Scott Cole: Discover Tai Chi For Beginners

Scott does a great job of explaining and demonstrating the moves. He's very easy to follow. The DVD is 55 minutes long from start to finish, but you can choose to skip the instruction and go straight to the beach in Hawaii to follow Scott as he flows through all the moves. There's also a Special Features choice on the menu where Scott shows a number of other moves, one selection with instruction and another selection with music. I'd love to see him put all those moves together, but I guess that's a subject for another DVD. I notice that after practicing Tai Chi I find it easier and quicker to find my center when I meditate--nice bonus I wasn't expecting. I plan to get another Tai Chi DVD by Scott when I'm ready to move forward.

It is a great beginner video. I took Tai Chi years ago. This video starts you with movements that eventually you convert into Tai Chi movements. If you keep watching he moves into traditional tai chi postures and helps you pull everything together. I am 57 former athlete who hadn't exercised except walking my dog. I actually was sweating and realized how unfit I had become. He's encouraging and reminds you that you are a beginner. Balance and core!

As a newcomer to this type of exercise (a middle-aged woman someone who hasn't exercised regularly for a while), I went in search of a beginner's course in Tai Chi. All in all, Scott's approach to beginners is excellent. He moves slowly and gently and the explanations are clear. I am not ashamed to admit that I am directionally challenged and very poorly coordinated so I needed something that was this simple and direct. Because of this, I cannot tell you how grateful I am for the mirrored approach to instruction. I am a little over two weeks into this and other than hiking (which my schedule doesn't allow for regularly) and gardening (which is seasonal), this is the first form of exercise in some time that I've decided that I truly like. I am already seeing a little long-lost flexibility returning, slightly better muscle tone, and my lower back no longer hurts when I wake up in the morning. I've had to skip two days and have found that I really did miss it. That said, I have one--what is to me--important complaint and I hope that the powers that be are listening. In second half of the DVD when it moves into the more "advanced" moves (or the core of Tai Chi), the directors resort to what I can only describe as artsy-fartsy camera angles and for someone who is still relying on the leadership of the instructor and is not ready to work on their own, this not only distracting--it's frustrating. When they shift to rear or above angles, it's difficult to determine what direction I should be moving, whether we've changed sides, and how I should be standing. And when they pull in close for upper body shots, I lose track of where my feet should be. I've been doing this for just over two weeks now and continue to wrestle with this portion of the video. And while I recognize that it takes time to master Tai Chi and that I should probably be patient with myself (especially considering the above description), I think it bears mentioning. I hope if there is a remake of this video at some point, that they will take this onboard.

Scott Cole is very patient and breaks down the moves very well. One thing about Scott Cole is the title. It says on the title that this video is for beginners. I believe that the more advanced a person is with tai-chi, the less they will get out of it. I experienced many benefits of watching Scott Cole. I am more flexible, more relaxed, and the video has improved my reflexes and reaction. Saying this, I feel that a person with experience may not get many benefits out of it. If you are a beginner or have limited experience with Tai-chi, this is a great video. If you have many years experience, I would say to get a video that shows forms in their complete forms. For me personally, I have been doing Scott's video for about 5 years. He gave me an outstanding foundation in tai-chi.

I have done a lot of various practices over the years, yoga, meditation, mindful excersize, running etc. Now I'm hitting 70 and Tai Chi seems a perfect fit. It's builds strength and balance yet in a very calm and mindful way. I finally feel my investment in a large flat screen TV is worth it because Scott's visual environment creates a work out studio for the instruction and than transforms into a beautiful beach setting in my living room. Scott is good at teaching and sets a lightly spiritual tone for training and practice. I suggest writing down the names of the movements as a list as you practice them.

This is the first Tai Chi DVD I ever bought. I looked at reviews, and saw this looked quite promising. I did love how Scott Cole broke down all the movements. It made it easy to understand how to perform each movement. I also like how he explained the flow of energy. I was all set to write a glowing review and give it 5 stars. Then came when all the movements were put together. They switched scenes from him inside to outside. With being outside, they added a bunch of fancy camera shoot. Some where shot above, looking over his shoulder. Others were from the waist up that did not show his legs. The shots might look nice, but were very hard for a beginner to follow. I would have been happier with straight on body shots, so I could more easily follow his movements.

I would recommend all of them.

I've had an interest in tai chi for a number of years. Although I took a class about 15 years ago, I never kept up with it. I bought Scott Cole's beginner CD several months ago as a way to develop a tai chi habit. I wish I could tell you I do tai chi every day - I don't! - but on the days I do, I thoroughly enjoy doing it with this CD. Scott Cole has the perfect style to instruct a beginner. He says the right words at the right moment. He encourages you to learn but does not do too much too fast. His voice, the music, and the setting are all perfect. I look forward to the day when I can advance to his next level CD.