Tai Chi better than stretching.

Some self appointed specialists tend to believe - and are vocal about it - that all forms are exercises are beneficial. 

 

THEY ARE...

Some exercises can be detrimental to people; some exercises are more beneficial than others.

Since 2004 The Oregon Research Institute has been running an evidence-based fall prevention program for community-dwelling older adults. 

A study was carried out on a sample of 256 physically inactive, community-dwelling adults aged 70 to 92 recruited through a patient database in Portland, Oregon. The participants practiced either Tai Chi or a routine of Stretching exercises three-times-per-week for a period of 6 months.

At the end of the six-month program the risk for multiple falls in the Tai Chi group was 55% lower than that of the stretching control group. Compared with the stretching control participants, the Tai Chi participants showed significant improvements.

Read the Full article here.


My name is Frederic Lecut and I have been teaching Tai Chi and Iaido in Dothan, AL. since 2000.

If you would like to learn more about Tai Chi or come try it for free for one week, please contact me by email at frederic.lecut@gmail.com or by phone at (334) 798 1639.

Try tai chi to improve balance, avoid fall

Compared to the pumping intensity of Zumba, Tai Chi looks like it’s performed in slow motion. Watching the gentle, graceful movements of this ancient Chinese practice, it’s hard to imagine that it can burn off a single calorie or strengthen muscles. But Tai Chi is actually far more dynamic than it looks.

"The slowness that you see from the outside is deceptive. As an aerobic workout, Tai Chi is roughly the equivalent of a brisk walk (depending on the intensity at which you perform it). And as a resistance training routine, some studies have found it similar to more vigorous forms of weight training," says Dr. Wayne, co-author of The Harvard Medical School Guide to Tai Chi.

Tai Chi and Balance

With its integrative approach that strengthens the body while focusing the mind, Tai Chi addresses a range of physical and mental health issues—including bone strength, joint stability, cardiovascular health, immunity, and emotional well-being. Tai Chi is especially useful for improving balance and preventing falls—a major concern for older adults.

Studies have shown Tai Chi to reduce falls in seniors by up to 45%. It can also improve balance in people with neurological problems. A recent study in The New England Journal of Medicine found the program particularly effective for balance in people with Parkinson’s disease.

Tai Chi helps improve balance because it targets all the physical components needed to stay upright—leg strength, flexibility, range of motion, and reflexes — all of which tend to decline with age.

Interestingly, one of Tai Chi’s biggest benefits to stability isn’t physical—but emotional.

Anyone who’s had a fall or who has instability has what we call a ‘fear of falling. Ironically, a fear of falling is one of the biggest predictors of a fall. By making you firmer on your feet, Tai Chi takes away that fear. Tai Chi also makes you more aware of both your internal body and the external world, giving you a better sense of your position in space, so you won’t be as likely to trip and fall if you try to simultaneously talk to a friend and navigate a busy sidewalk.

Getting started with Tai Chi

One of the best things about Tai Chi is its adaptability to every age and fitness level. I have students in their late 80s. Because Tai Chi has “zero impact,” it doesn’t put too much strain on aging bones and joints. But it’s not by any means something that’s only for the elderly, and it can be quite demanding for the young.

You can start Tai Chi at most levels of health, and you can ramp up your activities to be appropriate to your level of fitness and function. 

Tai Chi is also incredibly safe—even for people who are older and have chronic diseases. 

I have been teaching Tai Chi in the Wiregrass since 2000. Interested, Curious ? Please come watch or participate in a FREE class. Call me at (334) 798 1639 or email me at frederic.lecut@gmail.com.

4 Winds Tai Chi - the Third Form, Group practice.

A video of the third form of 4 Winds Tai Chi. In this form, as well as in the Long and Fourth form, we use the same defensive moves we used in the Short form, in the same order. These moves are executed on the Left then on the Right side, so we actually are performing 5 different defensive moves :

• High Block (Jodan Uke)
• Outside Middle block (Chudan Soto Uke)
• Knife hand block (Shuto Uke)
• Low block (Gedan Uke)
• Inside Middle block (Chudan Uchi Uke)

In this 3rd form, we insert counter moves after each one of the blocks - throws, or combination of strikes and throws. The Japanese names of these moves - in the Tradition of Nihon Tai Jitsu) are : 

• Kata Guruma
• O Soto Gari
• Tembim Nage
• O Uchi Gari
• Tai Otoshi

(sorry, I do not know their names in English...)

