SOHMA Integrative Medicine

We offer the best of Eastern & Western medicine without using drugs or surgery

Free Tai Chi Classes

5 Health Benefits of Tai Chi

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Elderly people practicing Tai Chi
Elderly Asian people practicing Tai Chi together

Tai Chi has been known to be a helpful activity for people of all ages. But why is that? Some say that it’s because the combination of meditation and low impact exercise allows nearly anyone to see an improvement in their physical and mental health.

In today’s article we are going to give you examples of five benefits of Tai Chi. We have a completely free Tai Chi class you can join to start feeling the benefits for yourself. 

Stress Reduction

The first benefit we are going to talk about is the ability for Tai Chi to reduce stress. Although it cannot get rid of the burden, it is noticeably helpful in relieving built up stress. First off stress can manifest in many different ways. In some cases stress can look like symptoms of other conditions such as headaches, insomnia, muscle pain, or fatigue.

Reducing your stress can be achieved slowly and steadily with Tai Chi. It can help you find the quiet and calm you may have been looking for by combining slow movement from the Tai Chi poses and the deep controlled breathing you enter a state of mindfulness. This helps you to relax and reduce some of the built up stress you would have been carrying

Mood Improvement

The second benefit that I want to talk about is how Tai Chi can be used to improve your mood. Improve your mood? You ask, yes as your mood can be directly linked to your mental health. Poor mental health can result in suffering from depression, anxiety, insomnia and sometimes bipolar disorder. Poor mental health also can lead to physical issues as well such as headaches, stomach aches, fatigue and in severe cases, heart disease.

By combining meditation and exercise Tai Chi becomes an efficient workout with many people seeing positive results by practicing as little as one hour per week. It has been well documented that meditation and exercise improves your mood and mental health and since Tai Chi does both, it is possibly the best option out there.

Muscle Balance, Flexibility and Agility

The third benefit is about the physical body. Many times as we age our bodies tend to lose some of their capabilities whether it be due to the act of aging, injuries, or just lack of activity.

Due to the low impact movement of Tai Chi, and it being a weight bearing form of exercise Tai Chi will engage your major muscle groups which will improve your endurance, flexibility, agility, and strength.

Asthma

The fourth benefit involves breathing. If you are one of the million of Americans who suffer from asthma, you know that trying to stay in shape can be difficult. Due to its nature, some people can’t nave extended exercise routines as this can trigger asthma attacks.

By focusing on the breathing techniques of Tai Chi, those suffering from asthma can benefit greatly. With time and practice asthmatic people see their lung capacity increase all while still getting good exercise as well.

Physical fitness

The final benefit, that we are discussing today, is that Tai Chi is a great exercise experience that can keep you strong and active without having to go to the gym. Tai chi is a gentle martial art so that any person of any age or physical fitness is capable of practicing. Tai chi also has every low bar of entry, all you need is a comfortable set of clothing and a pair of shoes without heels.

If you are looking to take a class, having a teacher to give feedback is helpful. Having classmates who you can bond with and can encourage each other is another important aspect of learning Tai Chi.

We offer completely free Tai Chi classes for beginners at Heartwell Park in Long Beach CA by the duck pond. If you are not yet convinced feel free to ask the staff at sohma about any other information regarding our free Tai Chi classes.

Take the Next Step In Improving Your Health by Contacting SOHMA Integrative Medicine

Our goal is to help you improve your health. You can reach out to us and ask us about the Myers Cocktail, IV Therapy, Chiropractic care, or how our other health service lines can help you with your journey to improved health. 

Located in Long Beach, CA we help individuals from the surrounding cities.

We look forward to helping you take the next step in your journey to better health.

Tai Chi for Muscle Flexibility, Balance & Agility

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As we age, we tend to lose a bit of our bodies to time. Whether it is due to compound injuries,  poor diet, aging, or static positions like sitting for hours in front of a screen. But, there is always hope to help recover some of what was lost.

Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese martial art that has been shown to improve physical and mental wellness. Today, we will see how Tai Chi can help with putting a pep back in your step as well as what you may need in order to get started. At SOHMA Integrated Medicine in Long Beach CA we care about bringing balance and wellness in the most natural way possible, this is why we offer completely free Tai Chi classes.

What Causes our Bodies to Weaken

There are many reasons why our bodies lose balance, flexibility and agility. Some of the more common reasons are:

  • Aging
  • Injury
  • Lack of Stretching
  • Inactivity
  • Migraines
  • Nerve Damage
  • Arthritis
  • Weight

With a little bit of commitment and as little as one Tai Chi class per week, for a couple of months people have shown improvements in many aspects of their wellbeing.

