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Practicing Tai Chi For A Healthy Mind And Body. Tai Chi Has A Growing Support From Science.

Mind-body Exercises, Such As Tai Chi And Yoga, Have Been Gaining Popularity Over The Past Few Decades. This Is Not Surprising, Giv...

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Mind-body exercises, such as tai chi and yoga, have been gaining popularity over the past few decades. This is not surprising, given the increasing number of studies on the positive effects of these gentler forms of exercise - everything from lowering blood pressure and managing depression to building strength and improving balance. There is even evidence that tai chi may help you live longer, more vital life.

As an ancient Chinese practice, tai chi may seem foreign and even intimidating. Perhaps your only experience with tai chi is watching video clips or seeing photos of large groups of Chinese people doing tai chi in parksâ€”a rare occurrence in the United States. Only about 1% of the U.S. population, or about 3.65 million Americans, reported doing tai chi in 2015. That means a lot of Americans are missing out on myriad benefits that tai chi has to offer. The goal of this report is to make tai chi more familiar, more accessible, and easy to practice regularlyâ€”even right in your living room.

Mind-body exercises, such as tai chi and yoga, have been gaining popularity over the past few decades. This is not surprising, given the increasing number of studies on the positive effects of these gentler forms of exerciseâ€”everything from lowering blood pressure and managing depression to building strength and improving balance. There is even evidence that tai chi may help you live a longer, more vital life.

Tips for a better practice
One of the best ways to learn how to do tai chi is to observe it and follow along. Thatâ€™s why we created videos of both the Standing Tai Chi Calisthenics and the Tai Chi Elements. Reviewing the videos before trying the moves on the following pages will make learning tai chi easier. You can find these videos online at www.health.harvard.edu/tai-chi-calisthenics and www.health.harvard.edu/tai-chi-elements.

In addition, the tips below will help you to get more benefits out of your practice and reduce your risk of injury.

Enjoy it. Enjoy the movements and breathing. Donâ€™t worry about whether you are doing everything right. Donâ€™t think too much about doing it perfectlyâ€”just do. Enjoyment will deepen your practice and help your qi to flow more freely. Worrying or overthinking it disrupts the flow and pulls you out of the moment.

Get grounded. Feel the ground with your feet. Release your weight into the ground and maintain good body alignment to promote stability and balance.

Take it slow. Moving slowly gives you time to sense your bodyâ€™s position, uncover hidden tensions, and make postural modifications so that different parts of your body move more harmoniously together.

Obey the 70% rule. A key principle of tai chi is moderation in effort, which may contribute to its low risk of injury. This principle is referred to as the 70% rule. Basically, it means to avoid extremes, in which injuries are more likely to occur. Instead, stay at about 70% of your effort, intensity, or range of motion. Never force a movement beyond about 70%. For example, keep a slight bend in your elbow when you extend your arm instead of fully extending it and locking your elbow. Similarly, when stretching your back, for example, stop well before you sense fear of straining muscles or causing a spasm. If you feel any pain or resistance to a move, back off from it.

Be mindful. As you move from side to side, do so in a mindful way. Can you feel the contact between your feet and the ground? Can you feel how your feet connect to the rest of your body? Can you feel your body slowly relaxing as you breathe? Can you do all that without clenching your neck and jaw? You may not be able to do any of the above well, but just being aware of these things is a critical first step. As soon as you start moving, the movement should serve as the â€œmagnetâ€ for your attention. Let it draw your awareness to the parts that are moving.

Move from your center. Imagine your head, torso, and pelvis as a single column aligned over your legs and feet. All upper and lower body movements are integrated with the movement of this â€œcolumn,â€ which includes the bodyâ€™s center of gravity. Do not twist the spine. The tai chi classics say that good movements begin beneath your feet, are steered by the waist, and applied through the arms.

Be aware of your â€œinner ocean.â€ Your body is roughly 60% liquid. With this in mind, think of moving an inner ocean when you perform tai chi, rather than changing the shape or position of a solid object. Keep the movements smooth and flowing, as if you were in a poolâ€”the kind of movements that would create gentle waves instead of splashes.

Do some, not none. As with learning to play an instrument, the more time you put into tai chi, the more youâ€™ll get out of it. Whether you have time for only a few 30-minute sessions a week, or 10 minutes a day, do it! Youâ€™ll still get benefits. But if you want to overcome a serious health problem or develop a deeper spiritual practice, a more rigorous regimen, such as longer 30- to 60-minute daily sessions, will help you to achieve those goals.

