Wold Tai Chi and Qigong Day 2012
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It is said that there are five pillars in Oriental Medicine; Acupuncture, Herbs, Massage, Dietary Advice and Qi Gong (including Tai Chi). Having been to Mount Vernon Wellness you may be familiar with the first four, but I’d like to take a moment to talk about Qi Gong and Tai Chi.
Some may be familiar with Tai Chi a slow moving martial art which concentrates on proper body mechanics and breathing to help cultivate health and vitality, but few westerns may know about Qi Gong. Some practitioners of Qi Gong believe it is a precursor to Tai Chi and is comprised of very basic movements coordinated with the breathe to build your Qi, an energy which flows throughout your body and keeps you healthy.
Often in clinic, people will ask if there is anything they can do to help whatever condition for which they are seeking treatment. Hands down the most effective, health promoting, broad spectrum advice I can give is practice Qi Gong. Qi Gong can be as simple as a seated posture focusing on relaxed breathing or as advanced as a 108 movement Tai Chi form. Any of these exercises can be altered to meet the physical requirements of the practitioner and will have long lasting health benefits. Although not overtly physical, they help improve circulation, cardiovascular function, balance, flexibility and peace of mind.
That being said coming up soon is World Tai Chi Qi Gong Day.
World Tai Chi Qi Gong day has been held the last Saturday in April since 1999. Over seventy countries and tens of thousands participated last year alone and it grows every year. There will be free lectures and demos all round Baltimore, but I’d like to share a great learning opportunity with you. A great martial arts school, US Kuo Shu Academy, in Owings Mills will be offering a free Tai Chi & Qigong Class class on Saturday, April 28th at 9 am. I have been training Tai Chi there for over 3 years now and cannot recommend them enough. The instructors and students are some of the most skilled and nicest people I have ever had the pleasure of working with. So, if you are looking to reduce some stress in your life, want to enter a new exercise program that addresses the mind as well as the body, or just want to see what Tai Chi is all about, please take advantage of this great opportunity and tell them I sent you.
Here’s their contact info:
US Kuo Shu Academy