Fascia vs. Force: Tai Chi's Hidden Secret Power Explained

Fascia vs. Force: Tai Chi's Hidden Secret Power Explained. In this video, Susan Thompson Tai Chi offers further explanation and clarification on how to easily move someone by connecting to their fascia, a long-held secret technique of Tai Chi. Regardless of her opponents’ size, strength, or force, Susan can easily move them with a light touch when connecting to the fascia. To better illustrate, Susan demonstrates the efficacy of different well known Tai Chi techniques that do not include connecting to the fascia, and then contrasts their efficacy to that of connecting to the fascia. The difference is obvious. Additionally, she provides step-by-step instructions so you can develop this skill yourself and incorporate it into your Tai Chi and push hands practice.
Many thanks to Phoenix Mountain Tai Chi and Shifu Lin for bringing together my skills and generously sharing his knowledge about the secret power of fascia in Tai Chi. Please check out his website. Also, special thanks to my late mentor and friend, Master William Ting, for teaching me the internal principles of Tai Chi and that showing me Tai Chi is much more than meets the eye.
Playlist: The Fascia Connection • Tai Chi Secret: The Fa...
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[@messengerstreetwalker9427]

a very excellent demonstration. we can learn a lot from this. many thanks to you Susan...

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you so much!

[@pdeclercq1967]

Thanks a lot for sharing !

[@InternalTaiChi]

You are welcome. Thank you for watching and commenting.

[@maradall]

This is very interesting. I'm an Aikido practitioner, (10 years - but quite a few years ago - including 4 years in Japan) - Ki no Kenkukai (Ki Society) style. We had Ki examinations, as well as the Aikido grading tests for each grade, and a strong emphasis on learning Ki. I've always thought that Tai Chi is the Chinese equivalent - but it's not easy to access these inner teachings. For an exercise like this, we would conceptualise it in terms of Ki. It works, too. But to make it work you have to learn some Ki techniques and practice them until they become second nature. Which were taught in a similarly matter of fact and replicable way to this demo. Now I am very curious, and I've subscribed! I've always thought of Ki as taught by Tohei-sensei as being quite dense and almost physical, not at all the more subtle energy that some schools talk about. The fascia is similarly very mysterious (to we westerners!) and managed by subtle biological energies that, while perhaps being explainable by physics, are not quite as mechanically physical as Western medicine conceptualises. At this stage of my life I am too old to want to step into a dojo again... but I still practice my taiso, and I love that those years of Aikido practice have helped me integrate some of those energy concepts into my being. So I look forward to some more insights and learning from this channel!

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you for taking the time to share a bit of your background and the crossover from aikido to Tai Chi. There certainly is a lot of overlap. I do want to clarify. This video is about the fascia and moving someone with the fascia. It is a purely technical and anatomical approach that does not involve Qi or Ki. Once you can successfully move someone by touching their fascia, then you can add Qi to the technique for a magnified result. Some of what you're seeing when I demonstrate is likely my Qi. That might have brought on the keen observation that you made. I can also move someone purely with Qi but that is a more advanced skill. Anyone can move someone by touching their fascia without the need for Qi. Adding Qi once you do have their fascia really creates a nearly magical result. Thanks for sharing your background and for your insight and comments. Wishing you the best of luck in your journey.

[@maradall]

@@InternalTaiChi Thank you for that clarification. I'm looking forward to learning more!

[@RocknRollkat]

Excellent presentatioin, this is turning into a (much needed) mini-series ! ....and fun to watch also ! Bill P.

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you! I created a playlist on the topic and it will be a growing playlist. I plan to do a Livestream on it and field questions. Fun stuff to come! Thanks so much for your support and positive comments, Bill.

[@RocknRollkat]

@@InternalTaiChi You're welcome Sue. Thsi is a much needed set of videos, since the topic is either considered 'fake', or completely misunderstood as trckery, voodoo, oriental mysticism, etc. And the few presenters who attempt to expain it are typically not good teachers. You're doing a fine job, thank you ! Bill

[@InternalTaiChi]

@@RocknRollkat Thank you, Bill! You are so right, most when looking at it just can't believe it is real. I understand because i used to think that too. And most "masters" don't want to share this technique because it does look so "mystical." It is time the cat is let out of the bag. ;-)

[@RocknRollkat]

@@InternalTaiChi Most 'masters' don't know this stuff, but you didn't hear that from me !

