Ouch

[onefixedstar]

We finally started really getting into tai chi tonight, five weeks after classes started. I think it's actually quite legitimate to spend four weeks on warm up exercises--once up on a time, people probably spent months doing warm ups before they began the actual routine--but one tends to get impatient when it's only an eight week class. We've now done four of 108 movements, which is very exciting.

Also exciting was me passing out in the middle of the class. Well, actually, it was near the beginning. I hit my chin pretty hard on the floor. It's looking kinda lopsided now, and I suspect it will be worse in the morning. Painful, too. I think the root cause of the passing out was dehydration. I did some cardio before the class, and probably didn't drink enough water afterwards. Plus, on the previous occasion this happened, the doctors told me that it was dehydration. This gives me confidence in my decision not to go to the doctor this time. I may, however, start taking my water bottle into the gym instead of leaving it at my locker.

Comments

[steninja.livejournal.com]

!!! You need to take care of yourself!! You think you are taking care of yourself by working out, but if you don't do it properly (ie by keeping yourself hydrated) you might as well not do it at all!

grr..

[onefixedstar.livejournal.com]

Well, yes. But to be fair, I've only passed out once from working out in 4.5 years of doing so regularly. That's not completely terrible. I will be more careful next time, however.

[stillvisions.livejournal.com]

Eek... hope you're feeling better from things...

What school/style are you doing? If you're doing the Taoist form, they like to go really slowly, but that's a discussion/rant for another time, and likely offline to avoid any flamewars/legal action [grin]...

[onefixedstar.livejournal.com]

I am feeling better, thanks. And taking care to eat and drink properly today.

I believe we're doing Wu style. The guy teaching it does a whole range of traditional Chinese medicine.

One thing I do enjoy is his demonstrations of the fighting applications of the various movements. It's kind of fun. ;)

[(Anonymous)]

Wu's a good form to work with - generally any of the family lineages are. I guess they want to make sure you're not overwhelmed by the form.

Our class' lesson format each day was

1: warm-up
2: do entire form
3: break down and practice one move in whole form

It works well, as long as you're willing to be clueless for the first while and just flail in the right direction for a while, and the class has enough people who know the form to post at the four sides of the group so everyone can see one person doing the right thing.

The fighting applications are always neat to see - it puts the moves in the right perspective :)

[onefixedstar.livejournal.com]

The class I'm in is a beginner's class run through Hart House. I suspect that has a lot to do with the way it's structured. We can't do the whole form because only the instructor knows it.

The argument he made for spending four weeks on warm up was that without the warm up exercises, we wouldn't be able to taste the movements properly.