Is yoga and Tai Chi the best combination

There is no universal "best", but for many ordinary practitioners whose goal is to harmonize their body and mind and who do not pursue individual competitive results, the two are indeed a highly suitable combination.

A teacher I worked with at a yoga studio had been practicing Ashtanga for eight years and had chronic old injuries in his wrists and waist. Later, by chance, he learned the silk wrapping and stance posture from a Tai Chi teacher for half a year. Not only did the old injuries slowly heal, but he could also hold the Crane Zen pose, which had always been stuck before, for half a minute. It's a coincidence that yoga emphasizes "alignment" and Tai Chi emphasizes "centering." The essence is to find the balance point of the body's force. The former involves stretching and activating the muscles and bones and slowly touching the coordination of breathing and thoughts. The latter involves "leading the breath with the mind" and in turn adjusting the inclination of the body shape. It happens to be from both ends to the same end point, and they come together to make up for their respective shortcomings.

But not everyone agrees with this. When I went to Chenjiagou for an exchange event last year, I met a master who had been practicing Chen-style Tai Chi for more than 40 years. When I heard that some people practice Tai Chi and yoga together, they shook their heads like a rattle. Yes, it is said that the strength of Tai Chi is "loose and tight". It has never been said that the tendons should be stretched to the limit. Many people practice yoga and stretch hard to achieve concave postures, which has loosened the fascia. If they continue to practice Tai Chi, they will not be able to maintain the strength at all. After practicing for a long time, their feet will become loose. There are also many fans who practice high-intensity flow yoga who have tried to add Tai Chi exercises. They say that even if they stand for ten minutes, they feel stiff all over. It would be better to perform the Sun Salutation twice more, which is too inefficient.

In fact, this kind of controversy is unnecessary. What combination is the "best" always depends on the needs of the practitioner. There is no one-size-fits-all answer. I have a little girl who works as an Internet operator. She suffered from insomnia for almost half a year, and even taking sleeping pills didn’t work. She tried practicing yoga alone and her brain couldn’t calm down, and Tai Chi alone made her whole body stiff and stiff. Later, she switched to practicing Tai Chi Cloud Hands for 15 minutes in the morning, and 20 minutes of restorative yoga before going to bed to loosen her shoulders and neck. After two months, her sleep quality improved by half. Isn’t this the best combination for her? But if you originally want to compete in Tai Chi competition, or take the advanced certification as a yoga instructor, then practicing together will easily disrupt the logic of each movement, and you will not get the benefit of both parties. To put it bluntly, it's like drinking coffee with or without milk. No matter what others say is good, it's not as comfortable as trying it yourself. The one that suits you is the real "best".