At my age
exercise is important to remaining healthy.
I try to spend 15 minutes every day on my Total-Gym for upper
body strength and 5 minutes meditation; but what I have lacked was a stretching
and movement routine in order to stay fluid and limber.
My wife and
I have taken a number of Tai Chi courses, but have never followed up on the
practice; first, because Tai Chi requires room for movement (few homes have
that kind of open space) and secondly, I have an injured ankle that limits my
movement.
I recently
purchased a Qi Gong course from Great Courses for $35.00
(includes CD and on-line.) Qi Gong is
similar to Tai Chi and has many of the Tai Chi movements, but doesn’t require me
to learn a rigid complicated routine and doesn’t require space to move around. This exercise perfectly meets my wife and my
needs. It is a stretching, breathing
and movement exercise that centers the body and the mind, relieves stress and limbers
the body through low-impact movement.
You can find
Qi Gong exercises on YouTube – one included with this post; but I wanted the
full 12 class series that was available in the CD/on-line course. The course normally cost $69.00; but if you
call Great Courses (1-800-832-2412) and tell them you know of someone that
recently bought the course for $35.00 they will probably extend the offer to
you – hoping that you will buy other courses in the future.
I recommend Qi
Gong for anyone that leads a sedentary life, has physical limitations, or is
aging and wants to remain active.
A
disclaimer: I don’t advertise anything; but I often share information on
products that I am passionate about.
The mind has
a major impact on body health, so it is important to exercise the mind-body
connection for ultimate health.
the Ol’Buzzard
Qi gong is great! Glad you're doing it! I think of both qi gong and tai chi as "yoga standing up." I'm backsliding at the moment with my daily qi gong and tai chi practise, but come January, I'll be back at it again!
ReplyDeleteThat is some great exercise for us limited mobility folks. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteAs a student of Tai Chi I also have been doing Qi Gong on the side as a limbering exercise for my body. I have to be careful with my back and knees.
ReplyDeleteI will look at Qi Gong.... if it helps me to stretch better.... that would be great. I find that stretching is so incredibly important due to my running.... and yet it is hard to stretch as well as I feel I need to.
ReplyDeleteThis is offered locally on Wednesday nights. I can't always go, but usually feel better for a couple of days afterward. You are right that it doesn't take as much room as Tai Chi. At least I had a barn aisle for that.
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