--- title: Ten-minute tai chi and qigong description: A short session that drops phases rather than compressing them, so ten minutes is ten real minutes of practice and not a trailer for a longer one. url: https://tai-chi.app/for/ten-minutes source: Cloud Hands — https://tai-chi.app/ --- # Ten minutes of tai chi a day A ten-minute session is not a shorter version of a thirty-minute one. If you take the same six phases and divide the time by three you get six ninety-second fragments, and a ninety-second block is mostly spent finding where the video starts and where you are supposed to be standing. So the app does something else: below a certain length it drops whole phases rather than compressing them, and tells you which ones went. Ten minutes ends up being three or four things done properly instead of six things done nominally. ## How ten minutes actually gets divided Each phase has a floor — the length below which it stops being worth doing. Arriving needs a minute and a half, the warm-up two minutes, qigong three, a form four, standing balance work two, and the close a minute and a half. A phase that cannot be given its floor is dropped and its time handed to the phases that survive. Two phases are never dropped: the arrival at the start and the close at the end. They are the ritual that makes the thing a practice rather than a video you watched. Beyond those, at least one of qigong, form or balance has to survive, or it is not a session. The result is that a ten-minute session is shaped by your focus more visibly than a long one is. Choose [balance](https://tai-chi.app/for/balance) and you get arriving, balance work and a close. Choose [calm](https://tai-chi.app/for/stress) and the arriving and closing phases — weighted at more than double on that focus — take up most of the ten minutes, which is exactly right for the purpose. The app names the dropped phases in the session notes rather than quietly omitting them. The floors and the order they give way in are in [§5.3](https://tai-chi.app/method#53-phase-floors-and-dropping). ## Why short blocks need short videos Fitting a class to a block is not symmetrical. A video longer than its block is fine — you practise the first few minutes and the timer moves you on, exactly as a class would. A video shorter than its block leaves you standing in a silent room waiting for a timer, which is a far worse experience and the fastest way to feel foolish. The selection engine scores it that way on purpose: overrunning is mildly penalised, coming up short is punished hard. That is why the library keeps a stock of genuinely short classes and why the app narrates a few blocks itself, with no video at all, when nothing fits — the guided sequences pace their own cues and can fill any block exactly. The arithmetic is written out in [§6.3](https://tai-chi.app/method#63-duration-fit-is-asymmetric-on-purpose). ## Is ten minutes a day enough? Enough for what, and compared to what. The WHO’s 2020 activity guidelines for adults over 65 ask for 150 to 300 minutes of moderate-intensity activity a week, muscle strengthening on two or more days, and varied multicomponent activity emphasising functional balance and strength on three or more days. Ten minutes a day is seventy minutes a week. That is short of the aerobic target, and this page is not going to pretend otherwise — [§4.3](https://tai-chi.app/method#43-dose) quotes the guideline in full. What ten minutes a day does hit is the third clause: something varied with a balance component, on most days of the week. And it is not competing with 150 minutes of anything, it is competing with nothing at all, which