Seniors Tai Chi
Why Seniors Should Play Tai Chi
Health experts have known for decades that physical exercise is vital to our physical and mental well being no matter what age group you’re in. Tai Chi Chuan is an ancient art form that is practiced by millions of people in parks throughout China. It's a common sight agile elders in their mid eighties and beyond doing physical movements that would be difficult for people in the west that are half their age. Tai Chi Chuan is also one of the most popular exercise systems in the world.
Tai Chi Chuan is inexpensive to learn and practice. It is also extremely low risk for injuries. Tai Chi movements are slow, gentle and never strenuous; and the only equipment required to do Tai Chi, is your own two feet and a few feet of peaceful empty space “to play” as the Chinese like to call their Tai Chi practice time. Tai Chi Chuan has been practiced in China as preventive medicine, a therapy and a remedy for complaints and disorders, since its creation by a Taoist monk named Chang San-feng some eight centuries ago.
The low-impact non-strenuous nature of this exercise system makes it an ideal fitness routine for older adults, although Tai Chi Chuan is interesting and beneficial for all of its “players” regardless of their age and physical condition. But for seniors, Tai Chi can be more effective than an ordinary aerobic workout, it is a valuable exercise that will maintain and increase your level of activity and your quality of life, while reducing your overall risk of injuries.
This research shows that Tai Chi Chuan can reduce the risk of falls in the elderly by as much as 50 percent; which makes more it effective than any other exercise for prevent falls, the number one killer of American Seniors. Tai Chi Chuan has also been shown to increase functional ability and flexibility in physically active older adults; help prevent osteoporosis, improve mobility in arthritis patients; improve cardiovascular function and reduce blood pressure; boost the immune system capacity and enhance mental health. The results of this medical research have important implications for America’s senior citizens.
The first thing that Master Dug Corpolongo did immediately after being certified as a Tai Chi Chuan teacher in 1990 was to walk into the North Valley Senior Center in Albuquerque New Mexico and volunteer as a Seniors’ Tai Chi Instructor. Twenty years later Sifu Dug is still teaching what has become the longest continuously running free Seniors’ Tai Chi classes in North America. Over the years he has personally witnessed the students in his Seniors’ Tai Chi Classes experience all the benefits reported in the medical studies and more. As a result his seniors’ have time again provided Sifu Dug with inspiration and motivation to continue teaching Tai Chi Chuan.Sifu Dug, is currently teaching Free Seniors Tai Chi classes:
- Tuesdays 9:30 to 10:30 at Manzano Mesa Multigenerational Center 501 Elizabeth St SE 87123-2887
- Thursdays 9:30 to 10:30 at Highland Senior Center 131 Monroe Street NE Abuquerque, NM 87108 .