Yoga and tai chi: This way to health and happiness

Imagine that you found something you could do for about 30 minutes each morning that reduces stress and gives you a deep sense of calm and peace. At the same time, this calming activity also helps you build strength, stay limber, improve your balance and other aspects of your health, such as your immune system and blood pressure.

The great news is that several pathways to this kind of inner and outer balance already exist. They have been developed and refined through practice over many centuries. The two best examples of these are probably yoga and tai chi. To many, these activities may sound strange and foreign. But to many in China and India, and increasingly in other countries such as the Philippines, these activities are simply efficient, low-impact ways to maintain mental clarity and physical fitness.

Just as you might venture away from your normal diet to try cuisine from another culture, it may be worth your time to try a form of exercise and relaxation from a different culture. As with new foods, you may find something with yoga or tai chi that you like — and that enhances your health, your enjoyment of life, and your ability to connect with yourself and everything around you. Practicing in a group can also give you a sense of community that bonds you to other people, which may be beneficial to your health.

Different Reasons For Different Persons

People come to practices such as yoga and tai chi for different reasons. Some are simply curious. Some seek a broadening of their experience. Others are looking for specific health benefits. Practicing these arts has been shown to lead to improved health. Certain benefits — particularly in stress reduction — can be seen in as little as one day. In fact, stress reduction and inner calm are important early gains that may both attract you to the practice and sustain your interest in continuing on a regular basis.

Within the first few days of these practices, some people report better sleep and improvements in digestive health — such as better bowel function and decreased constipation. You may start to notice other significant benefits after about 10 to 12 weeks of regular practice.

A study of yoga and people who experience migraines found that those doing yoga had less frequent and less intense headaches than did those taking medications. In addition, those who practiced yoga experienced improvement in anxiety and depression. Yoga and tai chi also have other potential positive effects, including improved bone density and cardiovascular health, and lowered blood pressure.

In Yoga There’s Strength

The word “yoga” comes from the language of the yoga tradition (Sanskrit) and means yolk or unite. Yoga has been evolving for many centuries and includes a spectrum of physical and mental disciplines.

Hatha yoga is the type of yoga that many people think of when they hear the word. Hatha yoga unites breathing with physical movement to create subtle change on all levels of your body. The word “hatha” can be translated as the union of the sun and moon.

Yoga postures can be done in a very rigid, structured manner or in a more gentle way. If you wish to practice yoga, it’s important to find what manner best matches your fitness level and health restrictions.

Hatha yoga involves the use of many different body postures — called asanas — held for various lengths of time and done in a sequence. While yoga can help you gain flexibility, it’s much more than that. Yoga strengthens and relaxes, and can revitalize your mind, body, and spirit.

Tips For Safe Yoga

Check with your doctor before starting a new yoga program. This is especially important if you have certain health conditions, such as joint problems. Also talk to your doctor if you have had recent surgery or medical procedure, or a history of low back or neck pain. You may need to avoid certain yoga positions because of the undue strain it may cause.

Also see your doctor before you begin yoga if you have any of the following conditions or situations since complications can arise:

• High blood pressure that’s difficult to control

• A risk of blood clots

• Eye conditions, including glaucoma

• Osteoporosis

• Artificial joints

Experts have identified modifications to certain yoga poses for people who have arthritis or other health conditions. These adaptations can be as simple as modifying a move so that it can be done while sitting in a chair.

If you decide to take a yoga class, let your teacher know about any injuries or health challenges you have so that your practice can be modified accordingly. Combining your regular home practice with a weekly yoga class enables a teacher to oversee your efforts.

Don’t ignore pain. It’s your body’s way of warning you that you’re doing too much. Learn to distinguish pain and discomfort.

In the same manner that light is related to dark in yin and yang, tai chi, which is movement, comes from wu chi, which is stillness, the void of unformed energy and existence. Tai chi is a pathway for you to touch and experience stillness.

There are many different styles of tai chi. Some are closer to martial arts applications and are more athletic and strenuous. Others have evolved more for health and restorative aspects of practice.

Before signing up for a class, investigate the training of the instructor and the style being taught for its suitability to your level of conditioning and health.

Health And Tai Chi

Tai chi is perhaps the best known of the energy practices that come under the broader category of qi gong. The aim for qi gong practice is improvement in qi balance. This is acquired through specific exercises based on three main principles: harmonizing the breath, harmonizing one’s posture and movements, and harmonizing one’s mind.

Tai chi and qi gong practices often combine rhythmic movements, breathing techniques, and focused attention. Classes in tai chi are available in many communities.

Each movement in tai chi — in addition to often having fanciful names such as “grasp bird’s tail” — has a martial art purpose. Examples include pulling an opponent forward and off balance, or deflecting a striking blow. The slow, graceful, and fluid manner in which these movements are done in tai chi is a way of practicing and maintaining equilibrium if under attack.

The Art Of Tai Chi: Slowly And Softly

Tai chi is performed slowly, which accentuates its intention, precision, and accuracy, as well as the mechanics of the art. Surprisingly, if you practice the art slowly and softly, you can develop the ability to have agility, strength, and quickness of movement. In addition to teaching motor skills and increasing physical improvement, tai chi is nurturing to the inner self. It also can decrease the incidence of falls and the fear of falling.

There are three main components to tai chi. These are:

• Meditation — to know yourself

• Forms — to know yourself in the world with respect to gravity

• Push-hand practice — to know yourself in relation to others.

What most people associate with tai chi are the forms — the sequenced pattern of movements. The sequences are often called either short forms — consisting of eight to 10 movements — or long forms that may have more than 100 movements in the sequence. But this isn’t all that tai chi involves.

Meditation also is a key component of tai chi. For many years, this meditative component of tai chi was taught only to the most trusted and accomplished students. And even when meditation was more broadly taught, new students often ignored that aspect and were more attracted to the form movements. That’s unfortunate since historically, the meditation component of tai chi is one of its strongest features.

That’s the beauty of both yoga and tai chi. They bring all the physical and mental elements together into a unified form of healthy and enlightened exercises.