Faulk TaiChi

Learn the beautiful, flowing movements for health and relaxation.

New Book Underway!

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Signs of spring abound — flowering bushes, new shimmering green leaves popping out on trees, longer hours of daylight and hints of warmer temperatures filling our days. Out my door walking down my lovely city block, I snapped pictures of nature displaying its magic rebirth in Chicago after a long winter.

I love this time of year because it brings new energy, new possibilities, new ideas. We feel it in our bones. In Tai Chi classes we root our legs and feet into the ground, connect with the rich nutrients and energy of the soil and bring up that energy to nourish our bodies. Like the trees. Our arms are like the branches and our hands and fingers resemble the flowering, the new leaves that are the result of moving earth energy throughout the our entire body. It is refreshing, calming, and energizing at the same time.


This new energy resonates with me in a big way right now. I just submitted a completed manuscript to my publisher and had a first meeting with my project manager to discuss the process, the steps ahead to publish my new book. My new book!! How exciting to be at this point, about to make my words, my ideas come alive and go out into the world.

Details to unfold. I’ll keep you posted and share my progress. Spring — the perfect time of year to have a new project spring forth and flower!

Why Tai Chi – Why Now?

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Why not? Kids are returning to school. Summer outside activities are in full-swing but it won’t be long until we shift into an autumn mode and in many climates, more inside activities will predominate. Although decades have passed since I was that child looking forward to a new school year, so excited to shop for my school supplies, including paper, pencils, eraser and ruler (showing my age!), I still feel that anticipation of looking forward to starting the school year.

I hope as adults we can generate that excitement for ourselves, for new activities and new learning. It should never get old.

NOW is a good time. A good time to commit to new learning. A good time to bring nourishment to our bodies and clear out all the clutter and chatter in our heads. I’m partial to saying “now” to Tai Chi because I know first-hand how beneficial it is for relaxing, managing anxiety, chronic health conditions and improving balance.

Why Tai Chi now? Because putting off, saying ‘maybe later’ could easily lead to doing nothing at all. Gear up and say ‘yes’. You don’t need any equipment nor special clothing, just youself and an open mind. I have classes you can join now, or, if you aren’t physically close, look for a class or start with a YouTube video.

You can join these students who have said already said ‘yes’. Recommend a class to a friend or come together. I’d like to hear from you.

I’m making my plea for action because I’m in my 26th year of teaching Tai Chi and I’m passionate about Tai Chi. As a teacher I know the distance can be very long from saying you want to take a Tai Chi class and getting out the door to go to a class. So many people say they are interested in learning how to relax, do something positive for their health, take a class and don’t because something else comes up. Don’t let that be you.

Tai Chi – NOW is your time. NOW is our time.

Summer Light

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What is special about summer for you? Many of us are eager to be outside, go for long walks by a lake or in a park, enjoy a picnic with our family, stroll through our neighborhood farmer’s market, attend an outdoor concert or a movie night on our lawn chair at a community gathering, watch boats glide along Lake Superior.

What do you like the most? The freedom of walking out the door in shorts and sandals, taking binoculars and camera to watch and listen to the birds, relaxing outside with friends over a glass of wine. All good possibilities. We think mostly about “doing”, being active because we have a sense of freedom to move around and go places when we know it will be light well into the evening.

We are in the season of Yang energy – activity, blossoming trees and flowers, bright colors, heat, light. While we are out “doing” we want to pay attention, enjoy the moment. Take it all in.

Recently my sister and I went to Starved Rock State Park in northern Illinois. It’s amazing to drive across flat terrain, rich farmland filled with corn and soybeans and then. . . huge trees, winding roads going up, up, up to a natural filled park. Looking out over a panorama of green trees as far as our eyes could see, we listened to a variety of singing birds, felt a summer breeze, marveled at small red berries we happened to see because we were still and paying attention to everything around us.


The sun shining brightly highlighted the various shades of green on the thousands of leaves surrounding us. It was mesmerizing, the stillness and calm of those moments. The light outside and how nature took it in, made it beautiful and we, in our stillness took it all in and thoroughly enjoyed the moments.

What moments of summer have made you feel this way?

Celebrating 25 Years!

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Wow, it’s amazing to be celebrating my 25th year of teaching Tai Chi! It is an honor and so humbling to teach a centuries-old practice that has transformed my life, helped me re-learn to walk, feel balance and stability and has been the main influence for getting off medications I took regularly in my 30’s and 40’s.

I’ve been so inspired by stories of many students, who, with courage and determination have managed pain, arthritis, stroke recovery, anxiety and stress, etc. through Tai Chi practice, coming to class when it wasn’t easy.

Faulk Tai Chi Class

Here’s a class in 2003 where the quiet energy and being in the moment come right through the stillness of the photo.