Pace yourself. Just like a young tree thrives when it receives intermittent rain instead of a single downpour, youâ€™ll see more benefits by doing a little tai chi more frequently than doing a lot in isolated sessions that are few and far between. This is especially important when you are beginning a practice. Start with just 10 or 15 minutes and then gradually increase. Even five minutes most days of the week is better than doing nothing at all.

Be patient with your progress. No matter what type of exercise you do, even high-intensity workouts, it takes time to see changes. And with lower-intensity forms of exercise like tai chi, it may take even longer to see physical changes like increased strength or flexibility. The results are worth the wait. However, you need to be on the lookout for them. For example, you may be able to reach into overhead cabinets more easily or bend down to pick up something off the floor without needing to hold on to something. Look for improvements in everyday activities as a way to track
your progress. Celebrate these improvements.

Source: Harvard

How To Work On Addiction In Your Place

When Unaddressed, Alcohol And Other Drug Use Disorders In The Workplace Are Costly And Dangerous For Organizations, As Well As Ind...

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When unaddressed, alcohol and other drug use disorders in the workplace are costly and dangerous for organizations, as well as individuals. There are many good examples of successful programs and resources available that can help, and with over 22 million Americans currently in recovery from alcohol and other drug use disorders, creating a drug-free workplace is entirely possible.

More than 70% of individuals with alcohol or illicit drug use continue to maintain employment, as many employees with alcohol or other drug problems can continue to remain “functioning.” Companies and organizations can no longer ignore the realities and repercussions of alcohol and other drugs in the workplace.

“Functioning” employees are costly in many ways

Addiction costs American businesses and organizations an average of $81 billion in lost profits every year. This is due to losses in productivity, high turnover rates, theft in the workplace, increases in absenteeism, utilization of sick time, and decreases in quality of work. Out of the 70% of employees that engage in substance use and maintain employment, over 42% report feeling a decrease in productivity as a result. Although job losses directly related to alcohol or other drug use are usually associated with more persistent and severe levels of substance use disorders, the use of these substances negatively impacts individual job attendance and performance long before lob loss occurs.

In addition, alcohol and other drug use increases the number of occupational injuries and fatalities, and affects the health and well-being of the employees. In emergency room visits for workplace related injuries, breathalyzer tests detected alcohol in 16% of cases. Over 10% of workplace fatalities involve alcohol. A subtler but just as important effect is the lethargy and short-term residual cognitive impairments that can follow a night of heavy drinking. This can increase the risk of injury for employees and their colleagues.

Beyond detriment to the bottom line of the organization and the health of employees, alcohol and other drug use can affect the attitudes and culture of an organization, lower morale, and decrease motivation, engagement, and trust.

Steps toward a drug-free work environment

There are many ways in which employers can create a drug-free work environment. Employers can educate themselves and employees on not only identifying the signs and symptoms of alcohol and drug use, but also the necessary steps to take when one suspects that a coworker may need help. Through education and clear drug-free workplace policies, employers can aim to increase awareness and clarify expectations.

Developing an employee drug testing program is another way to help create a drug-free work environment. Currently, over 50% of organizations require pre-employment drug screenings for all new hires, especially in high-risk industries such as mining, construction, and public safety. State laws generally allow organizations to randomly drug test employees once hired, however states have varying rules regarding these practices.

Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) have been found to be highly effective resources for addressing addiction issues, but many organizations, especially smaller ones, do not have these programs available. EAP programs work to encourage and support addiction treatment and recovery through confidential assessments, short-term counseling, and resource referrals.

And it is worth it

Treatment for addiction, facilitated within or by the workplace, has been shown to be successful in increasing employees’ legal, mental, and social functioning, as well as decreasing absenteeism rates, workplace conflict, and productivity problems upon return from treatment. Investing in employee treatment yields high returns, with an estimated gain of 23% among employees with an income of $45,000 per year or an estimated gain of 64% for employees earning $60,000 per year.

With this ever-growing public health crisis, more and more lives are being affected both inside and outside of the workplace. Organizational involvement is now more important than ever. This involvement by employers is rapidly transforming to be less about punishing employee misconduct, and more focused on finding creative ways to provide education and resources for employees, to support them in seeking out lifesaving treatment for themselves or a loved one. Taking steps to address addiction is truly an opportunity to humanize the workplace and help reduce suffering and avoid painful, sometimes deadly, consequences.

Author: John F. Kelly, PhD

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