Tai chi does not involve impact or equipment. It requires only your motivation and perseverance.

Breathe in, breathe out. Let your chest rise, now let it fall. Shift your body weight to your left leg and stretch your arms out to the left, now slowly sway your arms and your body weight over to the right. Complementary movements, mental and physical balance, yin and yang. These are the essence of tai chi.

According to Chinese medicine, the universe is run by a single principle, the Tao, which is made up of the yin and the yang. They are opposing, yet complementary principles. For example, the yin includes femaleness, the moon, cold, and matter, while maleness, the sun, heat, and energy are relatively yang.

«Chi» se refiere a nuestra energía, vitalidad o fuerza vital. Y el » tai chi» se traduce como «abarcador» o «último supremo,» por su personificación de tanto el yin como del yang. «Chuan,» a menudo usado en el nombre, se traduce como «puño» o «boxeo» y significa ejercicio.

Peter Wayne, PhD, director del Tree of Life Tai Chi Center en Somerville, MA, describe al tai chi como «meditación móvil.» A través de los movimientos lentos y cuidadosos del tai chi, explica el Dr. Wayne. «La gente aprende a concentrarse en cada movimiento y se vuelve consciente de los procesos en sus cuerpos y mente. Luchamos por la calidad simple y pacífica del movimiento físico y pensamiento mental. Durante momentos especiales, la práctica puede incluso generate spiritual understanding.»

In Chinese medicine, pain or illness is believed to occur when the flow of chi is blocked and the yin and yang energies are out of balance. When the chi is circulating freely, the physical symptoms disappear. The joints are seen as gates that control the flow of chi; the slow, moderate, balanced movements, deep breathing, and mental focus of tai chi are designed to relieve tension, open these joints and allow chi to move effortlessly throughout the body.

Tai chi is claimed to be good for all health concerns. A number of renowned tai chi masters are said to have experienced sickness in the past from which they could find no relief until they began to practice tai chi. Such reports, however, are merely anecdotes and may not represent actual benefit.

Scientific research done so far has involved small groups of people. But Dr. Wayne notes that these studies are promising and suggest specific benefits. At Emory University, researchers found that older people who practiced tai chi regularly, was less likely to fall and hurt herself of a fall than a similar group of people given balance training but not tai chi instruction.

Other studies have suggested improvements in flexibility, strength, and cardiovascular fitness, which can bring relief for people recovering from heart surgery or dealing with conditions such as arthritis, back pain, fibromyalgia, depression, chronic fatigue syndrome and hypertension. However, none of these studies reaches a sufficient level of rigor that can actually prove that tai chi is specifically effective.

Tai chi involves virtually no impact and no equipment and requires only your motivation and perseverance. With the supervision of a qualified instructor, people with any physical ailment can begin practicing with little concern of injury. Dr. Wayne suggests starting with a group class. To find a teacher he will be compatible with, he asks members of different classes about their teachers.

There is a wide variety of tai chi styles and an even greater variety of teaching styles. In some traditional classes, there is little verbal communication and students learn by seeing. En otras clases, el maestro puede hablar todo y a menudo usa imágenes para describir los movimientos del cuerpo («deje que su columna vertebral cuelgue moderadamente como un collar de perlas») y para guiar la meditación («deje que la energía fluya a través de usted como el agua de un arroyo»).

No hay un programa de certificación nacional para los instructores de tai chi, en su lugar hay una jerarquía informal. Típicamente, aquellos que se llaman así mismos «maestros» tienen experiencia extensa, sin embargo, alguien puede adoptar este título. Pregúntele a los instructores potenciales, sobre su experiencia y su estilo específico y compare clases de muestra, si es posible.

Whether you have a specific health condition or wish to maintain your current state of health, balancing your yin and yang energies through the practice of tai chi can bring peace and vitality to your mind, body, and life.

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