In taijiquan, much is made of the need to remain loose, soft, supple and still, and key elements in training include keeping the head erect, the shoulders loose, elbows down, wrists supple, hips loose and feet firmly planted on the ground. For dancers trained from an early age in the Western discipline, with its frequent calls for physical exertion and gravity-defying leaps, this is a total departure.
太極拳講究鬆、軟、柔、靜，延引自拳經的練拳要領像頭正、肩鬆、肘垂、腕柔、胯鬆，腳要落實等，對從小接受西方舞蹈肢體訓練，經常強調用力延展、跳脫地心引力的舞者來說，完全是另一種肢體啟發。