Welcome to Old City Tai Chi. Feel free to navigate throughout our website.
If you are willing to do the work, you are welcome to join our tai chi training class..
Thank you,
Fernando Bernall, DOM
If you are willing to do the work, you are welcome to join our tai chi training class..
Thank you,
Fernando Bernall, DOM
Internal mastery requires serious study—not casual sampling. True competence in traditional Tai Chi demands persistence, rigorous attention to joint mobility, and the willingness to put in the plain hard work it takes to build a real physical root. Genuine growth doesn't come from following a casual trend; it comes from showing up, training your foundational mechanics, and putting in the time to truly earn your skill.
“Tai Chi Chuan, the great ultimate, strengthens the weak, raises the sick, invigorates the debilitated, and encourages the timid.”
—Professor Cheng Man-ch'ing.
—Professor Cheng Man-ch'ing.
Tai Chi is the physical art of balancing Yin and Yang—weight and weightlessness, tension and release.
Tai Chi is the physical art of balancing Yin and Yang—weight and weightlessness, tension and release.
Look at a balanced scale or a lighting fixture: it requires a solid, centralized frame to allow its branches to extend evenly without collapsing. Your body functions the same way. In our Tai Chi training, we practice the plain hard work of separating "full" and "empty" weight distribution. By anchoring your structure into the ground, you create a stable, central axis. This balance allows your upper body to remain light, agile, and unburdened, while your lower body stays rooted and powerful.
Is My Teaching Approach To Tai Chi Right For You?
This Is for You If...
- You want a serious, deep dive. You are looking for a rigorous, long-term study of traditional internal martial arts and genuine development—not a superficial fitness trend.
- You value biomechanical precision. You want to understand the exact physics of movement: proximal stability for distal mobility, functional joint range, and the precise mechanics of force transfer from the feet up.
- You appreciate a "flipped classroom" approach. You are disciplined enough to study recorded lessons and technical videos independently, saving live sessions for refined practice and high-level correction.
- You focus on foundational joint health. You understand that true internal development begins with joint mobility and systematic, structural conditioning.
This Is Not for You If...
- You are chasing "new-age" trends. If you are looking for generic, trendy relaxation classes or casual, superficial exercise, you will find this program too demanding.
- You want a passive, casual daily stretch. If you prefer to just show up, mindlessly copy choreography for an hour, and cycle through fitness fads without dedicated independent practice, this is not the right fit.
- You want a quick, simplified shortcut. If you are looking for watered-down choreography or a quick checklist without putting in the time to master deep internal principles, this will frustrate you.
- You expect a generic commercial fitness app. If you are looking for automated streak trackers, gamified badges, or a hands-off, automated layout instead of real video lectures built for focused, high-level learning, this program is not built for that environment.