Yoga

Yoga is a physical and mental practice that involves the body, mind and spirit. The practice — which is believed to have originated in India 6000 years ago — is designed to enhance awareness, create a mind-body-spirit balance and (as practiced today) improve fitness.

Yoga is gentle enough to be practiced by almost anyone. The beauty of yoga is that you don’t have to be able to do all of the positions; you can work within your own limitations and tailor your practice to your specific needs. Yoga’s gentle, mindful and controlled movements can provide a non or low-impact workout for people in almost any physical condition.

Yoga’s most obvious benefits relate to stress reduction, flexibility and relaxation. But as more studies are conducted, there is evidence of other tangible health benefits. While it’s no cure, yoga can be an effective complementary therapy for a variety of conditions, including cancer, arthritis, asthma, diabetes, depression, fibromyalgia and migraines.

Even if you are in perfect health, you can achieve benefits from yoga. It helps improve strength, flexibility, coordination and range of motion. And since yoga promotes relaxation, improves circulation and reduces stress and anxiety, it enhances cardiovascular health and benefits the respiratory and nervous systems. Because it promotes relaxation, yoga also aids sleep and digestion.

Yoga can make you more aware of your own body — more conscious of its strengths, weaknesses and needs.

T'ai Chi

Once practiced almost exclusively in China, T’ai Chi has grown to become one of the most recognizable forms of exercise in existence. A cross between yoga and meditation, T’ai Chi aims to address the body and mind as an interconnected system and to improve mental and physical health while benefiting posture, balance, flexibility and strength.

T’ai Chi includes sequences of slow movements coordinated with deep breathing and mental focus and can be practiced alone or with a group of people in a class. Practitioners guide pupils through movements, encouraging them to keep their bodies stable and upright while shifting weight. Although it is practiced by people of all ages, T’ai Chi is particularly popular among the elderly.

Preliminary evidence suggests that when practiced regularly, T’ai Chi may increase muscle strength and improve cardiovascular health, coordination and balance.