[@InternalTaiChi]

👍😄

[@hubysan]

Nice !

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you! :-)

[@paulpowell774]

Love the simplicity of your explanations, so strait to the point; or circulatory as maybe. Awakening the fog, and not lost in translation. A spinning top of deflection in infinity of movement. ♾⚧ Thank You🎇🐀

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you, Paul. What a lovely and poetic comment.

[@irap21]

Notice that her thumb was on the same spot for each demonstration. She was pressing on a pressure point. Fascia is connective tissue that keeps everything in place. There is no innervation (no nerves).

[@InternalTaiChi]

You are incorrect. If my thumb was in the same spot it was pure happenstance. I know very little about pressure points, but I do know about fascia. Fascia does, indeed, contain nerve endings. As you mention, the fascia is a connective tissue. Fascia surrounds muscles, organs, and other structures in the body, and it is richly innervated by sensory nerves. These nerve endings are responsible for transmitting information about proprioception (the sense of body position and movement), pain, and other sensations to the brain. This is one of the reasons why fascia plays a significant role in how we experience and manage pain, as well as in our overall body awareness and movement and why the technique I'm demonstrating in this video actually works.

[@ediliziamisteriosa3576]

Buona giornata e grazie per l'interessante video. Vorrei provare a dare una spiegazione a quello che accade nel video. Quello che il soggetto A deve riuscire a fare, è fare appoggiare al proprio corpo il soggetto B che vuole spostare e controllare. Il soggetto B non è detto che si accorga di essersi appoggiato, soprattutto se esercita una forza stringendo i polsi o una parte del vestiario. Una volta che il soggetto B si è appoggiato (anche pochissimo, per esempio un chilogrammo), il peso trasferito da B ad A, consentirà ad A di esercitare una forza di rimbalzo su B (che sarebbe meglio chiamare "energia" in quanto non esiste una contrapposizione di forza, quindi non esiste nemmeno una forza), che passerà all'interno di B in un punto diverso rispetto al punto di applicazione della forza da parte di B. In questo modo B si sposterà. La difficoltà principale sta nel farlo appoggiare e per farlo bisogna sviluppare la capacità di rilassarsi (credo che in lingua cinese si chiami "song"). In realtà, B cede parte del proprio peso ad A, in una situazione nella quale A e B sono la stessa cosa, cioè un'unità energetica, cioè sono lo stesso oggetto dal punto di vista della fisica, quindi non può esserci contrapposizione di forza tra A e B

[@InternalTaiChi]

"Grazie per il tuo commento e il tuo approfondimento. Quello che stai descrivendo è il "Peng" (terminologia cinese). Non sto usando il Peng in questa dimostrazione. Proverò a fare un video in cui la persona non si appoggia assolutamente, così potrai vedere che la tecnica che sto cercando di isolare e dimostrare è la manipolazione del partner attraverso la fascia. Certamente, a volte è difficile per me "spegnere" alcuni degli altri principi del Tai Chi come "Song" e "Peng", quindi potresti effettivamente vedere qualcosa di quello che hai descritto in questo video. Ma posso insegnare la manipolazione della fascia a una persona completamente nuova che non ha idea di come fare la strategia che hai descritto, ma che può effettivamente connettersi alla fascia e muovere l'avversario. Grazie per aver guardato, commentato e aggiunto le tue astute osservazioni!"

[@InternalTaiChi]

Penso che sia esattamente corretto! Si tratta molto di Yi - intenzione.

[@congamike1]

Thanks!

[@InternalTaiChi]

You are welcome. Thanks for watching!

[@cumaMyID]

can you add another angel and/or the picture about the place of fascia that we can "touch" to make someone bigger losing his stability and mass gravity ?

[@InternalTaiChi]

Sure! I will zoom in and show a different angle. However, you can touch the fascia anywhere on the body, not just the forearm. I will certainly create a video to demonstrate. Thanks for the suggestion and for watching!