is the honest comparison for most people reading this. The app will not warn you if you choose fewer days than the guideline suggests, and it will not nag you when you skip. Nagging is against the brand. What it does instead is spread whatever you have chosen across non-consecutive days, so three sessions a week are distributed rather than stacked on a Sunday. ## The 65 classes on this page Every class in the library that runs ten minutes or under, shortest first. These are what a short session is built from — plus the app's own guided sequences, which have no video and fit any block exactly. - [Beginner Tai Chi Stepping Drill For Correct Weight Distribution](https://tai-chi.app/library/beginner-tai-chi-stepping-drill-for-correct-weight-distribut-EJz2u-QosAM) — Tai Chi with Sifu Kuttel, 2 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi Cooldown](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-cooldown-x2bgJW8yao) — TURANGA HEALTH, 2 min, chair-friendly - [Wu-style Tai Chi The First Section of 108 Form](https://tai-chi.app/library/wu-style-tai-chi-the-first-section-of-108-form-G95MlniTU-8) — Shanye Tai Chi, 2 min - [Standing Meditation in 2 MINUTES with Master Gu](https://tai-chi.app/library/standing-meditation-in-2-minutes-with-master-gu-FRhkiYsEGbo) — Master Gu - Tai Chi, 2 min, chair-friendly - [Standing on One Leg | Chi Kung, Tai Chi and Meditation](https://tai-chi.app/library/standing-on-one-leg-chi-kung-tai-chi-and-meditation-D7l2nA0GzHk) — Ramel Rones, 2 min - [T'ai Chi for Arthritis: Movements for Beginners](https://tai-chi.app/library/t-ai-chi-for-arthritis-movements-for-beginners-DCpawsCmLpc) — Hospital for Special Surgery, 3 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi Ba Fa Wu Bu Form 2025 Edition](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-ba-fa-wu-bu-form-2025-edition-qvJnCb9jTDo) — Tai Chi United, 3 min - [TAPPING QI GONG TO OPEN HEALING ENERGY #qigong #tapping #healingenergy #healinghands](https://tai-chi.app/library/tapping-qi-gong-to-open-healing-energy-qigong-tapping-healin-S7Jo2dWisQ4) — David and Marilyn Qi Gong, 3 min, chair-friendly - [3-Minute Tai Chi Cool Down – Relax • Reset • Restore | 身心放松收功](https://tai-chi.app/library/3-minute-tai-chi-cool-down-relax-reset-restore-WgGuTLfuvbM) — Sifu Amin Wu, 3 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi 24 Forms 1-2 Back View: Starting & Part the Wild Horse's Mane](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-24-forms-1-2-back-view-starting-part-the-wild-horse-a1D8w4g0dnM) — Jenny Lu Yoga+, 4 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi for Arthritis 1 - Front View (5 of 12)](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-for-arthritis-1-front-view-5-of-12-CzBagwk5a2w) — Veterans Health Administration, 4 min, chair-friendly - [Perth Tai Chi Academy: Cool Down Routine](https://tai-chi.app/library/perth-tai-chi-academy-cool-down-routine-8eieU4GZs1E) — Perth Tai Chi Academy, 4 min, chair-friendly - [Closing movement Qigong (micro cosmic circuit)](https://tai-chi.app/library/closing-movement-qigong-micro-cosmic-circuit-PZlV8Ock2l8) — Qigong and Mindfulness , 4 min, chair-friendly - [Single BEST Exercise to Improve BALANCE in Seniors](https://tai-chi.app/library/single-best-exercise-to-improve-balance-in-seniors-lq_4feVsDZk) — Tim Fraticelli - PTProgress, 4 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi 8 Form - Back View | Yang Style | Follow Me Version | 八式太极拳](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-8-form-back-view-yang-style-follow-me-version-_G7bmGzb63E) — QIGONG TAICHI CENTRE | Yogalily Studio, 4 min, chair-friendly - [8 