Tai Chi Improves Balance

The scientific community continues to explore tai chi as a theraputic modality. A recent New York Times article reported on a research study involving stroke patients. "While the exercise group showed little improvement in balance, the tai chi group made significant gains when they were tested on weight-shifting, reaching and how well they could maintain their stability on a platform that moved like a bus." (New York Times 4/7/09)

New Taiji Park in Ontario

The Peng You Taiji Quan Association in Thunder Bay, Ontario (朋友太極拳協會) has won the designation of their practice area of Marina Park on the shores of Lake Superior as "International Taiji Park." The group was host to the International Forum on Taijiquan in 2006. "Plans are underway to give this area a special visual appeal. Maybe it will be a moongate which frames the Sleeping Giant," the iconic landmass visible from this northwoods town.

World Tai Chi Day 2009

World Tai Chi Day is coming up--check your local newspapers or the official site for events, or, lacking any, go out to a park and do some tai chi yourself--help spread the word about this wonderful health-enhancing practice!

Tai Chi, Mastery, and Golf

Did you know that tai chi practice can help your golf game? A Wall Street Journal article recently covered the topic of practice and mastery—and lo, and behold, some golfers are using what they call the "tai chi swing" to help straighten out their golf technique. The slow pace of tai chi helps golfers analyze swings that would otherwise be done at high speeds that don't allow time for observation of accuracy.
Mastery, though, as Malcolm Gladwell says, can take 10,000 hours of practice. Time to start work!(Wall Street Journal 3/19/09)

Knee Arthritis Helped by Tai Chi

"The traditional Chinese form of exercise known as tai chi can help reduce pain and physical impairment in people who have knee arthritis, researchers said this week.
In their study, one group of people in their 60s with severe knee osteoarthritis performed tai chi for an hour twice a week for 12 weeks, while a similar group did the same amount of conventional stretching exercises over the same period.
Those who did tai chi experienced greater pain reduction, less depression and improvements in physical function and overall health, researchers led by Dr. Chenchen Wang of Tufts Medical Center in Boston reported at a meeting of the American College of Rheumatology in San Francisco." Read the whole Reuters story at Canada.com. (Image: Andrew Wong/Getty Images)

Golf Benefits from Tai Chi

"Golfers hoping to improve their swing could do worse than to try their hand at Tai Chi, according to a Nantwich health expert.
Julia Hudson, a postgraduate researcher at MMU Cheshire, has found that golfers who practise the ancient Chinese art have a better chance of combining power and control in their game....'I recommend Tai Chi because of how it encourages the whole body to work in harmony. Golfers came back with their back pain gone and they also observed that their game had improved by couple of shots per round.'" Read the complete article at Crewe Chronicle 2/11/2009

T'ai Chi in the Art Museum

Taijiquan Journal editor Barbara Davis led an overflow crowd of children and parents in a fun set of t'ai chi exercises at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts Chinese Lantern Festival Family Day.
Over 4,000 people attended the day's events which included pipa music by Gao Heng, painting activities withe Bob Schmitt of Laughing Waters Studio (Bob designed and did layout of the print edition of Taijiquan Journal), paper lantern-making, and performances by the CAAM, the Chinese Dance Theater. This annual event is one of the Art Institute's monthly family activities that highlight different parts of the museum's diverse, large collection.