Some of these moves request moving three limbs at a time in three different directions, not always an easy thing to do... I have designed the Third form mostly to improve coordination and balance.

This video was taped at the Dothan Botanical Garden in Dothan, Alabama, USA in April 2010.

Thank you to Geri, Carl and Ron for their help and support.

World Tai Chi Day - The First Wealth is Health

The first wealth is health.
  – Ralph Waldo Emerson -

If you regard your life as a trust, you realize that the first resource you have to take care of is your own body. And this can be startling. 

For even your body is not really your own. It belongs to life, and it is your responsibility to take care of it. 

You cannot afford to do anything that injures your body, because the body is the instrument you need for selfless action. That is the fine print of the trust agreement: when we smoke, when we overeat, when we don’t get enough exercise, we are violating the terms of the trust. 

If you want to live life at its fullest, you will want to do everything possible to keep your body in vibrant health in order to give back to life a little of what it has given you.

Take responsibility for your own health ! 

Join us on Saturday April 24 at 10:00 a.m. to celebrate World Tai Chi Day at Solomon Park in Dothan, Alabama.It is a FREE and Worldwide event !

Tai Chi and Health

TAI CHI is no Magic Bullet, but it may be one way to reduce the cost of Health Care, if people would be informed about its benefits, and would decide to take responsibility for their own health. 

According to Bill Douglas, founder of World Tai Chi Day: "If you look at a Kaiser Permanente study that says that 70 per cent of illnesses are caused by stress, you're talking about a potential savings of trillions of dollars, year after year if we teach our citizens effective stress-management techniques on a massive scale."

For decades, Bill Douglas has believed that the regular practice of the Chinese martial art, meant to unblock the flow of energy though the body, can be used to treat and even prevent a wide range of illnesses.

The medical world is beginning to agree with him - The May 2009 Harvard Health Publication said that Tai Chi - should more aptly be called moving medication.

Latest Harvard Tai Chi Research Report:

Arthritis. In a 40-person study at Tufts University, presented in October 2008 at a meeting of the American College of Rheumatology, an hour of Tai Chi twice a week for 12 weeks reduced pain and improved mood and physical functioning more than standard stretching exercises in people with severe knee osteoarthritis. 

 

Sleep problems. In a University of California, Los Angeles, study of 112 healthy older adults with moderate sleep complaints, 16 weeks of Tai Chi improved the quality and duration of sleep significantly more than standard sleep education. The study was published in the July 2008 issue of the journal Sleep.

Stroke. In 136 patients who'd had a stroke at least six months earlier, 12 weeks of Tai Chi improved standing balance more than a general exercise program that entailed breathing, stretching, and mobilizing muscles and joints involved in sitting and walking. Findings were published in the January 2009 issue of Neurorehabilitation and Neural Repair.

Heart disease. A 53-person study at National Taiwan University found that a year of Tai Chi significantly boosted exercise capacity, lowered blood pressure, and improved levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, insulin, and C-reactive protein in people at high risk for heart disease. The study, which was published in the September 2008 Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine, found no improvement in a control group that did not practice Tai Chi.

-- Harvard Medical School's Harvard Health Publication, May, 2009

Join us to celebrate World Tai Chi Day 

on Saturday, April 24, 2010

in Dothan, Alabama, USA 

Solomon Park 10:00 a.m.

World Tai Chi and Qi Gong Day

World TaiChi and Qi Gong Day, a wold wide event, will be celebrated on April 24. This is a FREE event, sponsored by Frederic Lecut's School of Martial Arts and the City of Dothan Deparment of Leisure Services.

Join us at Solomon Park on April 24 from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. to practice Tai Chi with thousands of other fans in the World.

More information to come about the detailed organization and free pre-event classes