Wu Style Traditional Slow Form
吳氏太極拳
The form of the second most widespread family style. It is known for the inclined trunk and for tight, economical arm work.
Quick Facts
About this Form
Wu style comes out of the Yang line — its founder Wu Quanyou was a student of Yang Luchan and of his son — but it soon diverged enough to count as a family of its own. The shape known today was given to the form by Wu Jianquan (1870–1942). The most striking difference is the carriage of the trunk. Where Yang style insists on a vertical spine, here the body inclines forward in many movements so that head, spine and rear leg form a single line. It is neither a slump nor a bow; it is a deliberate extension of reach with the structure kept. The second difference is the arm work: the movements are smaller, led closer to the body and in tighter arcs than in Yang style, which gives the form its economy and compactness. The steps are shorter and the weight shifts less visibly. A run takes about twenty-five minutes. The number of movements differs between lineages according to the counting, and Impaku does not state one; the form is commonly divided into three parts, as the Yang form is.