Tai Chi and Quality of LifeTai Chi and Quality of Life

Unless you are one of those rare individuals that have spent their entire life being very physically active, you have probably reached middle age far less than the healthy 20 something person you remember fondly. This is nothing unusual as by the time most of us reach the 40-50 age group we have become far more sedentary than we were in our youth. Most of us don’t exercise and spend our days sitting behind a desk for 8-10 hours a day. The daily practice of Tai Chi such as is taught in Portland, Oregon can restore your youthful health.

According to a study published by the British Journal of Sports Medicine, those of us in the age range of 40-50 who regularly take part in a martial art such as Tai Chi show incredibly high levels of physical fitness when compared to those who do not exercise. While this might seem like a no brainer, the reality is that most people in this age group associate physical fitness with the practice of high impact, strenuous exercises and use this as an excuse not to do anything at all.

At this age most of us are starting to show the effects of aging on our bodies, we have the beginnings of wrinkles and the sagging skin that come with age. Our stamina is waning and so is our ability to tackle many of the physical tasks we could easily handle in our youth. Yet if you wander through many towns in Asia, you will find large groups of people in their 60s to 80s that are far more aerobically fit and have much better balance, coordination, strength and even flexibility than many of us had in our 30s.

Many of us in our 30s are already suffering from obesity, cancer, diabetes and numerous other diseases, yet these septuagenarians are fit and healthy with a very low incidence of any of these diseases. How do they do it? Take a walk through these same towns around sunrise and you will see large groups of these elderly people gathered together in the parks, all of them practicing their daily regimen of Tai Chi Chuan exercises. As a result of their adherence to this daily regimen, they will all go on to live longer, healthier and happier lives.

Tai Chi and Quality of Life

What does this have to do with those of us that are reaching middle age? If you were to start taking Tai Chi classes today, you can begin to restores the level of physical health that you once enjoyed and slow down the aging process. You may even find that you will be in better shape than you were in your 20s; one thing you can count on is that you will live a longer healthier life, which is something to look forward to.

 

Learn more about Portland Tai Chi Classes or Visit the Main Page.