Stand rooted. Move slowly.
Tai Chi Coach watches your stances and slow movements through your camera and checks them against clear rules: horse stance, bow stance, empty stance and standing post, then commencement, cloud hands and ward-off, rollback, press. Holds bank good-form seconds only while every rule passes. Movements count only when they are complete and slow. Every mistake gets one named hint within about a second: "Sink a little lower", "Shift your weight onto your front leg", "Slow down, let the movement flow".
Please read: This is a home practice tool, not a teacher, therapist or safety device. Everything runs on your device: no video, audio or images are sent anywhere. Feedback is automatic and can be wrong. For real instruction, learn from a qualified tai chi or qigong instructor, linked on the Resources page. Clear the space around you, and check with a doctor first if you have knee, hip, back or other joint problems. Full disclaimer
Standing position: not set yet. Set it in a lesson before your first practice.
Camera setup: one person at a time, whole body in frame, about 2 to 3 metres away. Standing post, horse stance, commencement and cloud hands use the FRONT view: face the camera. Bow stance, empty stance and ward-off, rollback, press use the SIDE view: turn so the camera sees you from the side. The camera turns off when you leave the lesson.
Stances
Slow movements
Short forms
Tests
How it is judged
- Standing post: feet about shoulder-width (0.7 to 1.6 shoulder widths), both wrists at chest height in a rounded hug, weight centred, back upright.
- Horse stance: feet at least 1.8 shoulder widths apart, hips sunk at least 10% of your leg length below standing, weight centred between the feet (40% to 60%), shoulders stacked over the hips.
- Bow stance (side view): a long step (at least 60% of leg length), weight at least 60% toward the front foot, front knee bent to 140 degrees or less, back leg long (150 degrees or more), front knee not past your toes, back upright.
- Empty stance (side view): a short step, at most 35% of your weight on the front foot, hips sunk a little, back upright.
- Slow movement: your hands may move no faster than 1.5 torso lengths per second. A commencement takes at least 4 seconds, a cloud hands pass at least 1.5 seconds, and each change in ward-off, rollback, press at least 1 second. Rushed movements are rejected: "Slow down, let the movement flow".
- If the app cannot see your hands, hips and feet, it says so instead of guessing. The app only keeps points, badges and practice days in this browser.