Tai Chi – Lesson 6: Golden Rooster Stands on 1 Leg into Heel Kick

About This Class

Lesson 6 of Terry Kvasnik's Tai Chi series opens with a full-body joint warm-up — circling the head, shoulders, hips, knees, and ankles — before moving into side bends with belly breathing and a spinal-circle exercise. The heart of the class teaches two new form movements: Golden Rooster Stands on One Leg (single-leg balance with knee and elbow lift) and the Heel Kick (a 45-degree extending kick with synchronized arm scoop), both integrated into the cumulative form alongside Pulsing the Monkey, Brush Knee, Part the Wild Horses, and Cloud Hands. Terry emphasizes rooting from the core, weight-shifting before stepping, rotation from the waist, and the principle of the Six Harmonies. The session closes with a multi-level functional mobility "power" sequence involving squatting, walking the hands out to a plank-like position, single-leg holds, and rotating knee-tucks — offered in progressive versions so practitioners can work at their own challenge level. A standing meditation with hands on the belly and tongue on the roof of the mouth seals the practice. Throughout, Terry frames the work as medicine for calming an overactive mind, cultivating non-judgment, and building body-mind-spirit unity.