My name is Karen White, I started training in Brighton with Brian Cooper in the late 1980s. I first learnt the 24 step yang form and then the yang long form, which I remember took 40 minutes to complete!
I was completely obsessed and drove my family crazy with my practising, it just felt right to me, my children thought I was a bit strange, and got very annoyed when I practice while they were playing in the parks. But they played a part in my training, as I remember sometimes doing the kick sections with a toddler attached to my raised leg. Very good practice for stability I found.
Brian at this time started to attend workshops run by Bruce Frantzis. In the first twenty minutes of the yang classes Brian would teach us the Wu style short form. This material gradually started to over take from the Yang style. I now practice the Wu Style short and long form Tai Chi.
I had a few wilderness years when life became busy with children and doing a degree course to attend classes, but I still practised the Yang form and the Wu on my own. But I soon became frustrated at waving my arms around and returned to the regular classes again and started to put serious work into my Tai Chi, attending Brain's weekly classes, Bruce's workshops and Paul Cavel's retreats in France and Crete. I was home again.
In 2008 I attended my first instructor's training with Bruce and have since then I have certified in Dragon and Tiger Medical QI Gong, and Opening of the Energy Gates Qi Gong and Wu short form style Tai Chi. I teach at Hanover Community Centre and Brighton Natural Health Centre.
In 2012 I started to train with Roy Jenzen, a lineage holder in Xingy Chuan & Bagua, he teaches the "old skills" of Chinese martial arts. I enjoy the spirit and commitment of Roy's teachings and hopefully this will deepen my knowledge in these arts.
Through out the last 20 years Tai Chi and Qi Gong has seen me through some hard times and I have managed to keep my head, and balance my emotions while those about me have lost theirs, and are still looking for them in some cases!
I was completely obsessed and drove my family crazy with my practising, it just felt right to me, my children thought I was a bit strange, and got very annoyed when I practice while they were playing in the parks. But they played a part in my training, as I remember sometimes doing the kick sections with a toddler attached to my raised leg. Very good practice for stability I found.
Brian at this time started to attend workshops run by Bruce Frantzis. In the first twenty minutes of the yang classes Brian would teach us the Wu style short form. This material gradually started to over take from the Yang style. I now practice the Wu Style short and long form Tai Chi.
I had a few wilderness years when life became busy with children and doing a degree course to attend classes, but I still practised the Yang form and the Wu on my own. But I soon became frustrated at waving my arms around and returned to the regular classes again and started to put serious work into my Tai Chi, attending Brain's weekly classes, Bruce's workshops and Paul Cavel's retreats in France and Crete. I was home again.
In 2008 I attended my first instructor's training with Bruce and have since then I have certified in Dragon and Tiger Medical QI Gong, and Opening of the Energy Gates Qi Gong and Wu short form style Tai Chi. I teach at Hanover Community Centre and Brighton Natural Health Centre.
In 2012 I started to train with Roy Jenzen, a lineage holder in Xingy Chuan & Bagua, he teaches the "old skills" of Chinese martial arts. I enjoy the spirit and commitment of Roy's teachings and hopefully this will deepen my knowledge in these arts.
Through out the last 20 years Tai Chi and Qi Gong has seen me through some hard times and I have managed to keep my head, and balance my emotions while those about me have lost theirs, and are still looking for them in some cases!
