyone, and welcome to our July Tai Chi for Health Forum. I have some concern about the idea of “feeling qi,” because everyone may experience it differently. Some people may feel warmth, heaviness, tingling, gentle pressure, a quiet flow, or a sense of inner strength and connection. Others may not notice any particular sensation at first. This does not mean they have no qi or that their practice is not effective. After all qi is life. Stronger and more harmonious qi leads to healthier and more harmonious. We should not chase unusual sensations or try to force qi. The most important guide is always to follow the Tai Chi principles, especially in terms of tai chi. To feel qi more clearly, first song the body and quieten the mind. Keep an upright posture, release unnecessary tension, breathe with dan tian breathing or naturally, and move slowly, smoothly, and continuously. Allow the mind to stay gently focused on the movement rather than becoming distracted. Another word to be mindful of the principles hence the qi. It can be very helpful to be mindful of the dantian, and the connection throughout the whole body. Notice whether the hands feel warmer, heavier, fuller, or more alive. Notice whether the movements feel connected from the feet, through the legs and waist, and out to the hands. Sometimes qi is experienced not as a separate sensation, but as better coordination, greater stability, clearer intention, and a quiet sense of internal flow and internal strength. We should not hold the breath or force it to match every movement. As the body relaxes and the movements become more integrated, the breathing often becomes slower and deeper by itself. Feeling qi can give us feedback about whether we are mindful, connected, focused, and moving according to the Tai Chi principles. This awareness can then help us cultivate qi more effectively. Tai Chi is a form of qigong, the key purpose, especially for health orientated tai chi, is to cultivate qi. The more correctly we practise, the more clearly we may feel its qualities—warmth, heaviness, quiet strength, balance, connection, and harmonious flow. Today, I hope we can explore what qi may feel like, how to recognise it without forcing it, and how following the Tai Chi principles can help us develop stronger qi, better health, and deeper Tai Chi. A very helpful way with deeper and more advanced tai chi practice is to cultivate qi most effectively, learn to convert it to internal force or the Jing and use this process to generate more qi, like waves in the water, one wave move the next with stronger internal energy. For example with Sun style Brush knee as in my Exploring the Depth of Tai Chi Arthritis and Fall Prevention.