Form Tai Chi | Yang Style | Follow Me Mirror Version | 八式太极拳](https://tai-chi.app/library/8-form-tai-chi-yang-style-follow-me-mirror-version-EUcxq8eWke8) — QIGONG TAICHI CENTRE | Yogalily Studio, 4 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi Yang Style 24 Short Form](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-yang-style-24-short-form-ZFVEzeXEgSs) — Open the Door to Tai Chi, 4 min - [This Tai Chi Exercise Builds Strength and Balance After 50](https://tai-chi.app/library/this-tai-chi-exercise-builds-strength-and-balance-after-50-ivJ4lYYDw2Q) — Dr. Dave Candy - Physical Therapist, 4 min, chair-friendly - [8 Form Tai Chi (Demo, back view)](https://tai-chi.app/library/8-form-tai-chi-demo-back-view-AthrjolCugA) — Tai Chi iStudio, 4 min - [Yang Tai Chi 24 Form: Lesson 1: Tai Chi Basics the Tai Chi Stance](https://tai-chi.app/library/yang-tai-chi-24-form-lesson-1-tai-chi-basics-the-tai-chi-sta-4ypU-pxfYVw) — Internal Tai Chi, 4 min, chair-friendly - [1 Min. Daily Standing Meditation (Zhan Zhuang Qigong) Follow-Along](https://tai-chi.app/library/1-min-daily-standing-meditation-zhan-zhuang-qigong-follow-al-kmbOW6chmlo) — Tai Chi with Dr. Andrew von Plitt, ND, 5 min, chair-friendly - [Qigong Closing Sequence](https://tai-chi.app/library/qigong-closing-sequence-iaI3nKWjEHw) — Wild Oak Wellness, 5 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi Cool Down Exercises for Relaxation and Recovery | Tai Chi with MSK](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-cool-down-exercises-for-relaxation-and-recovery-tai-NMwy-rThUMw) — Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 5 min, chair-friendly - [Cloud Hands Tai Chi Tutorial with English Instruction | Tai Chi Qigong | In Focus](https://tai-chi.app/library/cloud-hands-tai-chi-tutorial-with-english-instruction-tai-ch-jGTFq5yaAwU) — QIGONG TAICHI CENTRE | Yogalily Studio, 5 min, chair-friendly - [8 Forms Tai Chi, Entire Set in Mirror Image with Verbal Cues](https://tai-chi.app/library/8-forms-tai-chi-entire-set-in-mirror-image-with-verbal-cues-1z3nh3t1-E0) — Jenny Lu Yoga+, 5 min - [FIVE MINUTES OF HEALING | QIGONG](https://tai-chi.app/library/five-minutes-of-healing-qigong-r1QtNOYtUFU) — QiYoga With LuChin, 5 min, chair-friendly - [3 Simple Exercises to Improve Balance - How to Improve Balance for Seniors](https://tai-chi.app/library/3-simple-exercises-to-improve-balance-how-to-improve-balance-xWxMYgcadWc) — Holden QiGong, 6 min, chair-friendly - [Wake Up Your Qi | Easy Daily Qigong Routine for Joint Mobility](https://tai-chi.app/library/wake-up-your-qi-easy-daily-qigong-routine-for-joint-mobility-gpLYb8Rwqyo) — Glowpoint Acupuncture, 6 min, chair-friendly - [3 Min. Daily Standing Meditation (Zhan Zhuang Qigong) Follow-Along](https://tai-chi.app/library/3-min-daily-standing-meditation-zhan-zhuang-qigong-follow-al-NRUZB9mzo_c) — Tai Chi with Dr. Andrew von Plitt, ND, 6 min, chair-friendly - [Tapping The 'Eight Nests' - Simple Way to Get Rid of Toxins](https://tai-chi.app/library/tapping-the-eight-nests-simple-way-to-get-rid-of-toxins-sTEmaYkbIlU) — Dr. Alex Hui, 6 min, chair-friendly - [Wudang Five Animal Qigong 氣功 Qigong for Health](https://tai-chi.app/library/wudang-five-animal-qigong-qigong-for-health-n5FMhYvxvPY) — WudangBing, 6 min - [Easy Qigong Warm Up😃](https://tai-chi.app/library/easy-qigong-warm-up-FR7-XiyV4rM) — Qigong For Vitality, 6 min, chair-friendly - [108 Wu Style Traditional Form TUTORIAL - Movements 1 - 5](https://tai-chi.app/library/108-wu-style-traditional-form-tutorial-movements-1-5-A67SEoqJVVM) — Hellenic Wu's Tai Chi Chuan Academy, 6 min - [Eight Brocades Qigong | 6 Minute Daily Qigong