Taijiquan 108 Yang form: State of my art 2026

Some years ago I had an idea. I wanted to film myself doing the long Yang form once a year, and call it the “state of my art”. This summer, while on vacation with my family, I finally did it. And I learned so much from it! I will share my insights below.

Before I dive in, I want to note: this is not a video to teach the form. It is for my personal documentation. I want to normalize that not every form looks the same. Not everyone is a master. Taijiquan is being practiced by normal people and this is what my current “normal” form looks like:

Relearning what I almost lost

First, I want to admit something. Over the last few years I practiced mostly Cheng Man-ching 37 form. Slowly, without noticing, the last two parts of the 108 form disappeared from my memory. I feel a bit ashamed. I started learning the long Yang form in 2004. How could I forget something I had practiced for so many years?

But I also want to say: it is okay to forget forms over time. We all practice different things in different phases of life, and not everything stays with us. For me, though, the long Yang form is the one I want to keep. So these last months, my goal was simple: I wanted to relearn it.

And I did it. I know the order of the moves again, and I feel fairly comfortable with most of them. Some transitions still feel wobbly, especially in parts 2 and 3. But the form is back.

What I noticed watching myself back

I was surprised to see how fast I am. Slowness is one of the things I love about Taijiquan, and watching myself, that surprised me. The form took me less than 15 minutes. Some years ago it took 20 to 30 minutes. Getting slower again is something I want to work on.

I also noticed my back. I had a lot of lower back pain while on vacation (I am close to considering bringing my own pillow next time). The pain shows in my form. My neck needs attention too; I want to remember to lift my head more at Bai Hui. A lot of people carry tech neck these days, and I think Taijiquan is a wonderful way to work against that.

Refining forever

The form itself will basically stay the same for the rest of my life. I find that comforting. There is always something new to discover in the details, but there is also the comfort of already knowing. I do not have FOMO, no fear that a “better” form is out there. I want to deepen my skills. I want to learn weapon forms, and I am sure I will try other hand forms too. But I am happy with this one. Now it is time to work on the details, probably until the day I die.

I am glad I finally filmed the state of my art. If you want to try this yourself: film yourself practicing, then watch it back. Not to compare yourself to others, just to see what stands out to you. I plan to do this again next year, to see my own progress.

And I hope more people will share their own yearly status update, imperfections included. Not everyone needs to be perfect to post a video of their form.

By the way, at the end of the video you can see the view I had during my practice. I was on vacation in France, and from the terrace I could see far towards the Alps. I loved that.