Injury can cause a multitude of problems, not only does the injury leave scarring , depending on the nature of the injury it is possible that it leads to inactivity of the surrounding joints and muscles. This can lead to both loss in agility and flexibility.

Unfortunately there is nothing we can do about aging. But just because we are getting older does not mean we should not try to keep our bodies feeling as young as possible.

Sometimes we can let temptations win and make poor health decisions. Tai Chi is an excellent way of getting back on track, physical wellbeing takes a lot of mental fortitude in order to make the right choices. Oftentimes meditation is recommended to help with mental health. Tai Chi, often called meditation in motion, pulls double duty in this  case. As not only do you begin to be more active by practicing the martial art, you also help your mental health by taking calm rhythmic deep breaths that put you in a state of meditation. By choosing to actively change yourself, you will also improve your self esteem and confidence in yourself. This in turn will help make better choices about your health.

Due to the slow and low impact nature of Tai Chi as well as it being a weight bearing form of exercise, Tai Chi will engage many of your major muscle groups. This will improve endurance, strength, balance, flexibility and agility.

How to get Started Practicing Tai Chi

Getting started is easy. Do you have comfortable clothing? Do you have comfortable shoes with no heals? If you answered yes to these questions then you are halfway there.

One of the best ways to learn Tai Chi is to join a class. Having a teacher giving your feedback the positions and breathing rhythm is very helpful. While having other classmates to bond with and encourage each other is another big part of the experience. We offer completely free Tai Chi classes for beginners at Heartwell Park in Long Beach CA, usually around the duck pond.

Tai chi is an excellent exercise for anybody of any age or fitness level. If you are not yet convinced to give it a try, we welcome you to watch one of our free classes in order to help you makeup your mind. Feel free to ask the staff at SOHMA about any other information regarding our free Tai Chi classes.

Take the Next Step In Improving Your Health by Contacting SOHMA Integrative Medicine

Our goal is to help you improve your health. You can reach out to us and ask us about the Myers Cocktail, IV Therapy, Chiropractic care, or how our other health service lines can help you with your journey to improved health. 

Located in Long Beach, CA we help individuals from the surrounding cities.

We look forward to helping you take the next step in your journey to better health.

How to Use Tai Chi for Mood Improvement

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Free Tai Chi Classes in Long Beach Ca

Did you know that there exists a martial art that can help with improving your mood? 

Yes, you heard that right, a martial art that can improve your mood. The best part is that it’s low intensity making it perfect for anyone who is willing to give it a chance and as you will later see, completely free.

Tai Chi, a traditional Chinese martial art, can be beneficial in many different aspects of life. Whether it is to get a work out, reduce stress, increase mobility, flexibility or improve your mood. 

In this article we are going to mainly focus on how Tai Chi can be beneficial in improving your mood as well as why it is important for your mental health to not let the stresses of your life affect or dictate your attitude and outlook on life.

What is Tai Chi?

Let us start with some basic questions, what is Tai Chi? Why is it being practiced now?

Tai Chi is an ancient Chinese martial art dating back thousands of years, in which practitioners perform different poses while taking in deep breaths.

The practice of Tai Chi in modern times has become a very popular form of low impact exercise for people of any age group or physical fitness. The simple reason being that due to the calming nature of the practice it  is sometimes referred to as meditation in motion

By coordinating mental focus, deep rhythmic breathing and body postures it has been shown that Tai Chi has beneficial effects on both your physical and psychological well being. Such as increased mobility and stamina as well as reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression.

Why is it Important to Improve My Mood?

Improvement in mood is not as shallow as being able to tolerate people you work with or not getting upset at other drivers on the road.

Well it does also mean those things, but more importantly actively improving your mood helps you feel more in control. Because you are taking an active role in your own treatment, you will see improvement in your self esteem as well as your confidence.

Your mood affects your mental health, your mental health affects every part of your life; It affects your physical health, relationships and how you feel about yourself. Poor mental health has been linked with many mood disorders such as:

  • Depression
  • Anxiety
  • Insomnia
  • Bipolar Disorder

 As well as physical issues like:

  • Digestive disorders
  • Lack of energy
  • Heart disease 
  • Headache
  • Stomachache

So why Choose Tai Chi?

It is well documented that exercise of any kind and meditation help improve your mood and mental health as well as your physical health.