[@DeadlyDuelsTV]

GREAT stuff!

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you! 😊

[@joachimgiesenkirchen5171]

Dear Susan, I am very impressed and fascinated by your presentations showing different impacts of Qi . I' ve been practicing QiGong and TaChi for almost 20 years quite intensly but I feel stagnating in my progress. Could you please give me (and the others) a hint, how to exercise or were to read an instruction to develop Qi that level. Thank you very much and please continue, producing that video tutorials. Greetings from Germany. Jo

[@InternalTaiChi]

Hi Jo. Thank you for your comment about my videos. Just to be clear, what you see in this video is not really an expression of my Qi (not fully anyway). It is more about Song and Fascia connection. To cultivate Qi, I found that doing Qigong, standing meditation and meditation really ramped up my Qi. You can go to my follow along playlist videos of Qigong and Standing Meditation to explore those. Here are the playlist links for those: Qigong Follow Along: kzbin.info/aero/PLH070fotpDAzPtosP0Od5VUiBAllxSWDN&si=rJlT88TVAMN1MsSX Standing Meditation: kzbin.info/aero/PLH070fotpDAx68sO_BBG4N70_godlGwg7 To cultivate the fascia connection, I suggest going to Shifu Lin at Phoenix Mountain Tai Chi website and taking one of his online courses. I hope this information helps. Feel free to reach out again!

[@joachimgiesenkirchen5171]

@@InternalTaiChi thank you very much for your helpful response. I even have been practicing Zhan Zhuang for a long time and I appreciate the benefits a lot. Thank you for the links. If I watch the videos about the "fascia force" it looks so easy but if I try it it does not work at all...🤷‍♂️

[@InternalTaiChi]

You are probably using too much pressure. Phoenix Mountain Tai Chi has a great online course on it. Or you can certainly email me for some more tips.

[@joachimgiesenkirchen5171]

@@InternalTaiChi 🙏 I thank you 🙏

[@40JoCharles]

Loving these, great work. Thank you for your generosity in sharing. 🙂🙏🏼☯️👊🏼

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you very much. Comments like yours help to keep me inspired to share!

[@alexallison7904]

THANK YOU TA

[@InternalTaiChi]

You are welcome!

[@joeholloway4558]

Hello, I am a student of Aikijutsu, and we have a similar practice of using relaxation when someone grabs us. This allows us to begin our techniques without triggering the resistance induced if strength is used. I am curious if he was relaxed and made his hands live with ki or chi projecting out the fingers instead of a fist. would you still be able to move him the same way?

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you for commenting. I always enjoy hearing about the overlap of other martial arts. Yes, the Qi or "Ki" can be issued in any way. I didn't need to open my fingers and fist. I only did that for the video so people could see when I began sending. Ideally I start sending before the person even touches me and there is no outward evidence or movement from my body that I'm sending the energy. It can be very covert.

[@KhadijahJoySams93]

Cool❤

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you! :-)

[@jerryp1641]

Really great! Who is/was your teacher? What style do you practice?

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you. My main teacher was the late Master William Ting. He passed away in December. If interested you can read his excellent book Essential Concepts of Tai Chi by William Ting available on Amazon. I practice many styles, Sun Style, Chen Style, a bit of Yang Style, but mostly Wuji Qigong which was Master Ting's. I have also learned from Shifu Lin of Phoenix Mountain Tai Chi most recently. He was able to pick up where Master Ting had left off. Chester Lin put my skills together into a context of applications and more. I also studied Dr. Joe Dispenza's work for several years and his work really ramped up my Qi and healing abilities. I studied with Jordan Mizner in Tucson of Wind River Tai Chi Chuan for one month and he gave me the gift of Standing Meditation to further deepen my internal underpinnings. I took Howard's Prana Dynamics course which I found challenging to learn from but which gave me the vision of what was possible. My other primary teacher however, has been Tai Chi itself. 70% of my practice and learning has been without a teacher. If we listen we learn from it and it teaches us. I hope this info helps!

