We often talk about the calming side of Tai Chi since we live such hectic lives in an over-busy world of constant stimulation and connection.

But it is good to know that Tai Chi is also a great exercise for improving strength and stamina to keep you going.  Strength and stamina are not just about lifting weights for big muscles.

Strength and Stamina are good for us in many ways.  Such as:

• improved strength for good bones and muscles.
• improved stamina to keep going longer with better focus
• better balance for fewer falls as our strength develops
• reduced stress on the joints and muscles to help us avoid injury

I like to think of TaiChi as the perfect exercise for the whole family. Not just the elderly, or the toddlers, or the sick, or the disabled, or the athletes, or the studious, or the recovering or someone else!   NO.  It is for everyone.  At every age we need to Tai Chi.  Wouldn’t you like to feel more focus, balance, strength, flexibility and inner peace?

The great thing about Tai Chi is how quickly you can see improvement in all the qualities above.

• In the classroom can see improvement in calmness and focus in just 10 minutes.
• In a discussion of bullying we can see increased compassion in 20 or 30 minutes
• We can see improvement of balance after merely 6 sessions – perhaps 3 weeks.  And it will continue to improve the more we do Tai Chi.
• In athletics we can see improvement in focus as we shoot a basket, hit a tennis ball, a volley ball or baseball, swim gracefully through the water, run without jarring your joints and muscles.  It just takes a few sessions and awareness.

Of course.  We all would like to feel better, focus better, and  perform better.

There is a great article in the NY Times section on Personal Health this week.  It is by Jane Brody who has been writing on health issues for the NY Times  since 1979.  She has covered so many aspects of health. It is great when she write on Tai Chi .  You can read it here.

She sites many studies that have been done, primarily on older adults.  But please remember, what applies to adults applies to children also.

Her last paragraph is, for me, the most important.

“And, in the process of getting your body in shape with tai chi, you’re likely to improve your mental state. In a New Zealand study of college students, tai chi was shown to counter depression, anxiety and stress. It also enhances an important quality called self-efficacy — confidence in one’s ability to perform various activities and overcome obstacles to doing so. ”

You, too, can feel the benefits of Tai Chi.  Why don’t you start now?  And don’t forget the breathing!

What a small world we live in. 

We can connect with anyone, anywhere, almost.  We share this planet, the air, the breath, the peace.  But sometimes it feels like we share too much hostility, pollution and negativity.

Every year it becomes more and more important to find inner peace. We must work together, not with hatred and criticism but with love and compassion.  We must take care of ourselves, our families, our friends and neighbors and our planet.

Finding Inner Peace

Forty percent of adults in the U.S. use alternative medicine and mind-body activities. Only 12% of children do.  Imagine how much more peaceful your family life would be if your children did Tai Chi!   You can do it together as a family.  It would be great to involve your children.

Recent studies were done on youths  from Europe (Sweden, Germany, and Portugal), North (Canada and United States) and South (Argentina) American, Asia (mainland China, Taiwan, Hong Kong) and Australia. Combined, these studies included 696 participants, with 360 youths participating in the Tai Chi or Qigong intervention arm and 336 in the comparator arm. 

Two common outcomes from the studies done in the various countries were  psychological wellbeing and better behavioral and  physical health and function for the group that did Tai Chi or Qigong.   This included classroom behavior, psychological health, reduction in stress, improvement in general health, weight management, improvement in physical activity, and quality of life. In order to understand the big impact of TaiChi and Qigong read the full study here .  

Of course studies are never absolute.

Try it for yourself. See how you feel!  How much better you sleep!  Notice the calmness at home and at school.  Enjoy your time together as a family and with friends.  Protect your planet and the environment you love.  We can be a positive force, together!   Begin with Tai Chi.  It is easy and fun!  Get your set here

Imagine:

A classroom is filled with students struggling with serious learning challenges.

The noise and the confusion suddenly stops.

Students love Tai Chi.

There is silence as each child moves as an elephant or a tiger.

Everyone is successful because there is not just one way to do it.

• A running  elephant is fast
• A playful  elephant is happy.
• A  thirsty elephant reaches down to drink water.
• A tired elephant moves slowly.

Each student is relaxing, breathing and visualizing his elephant moving across the plains of Africa.

No one needs to compare.  For once, every child is doing it exactly right.