Practice | Follow Me Version](https://tai-chi.app/library/eight-brocades-qigong-6-minute-daily-qigong-practice-follow-9cPYQoB1yik) — QIGONG TAICHI CENTRE | Yogalily Studio, 6 min, chair-friendly - [Chen-style Tai Chi 18 Form (陈氏18式太极拳) : Beginner Tai Chi Form](https://tai-chi.app/library/chen-style-tai-chi-18-form-18-beginner-tai-chi-form-YtUqaedweSQ) — David Bao (暴一宏), 6 min - [Yang-Style 24 Form • Back View Demonstration | 吳阿敏背向示範楊式24式太極拳](https://tai-chi.app/library/yang-style-24-form-back-view-demonstration-24-e4VIw41R-PU) — Sifu Amin Wu, 6 min - [Basic Practice Teaching Series (6) Tai Chi Stepping and Weight Transfer](https://tai-chi.app/library/basic-practice-teaching-series-6-tai-chi-stepping-and-weight-YVqdpAQDezI) — Hai Yang, 6 min - [Tai Chi for arthritis - back / Riny Gilissen - Ellen Olie](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-for-arthritis-back-riny-gilissen-ellen-olie-HMyCyL9Uen4) — Janine Wilms, 6 min, chair-friendly - [Wudang Five Animals Qi Gong (武当五行气功)](https://tai-chi.app/library/wudang-five-animals-qi-gong-8Up2Mnq7JSM) — Wudang Wushu, 7 min - [Tai Chi for Arthritis 1 & 2 - Front View (7 of 12)](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-for-arthritis-1-2-front-view-7-of-12-YkMu70_Ibd4) — Veterans Health Administration, 7 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi for Arthritis 1 & 2 - Back View (8 of 12)](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-for-arthritis-1-2-back-view-8-of-12-1mDBXLrn0SE) — Veterans Health Administration, 7 min, chair-friendly - [6-Min Shaolin Five Animal Qi Gong (Wu Qin Xi) | Nourish Organs, Boost Qi, Transform Emotions](https://tai-chi.app/library/6-min-shaolin-five-animal-qi-gong-wu-qin-xi-nourish-organs-b-MPHzKS8SMoQ) — KUNGFU.LIFE, 7 min - [Shibashi - 18 form with instruction - Tai Chi / Qigong](https://tai-chi.app/library/shibashi-18-form-with-instruction-tai-chi-qigong-p-QHJowjU4Y) — Theresa Perry Wellbeing, 7 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi Shibashi Full 18 Movements Seated](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-shibashi-full-18-movements-seated-T2SscwGK4oE) — My Simple Steps, 7 min, seated - [Tai Chi Yang Style 24 Form | Full Set Back View with Verbal Cues](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-yang-style-24-form-full-set-back-view-with-verbal-cu-FUpeJ3Bkr9o) — Jenny Lu Yoga+, 7 min - [7 min Tai Chi Stretch | Cool Down and Ground your Body & Mind | For Beginners | #tai chi on FlowZYM](https://tai-chi.app/library/7-min-tai-chi-stretch-cool-down-and-ground-your-body-mind-fo-av-mExgc_AE) — Elly's Fitness, 7 min, chair-friendly - [Chair Tai Chi](https://tai-chi.app/library/chair-tai-chi-FEcnF6qaCBU) — Concierge Home Care, 8 min, seated - [Zhan Zhuang Qi Gong - Standing Meditation](https://tai-chi.app/library/zhan-zhuang-qi-gong-standing-meditation-3YsVj6Ia0w) — peakhousepractice, 8 min, chair-friendly - [Shibashi - The 18 movements with instruction; Tai Chi/Qigong.](https://tai-chi.app/library/shibashi-the-18-movements-with-instruction-tai-chi-qigong-hHoQhLNaV30) — FreeMeditationInfo, 8 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi For Beginners: 7-Minute Routine For A New You](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-for-beginners-7-minute-routine-for-a-new-you-cEvSqHZIj8w) — Phoenix Mountain Tai Chi, 8 min, chair-friendly - [(3/11) Yang Tai Chi Stepping Sets/ Line Drills Cloud Hands](https://tai-chi.app/library/3-11-yang-tai-chi-stepping-sets-line-drills-cloud-hands-wPIUGYNJ4h0) — Tai Chi with Dr. Andrew von Plitt, ND, 8 min - [Tai Chi Balance Flow for Beginners – 8-Min Daily