A personal and scientific view on Chikung Tai Chi

Pedro Jesús Jiménez Martín

PhD in Physical Activity and Sports Sciences

Full Professor

Faculty of Physical Activity and Sports Sciences –INEF

Polytechnic University of Madrid

I began practicing Chikung-Tai Chi with Master Haoqing Liu in 2008 because I wanted to broaden and deepen my knowledge of this discipline, both as a practitioner and as a professional in the field of Physical Activity and Sport. The Master has proven to be a true “living source” of information, capable not only of explaining the new paradigms this tradition presents regarding how to develop healthy physical activity—principles that also challenge the way we work in the West—but also of expressing a profound understanding of the reason behind every detail of the practice. This has served as a guide when undertaking research into the health effects of Tai Chi Chuan and Qigong.

The results of this relationship have been significant. I have been able to apply his teachings both to the lines of work developed by our research group on this discipline at the Faculty of Physical Activity and Sports Sciences –INEF of the Polytechnic University of Madrid—which have led to numerous national and international scientific publications—and to testing and transferring this knowledge to elite sport with the Spanish national badminton team.

My personal impression after these years with Liu is that Tai Chi Chuan and Qigong represent an exceptional body of knowledge accumulated over centuries. For our Western culture of physical activity, they are an inexhaustible source of research in all their therapeutic, martial, philosophical, and sporting dimensions.

It is encouraging to see how the number of specialized scientific publications on this subject has grown considerably worldwide, beginning to give this discipline the recognition it deserves. In some countries it has even become a healthy non-pharmacological alternative for treating different conditions through dedicated intervention programs.