What a feeling of satisfaction for the students.  No one is corrected.  There is silence and focus.  Relaxation and delight.  Teachers are happy.  Students are happy.

Even the ones who can’t sit still for more than 5 minutes are participating perfectly.

Why don’t you try Tai Chi with your students.  We all have challenges.  Tai Chi works on everyone to help you relax and feel better.

Getting involved with Tai Chi

You can order your set here.

Read some studies

A recent study showed that Tai Chi is particularly effective on children with sever hyperactivity and anxiety

A teacher from Connecticut tells his experience of using Tai Chi with children with special needs. 

The Qigong Institute reports how quickly most children respond to Tai Chi.  They show emotional stability and spiritual awareness after just one session.

How important can breathing be?  We all do it everyday, naturally.  We don’t have to learn it, do we?

It depends if you want to breathe efficiently, sending oxygen to every cell for maximum benefit, or just breathe to get by.

We take thousands of breaths every day.

Air is the most important thing we need to stay alive.  Breathing massages the organs.  Our brain needs oxygen  for thinking, understanding and inner peace.

It does not always happen with our normal shallow breathing.  As a newborn baby we all breathed very deeply – abdominal breathing.  But as we grow we do more chest breathing which gives us less oxygen.  It feels natural.   But to reach a calm, mediative state we need to breathe deeply. Focusing on the breath allows us to experience abdominal breathing and feel the peacefulness of chi and oxygen flowing everywhere in our body.  If you expand the abdomen during the inhalation there is more room for the lungs to expand and take in more oxygen.

But during our normal busy day we don’t take the time to breathe deeply. We just keep rushing.  Many of us breathe in polluted air.  Some of us where our clothes too tight and we can’t expand our waist to breathe deeply.  Is it worthwhile to wear clothing that we think looks great if it doesn’t allow us to breathe?  Poor breathing can also come from fear, nervousness, depression, anger and other emotions.

Practicing breathing is very beneficial.

In Tai Chi we do abdominal breathing. We also use visualization to calm down so we can breathe better.

And do you know what happens?

• Our brain and body function better.
• We feel better.
• Our digestion is better.
• We sleep better.

It is worthwhile to practice beneficial breathing.  It can make a huge difference.  Try it with Tai Chi or yoga or meditation.  It can change your life.

Summer is FUN!    Summer is SPECIAL!  But are you Ready for School?

When summer ends we need to be ready!  Ready for  reading, paying attention, getting things done on time,  showing discipline and concentration.

OH NO!  IT CAN BE HARD TO GET READY

Tai Chi for Kids is a great way to begin.  Tai Chi helps us:

1. take some time for centering and think about what is going to happen next
2. find self-control to perform as we want perform
3. slow down and relax, plan ahead
4. feel proud and be ready to face the future.
5. feel grounded and connected.

More and more schools are using mindful activities to improve school readiness.

Below are 2 examples that can inspire you to find ways to bring mindfulness to your school.

1.  Here is a great quote from the Niroga Institute. “Young people, especially those growing up in the urban cities and high poverty areas of our country, are victims of chronic stress and trauma. These kids need tools for stress resilience and trauma healing. Without these tools their sympathetic nervous systems will remain in overdrive as they try to protect themselves from real and perceived threats and danger. The latest research in neuroscience shows that this state of chronic stress or trauma physiologically turns off the brain’s ability to focus, regulate emotion, cope with stress, and empathize with others.”

At Cherryland Elementary School Principal, Dr. Itoco Garcia said

“Chronic absences decreased by 19% and the overall absenteeism rates dropped by 13%”  after Mindful Activities such as Tai Chi , Yoga, Meditation.  

Mindfulness leads to an improved learning atmosphere

2. Nancy Lindgren, Certified Pediatric Clinical Specialist uses Tai Chi  in the public schools to improve balance.  It helps children who are disabled to become more defensive and aware when walking in the halls.  They learn to go with the flow.   Nancy has been involved in many tests using Tai Chi with children  experiencing a variety of challenges.  Here is a quote from Nancy:

“For students especially, I believe that the increased large muscle input that Tai Chi demands leads to calming in the nervous system; that the structured movement is organizing to the brain and could lead to improved memory and learning on cognitive tests, and that the mind and body in sync will lead to calmness, less violence, better behavior, and improved self-report measures of quality of life.”