The Difference Between Yoga and Tai Chi

The core difference between yoga and Tai Chi is essentially that the underlying logic of their origin cultures is completely different - yoga originated from the religious practice system of ancient India, and its core core is "connection", which ultimately points to the unity of individual consciousness and cosmic consciousness.； Tai Chi was born out of traditional Chinese Taoist culture. Its core core is the "harmony of yin and yang", which ultimately points to the unity of human form, energy, and spirit, as well as the co-operation of the individual and the nature of heaven and earth.

I have been practicing both for nearly six years. While following the legacy of Chen-style Tai Chi, I also maintain a frequency of 2-3 yoga classes per week all year round. There are also many friends around me who are involved in both sports. There are quite a lot of controversies, so I can just talk about the difference in physical sensation after practicing.

Last month, I took my best friend, who has been practicing Ashtanga for four years, to try my Tai Chi class. After standing on the Wuji pole for fifteen minutes, she squatted down and rubbed her legs. She said, "I usually don't feel so tired after doing Four Posts for ten minutes. Why is my whole body sore just standing still?" ”In fact, this is the most intuitive difference in the action logic between the two. Whether it is dynamic flow yoga, Ashtanga, or static Yin yoga, yoga actually has a relatively unified "standard paradigm". For example, downward dog pose requires the heels to be as low as possible and the upper arms to be externally rotated to extend the spine. Warrior pose 2 requires that the knees should not exceed the toes and the hips should be facing the side. In the first half of the year when you first start practicing, you will basically be leaning on this standard and finding the fitness of your body within the action framework. But Tai Chi does not have this "standard answer" at all. It is also a cloud hand. The Chen style is a combination of hardness and softness with energy, while the Yang style is smooth and soft like flowing water. Even if they are apprentices taught by the same teacher, taller and shorter students have different ranges of movements, and those with weak waists and weak knees have different angles of movement. The criterion for judging is never "whether the movement is standard or not", but "whether your strength is smooth and your body is comfortable or not."

Because of this, enthusiasts on both sides occasionally fight - those who practice yoga feel that Tai Chi is "too vague, and there is no standard for advancement. After practicing for three months, I don't know if I have made any progress." Those who practice Tai Chi feel that yoga is "too obsessed with the shape of the movements. They have to break their joints in order to do the splits, which can easily lead to sports injuries." To be honest, both sides are reasonable. The essence is that the evaluation system is different: the progress of yoga is quantifiable. You go from being able to bend your knees in downward dog to fully landing on your heels, and from being able to do simple pigeon pose to being able to hold your feet. The progress is visible. ； The progression of Tai Chi is somatosensory. You go from standing swaying in five minutes to feeling hot all over after standing for half an hour. When you punch, your shoulders are as stiff as rocks. When you raise your hands, your strength can flow from your heels to your fingertips. Only you can feel this progress. I have experienced this pitfall myself. In the past two years, I practiced yoga and pressed my legs hard to achieve the angle of sitting, which caused fluid accumulation in the meniscus. The pain lasted for almost two months. Later, when I practiced Tai Chi, the teacher did not allow me to squat low, so I stood on a high pile to find the feeling of looseness. I did not receive any physical therapy for three months, and the pain in my knees disappeared.

Let’s talk about a detail that many people haven’t noticed. The logic of breathing is completely different. Friends who practice yoga must know that the matching of movements and breathing is a mandatory requirement. For forward bends, you need to exhale, and for back bends, you need to inhale. Ashtanga also requires fixed throat breathing. No matter how standard your movements are, if your breathing is disordered, it is wrong. But when I first started learning Tai Chi, I chased the teacher and asked, "Should I inhale or exhale for this cloud hand?" ”The teacher responded directly to me: "Just breathe normally. Breathing is your own. When your movements are smooth, it will match naturally. There is no need to force it." ”At the time, I thought the teacher was too confused. It took me a year of practice to understand that Tai Chi means "actions follow the breath" and yoga means "breathing matches the movements". The essence is that the former follows the rhythm of the person, while the latter follows the rhythm of the paradigm.

Speaking of roots, the final directions of the two are completely different. Many people don’t know that the yoga movements we usually practice in the gym are just the third “postural method” among the eight branches of classical yoga. To put it bluntly, it is just the basis for getting started - the purpose is to develop a healthy and durable body to support you in completing subsequent breathing control, meditation and other deeper practices. The ultimate goal is to escape from worldly worries and realize the connection between the individual and the universe, which is more of a "transcendental" attribute. But Tai Chi has been rooted in the secular world since its birth. The elders say that "Tai Chi can be used for walking, standing, sitting and lying down." When you walk, you should find looseness, don't hold on tightly when holding a cup, and don't slump your waist and shoulders when sitting at work. These are all practices of Tai Chi. It never lets you break away from life, but helps you to be more comfortable in life. Ultimately, it is about realizing the adaptation between people and the surrounding environment, which is more "worldly".

I still practice both at the same time. The core strength training of yoga can help me have a more stable lower body when doing Tai Chi, and the relaxation of Tai Chi can help me not strain my joints when practicing yoga. There is no either/or at all. To be honest, there is no need to worry about which one is better. If you like to have clear goals and feel the refreshing feeling of muscle stretching after practicing, yoga is the right choice. ； If you always feel flustered and tense, and want to find a way to slow down and talk to yourself, maybe Tai Chi is more to your liking. In the final analysis, no matter what you practice, if it makes your body comfortable and your mood bright, it is a good exercise for you.