Practice](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-balance-flow-for-beginners-8-min-daily-practice-Qn04N8QH8d8) — Begin with Breath Tai Chi | Dr. Adam Potts, PT, 8 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi Exercise For Strength And Balance - Senior Fitness](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-exercise-for-strength-and-balance-senior-fitness-Ka_7c_7p0GY) — Fitness With Cindy - Senior Workouts , 8 min, chair-friendly - [5 minute Qigong Standing Meditation - Qigong Tree Pose Meditation for Beginners](https://tai-chi.app/library/5-minute-qigong-standing-meditation-qigong-tree-pose-meditat-_TYfLZQz-Pg) — Qigong with Kseny, 8 min, chair-friendly - [5 Min. Daily Standing Meditation (Zhan Zhuang Qigong) Follow-Along](https://tai-chi.app/library/5-min-daily-standing-meditation-zhan-zhuang-qigong-follow-al-jp3scPTssXI) — Tai Chi with Dr. Andrew von Plitt, ND, 9 min, chair-friendly - [STANDING QIGONG MEDITATION | ZHAN ZHUANG](https://tai-chi.app/library/standing-qigong-meditation-zhan-zhuang-LxXoCSZ8aM0) — QiYoga With LuChin, 9 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi for Beginners: 5 Movements for a Full Mind-Body Reset](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-for-beginners-5-movements-for-a-full-mind-body-reset-SNJOFupS9V0) — Rooted Alchemy Tai Chi & Qigong, 9 min, chair-friendly - [8 Min Beginner Tai Chi / Qigong 8 Form Practice: Low impact movements for balance & circulation](https://tai-chi.app/library/8-min-beginner-tai-chi-qigong-8-form-practice-low-impact-mov-1MIGxm8tSFc) — Fitscope, 9 min, chair-friendly - [10 Minute Energising Qigong Warm-Up](https://tai-chi.app/library/10-minute-energising-qigong-warm-up-XuavsCtVeCQ) — Qigong with Kseny, 10 min, chair-friendly - [Seated Exercises for Older Adults](https://tai-chi.app/library/seated-exercises-for-older-adults-8BcPHWGQO44) — Dartmouth Health, 10 min, seated - [Standing Meditation (Zhan Zhuang) Follow-Along | Boost Your Tai Chi Power and Energy](https://tai-chi.app/library/standing-meditation-zhan-zhuang-follow-along-boost-your-tai-MN6uXBSMt9A) — Internal Tai Chi, 10 min, chair-friendly - [10 minute Qigong Tai Chi Warm Up Exercises | English Instruction](https://tai-chi.app/library/10-minute-qigong-tai-chi-warm-up-exercises-english-instructi-mYQ916xX4Os) — QIGONG TAICHI CENTRE | Yogalily Studio, 10 min, chair-friendly - [Shibashi 18 Step Tai Chi Qigong form](https://tai-chi.app/library/shibashi-18-step-tai-chi-qigong-form-KpiOkD2SlFM) — Taiflow, 10 min, chair-friendly - [Tai Chi for Arthritis (Part 2) Video | Dr Paul Lam | Free Lesson and Introduction](https://tai-chi.app/library/tai-chi-for-arthritis-part-2-video-dr-paul-lam-free-lesson-a-fAa84WsUmno) — Dr Paul Lam - Tai Chi Productions, 10 min, chair-friendly - [SEATED TAI CHI for beginners, seniors, over 60s or older adults looking for seated exercise](https://tai-chi.app/library/seated-tai-chi-for-beginners-seniors-over-60s-or-older-adult-G2amZq5HvqA) — Freshfield Fitness TAI CHI ACTIVE, 10 min, seated ## Setting it up Choose *10 minutes* on the practice screen and leave everything else where it is. The session that comes back will name the phases it dropped and why, so you can see the trade rather than wonder about it. If ten minutes a day is the plan, it is worth [putting the app on your home screen](https://tai-chi.app/install) — the friction of finding a browser tab is a surprisingly effective way to not practise. ## Related - [Qigong you can practise every morning](https://tai-chi.app/for/qigong) - [Tai chi for complete beginners](https://tai-chi.app/for/beginners) - [Tai chi and qigong for winding down](https://tai-chi.app/for/stress)