[@marcelluswira317]

Hi I just new in taichi and I really like for internal martial art. I try myself and with partner and my son, but it's not working as expected. I'm curious this is because you touch the fascia so the partner not realize that he/she already push back. Or when you touch someone fascia correctly they are out balance and can't use their strength ? when I relax i can feel to move my fascia, elbow and body. but when I tense my muscle it won't work at all

[@InternalTaiChi]

You are spot on with all of your comments and what you are experiencing. Yes, the light touch to the fascia disrupts the balance system. Keep up the good work and trust your intuition. If you don't have success right away keep at it and use a light touch. Work with a partner that is cooperative at first and as you get better they can resist more. Feel free to ask more questions!

[@chadsshow2010]

this is really coool stuff.

[@InternalTaiChi]

Thank you!

[@chadsshow2010]

@@InternalTaiChi We will do this in the Morning when we awake. Aloha watching from Hawaii.

[@InternalTaiChi]

@@chadsshow2010 Aloha!

[@InternalTaiChi]

@@chadsshow2010 Thank you!

[@shalom-shalom]

Can you use this technique for healing ? Thanks 🙏

[@InternalTaiChi]

The application I am demonstrating is a martial art application. However, it is really the most simple use of the energy. To be clear, I am using a technique here that is not really utilizing my energy (except in one instance I do and I mention it). What you are intuitively picking up and understanding is that the fascia is sort of the conduit of energy. So yes, you can use energy along the fascia to heal.

[@shalom-shalom]

@@InternalTaiChi thanks, my thought was even simpler, use your intension through the fascia to heal his body or mind instead of pushing him ? 🙏

[@InternalTaiChi]

Yes but in that instance you do not even need to touch them. You can touch but it's not necessary.

[@spaideman7850]

good video but your opponent need to do intermittent fasting and daily walk(plus morning sun). obvious he is having some back/joint issues

[@InternalTaiChi]

Believe me I know. He engaged in the video only because I was desperate to make the video and none of my students were available. He was a good sport about it. He does not do Tai Chi.

[@Jan-bj4pi]

Hi susan, susan, I've read Dr. Joe books but can using the fascia for healing help direct the energy/chi to where you need it? Jan ❤

[@InternalTaiChi]

Dr. Joe's books are excellent for empowering us over ourselves and our own healing. His meditations (the older ones) really ramped up my Qi. My Master, former Master Ting believed and taught that we should not direct our Qi to a specific area. My thoughts are that the healing energy is wise and knows where to flow for healing. Fascia is one of the highways along which Qi flows. We just need to facilitate the flow of Qi by expanding ourselves via Song. Then trust it will go to where we need it most. 💞

[@joachimgiesenkirchen5171]

Which Dr. Joe Do you recommend?

[@InternalTaiChi]

I prefer his older stuff. His newer stuff (books and meditations) are a bit too out there for me. I started with his "Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself" book, and then I took his online Progressive workshop. Only then did I begin doing the two meditations I like most: Blessing of the Energy Centers (the older version) and New Potentials (again the older version). I still do these meditations when I need a healing boost. I do like his book "You are the Placebo." I first discovered him through his free 13 episode series on Gaia. I really liked how based in science he is. This what made me delve into his material more. I would advise against just jumping into his meditation without doing the preliminary reading and work. Like our Tai Chi work, the intention is just as valuable as the practice. Knowing the whys and hows behind the meditations are extremely important.

[@physicsforlife7537]

Actually How do we identify that we touch the fascia of a person.?

[@InternalTaiChi]

First try it on yourself. Once you can feel it on yourself it's easier to feel it on another person. I'll make a quick video on this question too. It's a simple yet really important question!

[@Choptron27]

Looking forward to seeing this​@InternalTaiChi

[@InternalTaiChi]

@@Choptron27 Thank you. I'll try to post something simple, and pretty impromptu. I'm on the road, but can video something from my phone. Hope to do it in the next few days.

[@reneecunningham6977]

😊

[@1965Cataldo]

Io ho provato, anche con un bambino di 10 anni, ma non sono riuscito a spostarli. Dove posso aver sbagliato? Eppure la tecnica sembra facile da eseguire.

