Baduanjin for Beginners: Learn One Movement at a Time

Can I learn from a video without following the whole routine?

Yes: use it as a lesson you can pause. Watch once to identify the opening, eight main movements and closing. Then return to the opening and first movement, Two Hands Hold Up the Heavens (Liang Shou Tuo Tian). You do not need to keep up with a full routine on day one.

Use one set of detailed lessons and its matching follow-along. Changing teachers halfway through a movement can introduce different hand positions or repetition counts. A video can show the route; it cannot see your balance, tension or uncertainty.

The eight-movement list helps you find your place. Ready to begin? Open the opening and first-movement lesson. For an explanation of movement, breathing and attention, read the basics.

Baduanjin on CCTV

CCTV’s March 2026 programme features Qiu Huifang teaching Baduanjin. China’s sports administration documents promotion with CCTV.

Check the version before following; promotion does not establish health effects.

What should I look for when the hands and feet are confusing?

1. Starting position: where are the hands, which way do the palms face, and are the feet already apart?
2. Change: is the arm moving, the palm turning, or both? When does a foot move?
3. Connection: where does this part finish, and how does the next side begin?

Left and right refer to the demonstrator’s own body unless the video explicitly teaches a mirrored version. In a front-facing demonstration, their left appears on the right of your screen. Check the convention before copying.

I lose my place in Drawing the Bow. What should I replay?

The second movement includes an outward hand, a drawing hand, a step, a knee bend, a return and a side change. Replaying the whole routine may hide the exact problem.

If the left side is familiar but the right is confusing, replay the return and change between them. Write the question as “Where do my hands and feet go before the right side?” That is easier to resolve than “I cannot do Baduanjin.” Avoid dropping both hands and inventing a shortcut into the next shape.

How much should I learn in one session?

A short session can focus on one clear task: the opening, one return, or one side change. Revisit it regularly before adding another movement. You do not need an unbroken 30-minute routine to begin learning.

Try linking familiar parts when you can recognise what comes next and say where you lose your place. If you are still chasing the screen, return to the breakdown. Follow-along cues help connect known movements; they do not replace instruction.

Keep breathing naturally while learning. You do not need to hold your breath until the next cue; see beginner breathing questions.

What should I check before practising?

Preview the reaching, knee bends, turns, forward folds and heel movements, then check the floor, overhead clearance and screen position. Use the home-practice checklist.

A deeper stance or larger stretch is not proof of better learning. Keep knees moving in the direction of the toes rather than twisting over a planted foot. Existing injuries, recent surgery, pregnancy or exercise restrictions call for discussion of the actual movements with someone qualified who knows your circumstances. Stop for pain, dizziness or marked discomfort.