May 25, 2023
YMAA staff writer Gene Ching interviews YMAA Instructor Michelle Lin and Quentin Lopes about their new program, which is the only instructional video on the White Crane Barehand vs Staff sequence. Barehand vs Staff or Kong Shou Dui Gun (空手對棍) is an intermediate-level White Crane Kung Fu sequence from the YMAA Shaolin Training Curriculum.
April 24, 2023
Last year, in honor of World Tai Chi & Qigong Day, YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching wrote Is it Tai Chi or Taiji? For this year, he continues in that same spirit with an exploration of Chinese translation and romanization with Qigong.
March 23, 2023
YMAA staff writer Gene Ching interviews Bill Buckley of Gateway Tai Chi and Yoga in Portsmouth, New Hampshire (a YMAA School). Mr. Buckley is one of the few people who have completed the 20-year qigong master training program under Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming. They discuss the new streaming qigong video 18 Luohan Hands Shiba Luohan Shou (十八羅漢手), also known as 18 Hands of Buddha, or the 18 Techniques of the Enlightened Ones. This ancient qigong relates to Buddhist yoga techniques and the teaching of Bodhidharma known as "muscle/tendon changing classic" passed down while he taught at Shaolin Temple 1500 years ago.
March 13, 2023
YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching reflects on an experience he had with the YMAA streaming video Sun Tai Chi by Yang Chenhan. Sun Tai Chi is connected to Gene’s Shaolin lineage (and to Dr. Yang’s Tai Chi lineage as well). Gene explores how video training relates to when he studied under Grandmaster Sun Jianyun, the daughter of the founder of Sun Tai Chi.
February 6, 2023
YMAA Publication Center has recently published new editions of Dr. Yang, Jwing-Ming’s qigong books that include pinyin tonal marks for pronunciation and modern Chinese fonts. YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching examines why these are important.
David-Dorian Ross chats with old friend Gene Ching about his early years training Tai Chi Chuan and Wushu in San Francisco, running his own martial arts school, and his creation of the TaijiFit teaching method. He also talks about his national program teaching Tai Chi to veterans for free, and his other video releases with YMAA Publication Center.
This year, 2023, marks the Year of the Rabbit in the Lunar calendar. In Chinese culture, the Rabbit is believed to be a symbol of hope and longevity. In celebration of the new year, YMAA Publication Center staff writer Gene Ching explores the meanings underlying the rabbit in Chinese thought as well as the tradition of the giving of red envelopes.
In honor of the 40th Anniversary of YMAA, Staff Writer Gene Ching looks at YMAA’s iconic emblem and what it symbolizes.
Dr. Yang, Jwìng-Mǐng (楊俊敏博士) chats from his new home in upstate California with YMAA staff writer Gene Ching about the YMAA 40-year anniversary.
Dr. Roger Jahnke talks with Gene Ching about his years of writing about Qigong and Tai Chi before they were widely known in the USA, studying in China, the formation of the NQA (National Qigong Association) and his new Healer Within: Medical Qigong video release with YMAA Publication Center.
There are countless kung fu forms across innumerable schools and lineages, but sometimes different schools share the same form. While reviewing the Shaolin Long Fist Kung Fu Complete Collection, YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching discovered some overlapping forms between his Northern Shaolin tradition and YMAA’s curriculum and discusses the shared roots and divergences.
Gene Ching has a fascinating chat with producer/director Patrick Daly about his award-winning martial arts documentary "Needle Through Brick" which explores the decline of the traditional arts in the East.
"Currently, teaching is the whip that keeps me going for my health and mental balance. For searching for the truth of the Dao, I will never retire till the end of my life."
Tai chi is one of the most practiced martial arts in the world today. Countless practitioners recite these time-honored movements for health, self-defense, and peace of mind all around the world. However, as tai chi continues to spread globally, how to spell it is absurdly frustrating.
Tevia Feng explains his path studying Daoism and qigong to creating White Tiger Qigong, his unique system that blends traditional qigong with modern anatomy, exercise science, and muscle / fascia research.
YMAA Publication Center author Joe Varady talks with Shaolin staff practitioner Gene Ching about his new video series The Art and Science of Staff Fighting, his method of cross-training many martial arts, HEMA (Historical European Martial Arts), and the reality of using long weapons (or a broom!) in real life defense situations.
Bioenergetics expert Nick Loffree talks with YMAA writer Gene Ching about his qigong training with Master Lee Holden, the modern definition of bioenergy or Qi, and his personal healing with qigong after a mental health crisis.
YMAA author Ramel Rones talks with Gene Ching about his pioneering work bringing tai chi and qigong into the medical community for decades.
This year, 2022, marks the Year of the Tiger in the Lunar calendar. Revered for its power and ferocity, tiger figures prominently as a symbol in the martial arts and qigong. In celebration of the new year, YMAA Publication Center staff writer Gene Ching explores some of the connections of tigers to the martial arts.
YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching interviews YOQI master Marisa Cranfill about her blend of Yoga and Qigong and how to practice to boost the immune system.
YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching interviews sensei Bruce Costa about karate and its many benefits, and the new book "Welcome to Karate".
YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching interviews master Chenhan Yang about the unique details of Wu-style Tai Chi Chuan (taijiquan).
YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching interviews master Chenhan Yang about the unique details of Sun-style Tai Chi Chuan (taijiquan).
The staggering success of Netflix's Cobra Kai has brought renewed attention to the martial arts, especially karate. Anyone who bore witness to when The Karate Kid premiered in 1984 can recall the impact it had on the global popularization of martial arts. The film attracted a massive influx of new students and a tremendous boon to awareness, as well as to the economy. Cobra Kai has improved how the martial arts are depicted in the show with subtle clarifications that only the most discerning martial artists might appreciate.
Renowned tai chi advocate David-Dorian Ross brings his innovative Tai Chi Fit program to help veterans cope with common issues like depression, PTSD, addiction, and chronic pain. Through this program, veterans can receive free tai chi instruction and certified instructors can be compensated by the VA. This elevates tai chi instructors, officially recognizing them amongst other health and wellness professions