Chinese New Year Tai Chi

This photo is in the first Heartwood location on Maple and Davis, across from Bennison’s Bakery, (2004, I think)

Faulk Tai Chi

Tai Chi class at Heartwood on Dempster, around 2012, upstairs in what is now the Shrine Room. Our regular classes were in that room before we moved to the Skylight Room.

Chicago Tai Chi Testimonials

Chicago class in 2015 or 2016, dedicated students who shared great Tai Chi energy together at our class in the Fourth Presbyterian Church.

August, 25, 2024 — Celebrating 25 years in Evanston park at Lake and Chicago

After Tai Chi, a wonderful lunch at Chinese restaurant, Peppercorns, in downtown Evanston

At Peppercorns with Nancy Floy, Founder and Co-Director of Heartwood and Larry Akey, Director of Meditation Programs.

Thanks to Nancy for her vision, for bringing Heartwood to life and for leading me to Tai Chi. For all the individuals in these photos and for all others whose lives have crossed with mine through Tai Chi, our energy continues to connect across the miles. It’s a privilege to teach and share Tai Chi with you.

I’d love to hear your comments and memories of Tai Chi and how it’s positively impacted your life.

Cultivating Qi

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How is your energy today?

Qi is life force energy, that which brings sparkle to our eyes and movement to our body. As babies, toddlers and teens, most of us didn’t think much about how much energy we had. We played baseball, took ballet classes, ran outside in the backyard, climbed fences and swam at the local community pool. As we grow older we think more about our energy, particularly when our energy is low and we feel like we tire more quickly than we used to.

Why is it that one 50-yr. old person looks like she’s in her 60’s and another 50-yr old looks like she’s 30-something? To answer that we need to look at where our energy comes from. We receive energy through breathing in the air around us, through the foods we eat, the water we drink, through keeping our body active and moving, and through ancestral Qi, the energy we were born with. Sometimes when a person ages well we say it’s in the genes and that could be part of it. However, how we live, our daily practices can be huge factors in the amount and quality of energy we have, and therefore how vital we feel. Our lifestyle is a big contributing factor to the amount and quality of energy that we have.

The nutritional value and type of foods we eat, daily exercise (not sitting for hours), emotional well-being, purpose, feeling of belonging all contribute to healthy energy and well-being. And. . . we we can purposefully cultivate calm, positive energy through centuries-old practices. As a Tai Chi teacher for 25 years and personal recipient of its health and Qi enhancing benefits, I feel passionate about sharing it with others.

In his book “The Healing Promise of Qi”, Roger Jahnke says the first promise of Qi is that “it is everywhere, and everyone has direct access to it through simple methods that are easy to learn and practice.” Dr. Jahnke has been teaching QiGong and Tai Chi for many years.

He explains that “ancient Qi masters developed a formula for health and longevity based on the Qi”: Inner Harmony + Qi Flow = Health and Longevity. This formula is the foundation of all Chinese medicine, acupuncture and herbal medicine. When the masters added the purposeful cultivation of inner harmony, the formula expanded: Practice + Intention = Inner Harmony = Qi Flow = Health and Longevity.

That’s why we embrace and practice Tai Chi – bringing intention to moving our energy in ways to relax, be in the moment, coordinate mind and body, all to enhance health and well-being. It takes commitment, willingness to learn new ways to move our energy and most importantly, show up. Getting out the door, showing up is the first step. An important step. In all my years of teaching, the biggest block for potential students is moving from thinking about taking a Tai Chi class to walking out the door to a class.

Take the first step. You deserve it. The promise of enhanced Qi may be yours. And for you who are now involved in regular Tai Chi practice and classes, your mind, your body, your energy thank you!

Letting Go

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Is your mind swirling with a to-do list that keeps getting longer and longer? Are you fearful about the current climate of we vs. they and where it might lead? Is AI going to make you obsolete? Do you reach the end of the day and ask yourself “What have I accomplished?” and don’t like your answer.

Do you feel like this —

but would like to feel like this ^
First . . . Breathe. Stop whatever you’re doing and take 30 seconds to breathe. Inhale. . . Exhale. . . Again, inhale, then exhale. Inhale . . . Exhale. One more time. Inhale. . .Exhale.
It’s summer so take a walk outside. Wander through a farmers market. Attend a free outdoor concert.

To relax your mind and body you have to let go of what you’re already doing or thinking about. When you walk, focus on how it feels to put one foot forward, shift your weight to it. How marvelous that one leg can manage the weight of our entire body! How marvelous it is to be able to walk!


Tai Chi is a wonderful practice to help us relax and let go. We learn to let go of what is spinning in our heads, focus our bodies and minds on gentle, flowing movements. We are like the trees rooted into the earth, connected with nourishing energy that flows up through our bodies. Being in the moment. Letting go.