[@InternalTaiChi]

Un bambino potrebbe non essere un buon punto di partenza. La fascia di un bambino è diversa da quella di un adulto. Devi muovere la pelle e uno strato sotto di essa, ma non così in profondità da toccare osso o muscolo. Gioca con essa su te stesso prima. Prova a toccare la tua fascia sull'avambraccio e poi collega quel tocco al gomito, poi alla spalla, poi alla colonna vertebrale. Una volta che hai questa sensazione, prova a muovere il tuo corpo da quella mano connessa attraverso tutte le articolazioni del braccio ricevente. Dovresti sentire un movimento del tuo corpo come se qualcun altro ti stesse tirando. Una volta che riesci a farlo su te stesso, prova la stessa cosa su un adulto che non oppone molta resistenza. Una volta che hai successo, puoi far aumentare la resistenza al tuo partner di pratica. --------- A child may not be a good starting place. A child's fascia is different than that of an adult. You need to move the skin, and one layer below it, but not so deep of a touch that you are touching bone or muscle. Play with it on yourself first. Try touching your fascia on your forearm and then connect that touch to your elbow, then your shoulder, then your spine. Once you have this sensation, then try to move your body from that connecting hand all the way through the joints of the receiving arm. You should feel a movement of your body as if someone else was pulling you. Once you can do this on yourself, try the same thing on an adult who is not resisting you a whole lot. Once you have success then you can have the practice partner increase their resistance.

[@1965Cataldo]

@@InternalTaiChi, innanzitutto grazie per la risposta. E grazie per aver risposto in italiano. Non credo che sia frutto di un traduttore informatico. E' troppo perfetta. Per questo due volte grazie. Comunque ho scritto che ci ho provato anche con un bambino perchè in precedenza avevo provato con un adulto e non c'ero riuscito. Proverò i tuoi consigli.

[@1965Cataldo]

Scusa mi è venuto un dubbio. Provando sul mio avambraccio devo provare a spingere verso il mio corpo o provare a tirare l'avambraccio?

[@InternalTaiChi]

@1965Cataldo Tocca il tuo avambraccio finché non pensi di essere appena sotto la pelle. Poi fai una spirale leggermente finché non la senti fino al gomito, poi immagina che si connetta alla spalla e tira o spingi leggermente. Il tuo corpo andrà nella direzione in cui spingi o tiri. Se il tuo tocco è troppo profondo, non funzionerà. Sto tenendo un workshop in diretta streaming di mezza giornata il 17 agosto dalle 9 alle 13 ora centrale degli Stati Uniti. Ti piacerebbe partecipare? Sto invitando solo poche persone. Farò il workshop di persona con alcune persone ma lo trasmetterò anche in diretta. Poiché fai domande molto interessanti, ho pensato di offrirti l'opportunità. Sto permettendo solo a 5 persone di partecipare in diretta streaming. Se non vuoi, va bene lo stesso, cercherò comunque di aiutarti!

[@InternalTaiChi]

@1965Cataldo Prego, sei molto gentile. Apprezzo il tuo impegno e interesse. Ammetto che sto usando ChatGPT per fare le traduzioni.

[@TaijiquanGaoshou]

no, don't buy it. too much preprogrammed response, the partner starts moving before any energy applied to him. try to move someone who doesn't know what you're doing.

[@InternalTaiChi]

Many of my videos are with individuals who have not met me before and have no idea what I'm doing and have no Tai Chi experience. This person knows me but has no Tai Chi experience nor did he know what I was going to do. What you are seeing, and unfortunately, misinterpreting, is when the partner starts moving "before any energy is applied" --- energy is applied. Energy can be applied in many ways. In this instance once I touch his fascia he immediately loses his sense of equilibrium. I can tell you are struggling to understand and wrap your mind around what you are seeing in my videos. That's okay. I used to be the exact same way....thought stuff I saw was fake. But I kept it to myself and had no need to post my perspective or try to tear someone down. Instead, I kept my opinion a little bit open. When I felt someone do this technique to me for the first time, I knew instantly I had been wrong. It was real! And then I wanted to learn how to do it too! Wishing you the best in your journey.