Two Plates in Tai Chi Pelvic Floor & Diaphragm The pelvic floor and diaphragm connection are important to consider in your Tai Chi practice. They are called the two plates and are coordinated in movement and breath work. Spending time practising the connection will help develop your form and improve your posture. The principles that…
Cross Lateral Movements Connecting Left and Right Brain Hemispheres The Power of Natural Movements For fully functioning physical movements and motor control the whole brain must work in a co-ordinated way. There are 6 patterns of total body connectivity; breathing, core, spine, upper & lower body, body half and cross lateral. This article looks at…
Qigong Wall Squatting The Qigong wall squat is a dynamic whole body movement. An ultimate squat that develops leg strength, power, balance and body awareness. The stretching and relaxing wave like motion in the spine gives circulation a boost, helps the body detox and massages your internal organs to aid their functioning. As a beginner…
Deception Training Body Language and the Mind Body Connection This article looks at deception training and the relationship between how you hold yourself, the stress and relaxation state, and how Tai Chi and Qigong movements can help. The Stress Response What does the fear, stress, anxiety, scared, afraid, discomfort or nervous response look like in…
Self Managing Chronic Pain For those living with chronic pain who would like to be active in their self care management, read over my collection of resources that aim to naturally and holistically support you. Explore gentle and powerful methods for both mind and body to change your pain experience. I understand personally the impact…
The Hips in Tai Chi The importance of aligning the pelvis and hips in your Tai Chi practice, to improve the quality of your Tai Chi movements and your ability to absorb and generate martial power. In turn, this aids your postural health, how well your organs function and your ability to breathe deeply. Aligning…
Pain Instructs Training Tai Chi and Qigong during times of injury, chronic and acute pain can offer some unusual benefits. Simply put, pain instructs. It’s one of the responses in the body that is not subtle, it hurts and we react to it. When you experience physical pain in your Tai Chi or Qigong practice,…
Hibernating Bear Tai Chi Do you live with chronic illness and want to try a different approach to building resilience in mind and body? The Hibernating Bear Tai Chi and Qigong programme draws from traditional movement and stillness practices to help support chronic pain, chronic fatigue, those living with a different health baseline than the…
Physical Symmetry Training Physical Health for Life I remember a training session a few years ago with Tina Chunna Zhang from Qigong for Women in NYC. She said that qigong practice is for ‘finding your weak spots’. To me, this means training the body in a way to create physical symmetry or harmony in the…
Tai Chi Qigong for Injury Recovery In this article I would like to explore the benefits of using Tai Chi and Qigong as restorative exercises to help during injury recovery. Over the years I have worked with many students to aid physical rehabilitation after accidents and injury, from frozen shoulders, twisted knees and falls, to…
Prolonged Sitting is Killing You Tai Chi and Qigong to improve your posture in daily life If you have attended my Tai Chi and Qigong classes, you’ll know how emphatic I can be regarding frequent healthy movements and postural health in your daily life. By practicing the Classical Chinese arts regularly, the corrections to your…
Tai Chi Qigong Fall Prevention “Falls among elderly cost NHS £2.3bn a year” Reported by the Independent Newspaper in 2017. “Falls among elderly people may be costing the NHS in England up to £4.6m a day.” Reported by the BBC in 2010. “Pensioners can cut the risk of falls by a fifth by practising…
Travel with Hope A Qigong student interview. Meet ‘John Doe’ and read his story of learning to live with Parkinson’s Disease (PD). How practicing the Classical Chinese movement and stillness arts can help the symptoms of PD. This interview is dated April 11, 2014 is an update to a previous interview on March 15, 2013. John…
Qigong for Parkinsons Disease Parkinson’s disease is a nervous system disorder where the nerve cells found within the brain that produce the chemical called dopamine start to die off. This leads to the many symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. Main Symptoms Tremors Slowness of movement Rigid body / rigid movement Bladder and bowel problems Swallowing and…
Method Not Mimic Your Tai Chi Journey As a beginner when learning the internal martial art of Tai Chi or Qi Gong, it is important to learn how to move rather than just mimicking the instructor. Without guided and personal instruction, the movements become mere choreography. If you simply watch and follow your Tai Chi…