But why choose to practice Tai Chi over hitting the gym? Great question! I’m glad you asked.

Tai Chi combines both exercise and meditation making it a very efficient exercise, with many people seeing positive results by practicing as little as one hour a week. Tai Chi also has a very low barrier of entry. No special uniform or equipment is necessary, just some comfortable clothes and shoes with no heels.

Not to mention classes are completely free. We offer free Tai Chi classes for beginners and students of any level. Feel free to ask the staff at SOHMA Integrative Medicine of Long Beach CA about our free Tai Chi classes. You are also welcomed to watch one of our free classes at Heartwell Park in Long Beach CA, right around the duck pond.

Ultimately the decision is in your hands to better your mood and mental health. We are here to give you the best options we can offer without the use of pharmaceuticals or other drugs.

Take the Next Step In Improving Your Health by Contacting SOHMA Integrative Medicine

Our goal is to help you improve your health. You can reach out to us and ask us about the Myers Cocktail, IV Therapy, Chiropractic care, or how our other health service lines can help you with your journey to improved health. 

Located in Long Beach, CA we help individuals from the surrounding cities.

We look forward to helping you take the next step in your journey to better health.

5 Benefits of Tai Chi

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Tai Chi. Many have seen it and may not even realize it. You may have noticed individuals in the park or even groups of people making very deliberate movements.

We have been asked “what’s with the slow Karate?”

It is not Karate, it’s Tai Chi. One of the programs we have been doing for years here at SOHMA Integrative Medicine is organizing Tai Chi classes for our neighbors in Long Beach.

One of the commonly asked questions we get is: Can you tell me what Tai Chi is?

What is Tai Chi and Will It Benefit Me?

Tai chi is an ancient tradition that began in China. It is a gentle form of exercise. One of its many benefits is how it can be performed by those in many states of physical fitness. You might be an Ironman triathlete or an individual coming off injury or even someone beginning their exercise journey.

Tai chi has many styles and because it includes posture, exercise, and stretching it can help you in many different ways.

Let’s get into the benefits of Tai Chi and you can decide if you would like to join us for one of our classes.

Benefit #1: Decreased stress, anxiety, and depression

You will discover how to focus on the current state of your body. It will teach you to understand your body and how to focus your mind. When you do this it is amazing how many other issues seem to reduce in importance.

Benefit #2: Improved flexibility, balance and agility

We have individuals who regularly attend our Tai Chi Class at Heartwell Park who are competitive triathletes, cyclists, and runners. Why would they do this “slow motion” exercise?

They do it for the benefits of their flexibility. Regardless of your sport, when you improve your flexibility and balance it will help you. We have yet to meet an athlete who said “I am too flexible” or “I have too much balance”.

Benefit #3: Improved aerobic capacity

Are there times when you are going up stairs that you have a hard time breathing? Are there times when you are walking that you feel out of breath?

Starting a regular exercise routine can be scary. Tai Chi, especially one like our beginner group, is a safe space to begin. You will get support from those around you who have been where you are if you are just starting.

What you will discover is you begin to see progress. You want to change other things and “suddenly” your health has improved because you took the first step.

Benefit #4: Improved Mood

A positive attitude can really change one’s perspective. Having a great attitude in a bad situation can make it not as bad. Dare we say it can even make a situation fun.

What you will discover in tai chi is that you learn how to breathe, you learn how to control your body, and by process you will discover how you can alter your mood.

Benefit #5: Increased energy and stamina

Walking by a school yard you can see kids have boundless energy. Many adults say “I wish I had their energy!”. It’s true kids have a ton of energy and here is another thing adults can have more energy as well!

What we invite you to do is take up a form of exercise that can provide you with more energy. There are exercise routines that are so aggressive they can reduce your energy. Tai chi is one that can help you build energy and stamina.

Explore The Benefits of Tai Chi at our Free Class

We met on a regular basis at Heartwell park in Long Beach, CA. We often get asked “why is it free?” or “is it really free?”

The answer is yes it is absolutely free. We do this class as a way to give back to the community in Long Beach, CA. We care about the health of our community members.

Check out our meet-up page for information on Long Beach Tai Chi Classes.

Take the Next Step In Improving Your Health by Contacting SOHMA Integrative Medicine

Our goal is to help you improve your health. You can reach out to us and ask us if we are right for you. Located in Long Beach, CA we help individuals from Long Beach and the surrounding cities.

We look forward to helping you take the next step in your journey to better health.