Sunday morning I drove down to the nearby Wockhardt hospital to see what TAI CHI was all about. We were instructed by a real-life Ninja who showed us how, with the regular practice of correct breathing, he could control the flow of Chi and survive strangulation and killer punches.
The Ninja demonstrated how Tai Chi was martial art for internal strength rather than for exterior muscle and tone. He asked a hefty looking guy from our group to come up and punch him in the stomach. It turned out that the guy was a trained boxer and was more than happy to show off his punches. However, the Ninja was unfazed - because of his training, he was able to spread the impact of the blow all over his body rather than let it overwhelm his tender stomach. “It’s about controlling your body with your mind - about chanelling your energy to produce the desired effect,” he said.
Later, we all gasped as the Ninja’s frail-looking assistant lay down with her head and shoulders on one chair, her legs on another with her abdomen unsupported and had a 70 kg man stand on her abdomen for half a minute.
The one hour workshop, however, was aimed at regular people who wanted to learn Tai Chi exercises that would help relieve stress, cure joint pains, backaches, promote fitness etc.
Just a few minutes into the demo, I realized how poorly we breathe. We barely fill our lungs to their full capacity. It’s amazing how effective a deep breath can be! Try it now if you’ve never experienced it!
The Tai Chi Fan routine is another stress buster - this involves slow continuous movements done while you are holding a red paper fan that aids coordination.
Practicing Tai Chi with its rythmic movements helps you find your center of gravity - helps you align your meridians and correct your posture, thus preventing or reducing back aches.
Practice of Tai Chi is also supposed to promote vitality in senior citizens and longevity in people of all ages and lifestyles. So I guess you have to train like a Ninja to live long like a Turtle!
If you’d like to learn more about how to stay fit with TAI CHI, call Satyajit on 9341309200 (Bangalore). They also conduct a variety of Tai Chi workshops for corporates: self defence, stress relief, flexibility…
screw tai chi, i would like to learn more about being a ninja.