There are actually hundreds of different forms of tai chi but the most popular ones are Chen, Yang, Wu, Sun and Wu-Hao and Fa styles. While most tai chi is slow paced there are variants that are much faster paced although these are typically only taught and practiced by masters of the slower forms.

The best way to learn tai chi is to scout your local area for classes. Almost all martial arts dojos will run a tai chi class, as do many community buildings. Tai chi is one of the most affordable martial arts to learn as there’s no special equipment required, all you need is to pay for entry into the class and that’s it. It’s best to wear loose fitting clothing to allow for full range of motion and circulation. Also tai chi is typically practiced barefoot or wearing flat soled shoes to enhance balance.

There’s no official accreditation system for tai chi teachers, however as I mentioned above, teaching tai chi is hardly a get quick rich scheme and I can’t imagine there are many, if any, teachers out there who don’t have a good knowledge of tai chi and are just looking to make an easy buck. Also because of the respect people have for martial arts, a dojo won’t employ a teacher they don’t have full confidence in.

Much like meditation, tai chi is something that is best done at least once a day. When you enroll in a class it will probably be run only once or twice a week. This leaves the rest of the week for you to practice what you have learned so far. Preferences vary, but many people like to practice tai chi in the morning as it is a gentle exercise that gets the blood flowing, and gives them a reason to wake up early.

Do remember that tai chi is a martial art and was originally used as a form of combat. Please treat it with the respect its tradition deserves, failure to do so could offend the teacher.

You can follow the tai chi exercises in the video below to get a good idea of what tai chi is, and if it feels right to you.

You may have heard of positive affirmations and relaxation affirmations are very similar. A relaxation affirmation is a short statement you repeat to yourself, either verbally or in your mind, that focuses you on a goal. Of course your goal in this case is relaxation.

The great thing about relaxation affirmations is that you can do them anywhere, at any time and it won’t cost you a penny. Imagine you’re driving and someone cuts you off, or you’ve just been given a stack of work to get through – both are perfect times to use relaxation affirmations.

What does a relaxation affirmation sound like? Well I have come up with a list of a few you can use to get idea of what they are and how they work. Once you get the hang of it you can easily come up with your own.

“I control my own thoughts”.

“I will wake up tomorrow feeling well rested and refreshed.”

Try adding a few relaxation affirmations to your daily routine and see how well they work for you.

Tense your fist and then relax it.

This is something you can try right now in front of your computer. Take your hand off of your mouse for a second and form a tight fist for ten seconds, then relax for a couple of seconds. Now fully extend your fingers so it causes tension and hold again for ten seconds before relaxing the muscles. Feel how relaxed that hand now feels. Now imagine feeling that level of relaxation all over your body. That is entirely possible using Progressive Muscle Relaxation.

In has been discovered that relaxed muscles actually require less oxygen than tense ones. This means that after using Progressive Muscle Relaxation your breathing slows down and becomes deeper, adding to the relaxation process. It is almost like a positive spiral down into a deeper state of relaxation.

To begin practicing PMR it is best to be either seated or laid down in a comfortable position. Bear in mind you will have to both tense and relax many of your muscles and thus must be in a position to do so.

It should be noted the Progressive Muscle Relaxation is not a good idea if you are recovering from a broken bone, pulled muscle, tendons and other similar injuries. Tensing muscles is this way can slow down the healing process.

Start off by opening your eyes as widely as you possibly can for 10 seconds, you will feel the surrounding muscles begin to sting and burn during this time. This is the tension in the muscles building up. After the 10 seconds is up let your eyes relax.

Open your mouth wide for 10 seconds and then allow it to completely relax. You should find that when you relax your mouth there is a slight gap between your top and bottom set of teeth and your jaw is nice and loose.

Next tilt your neck forward and until the muscles are tense, again for 10 seconds. After this time allow your muscles to loosen and put your head back into a more comfortable position. At this point your head and neck should feel loose and relaxed with no tension remaining.

You can go down the rest of your body in this way from you shoulders, to your biceps, triceps, forearms and hands, then to your chest and stomach. Moving down to your buttocks, your thighs, calves and finally your feet.

This Progressive Muscle Relaxation exercise will take you between 5 and 10 minutes and when you are done all of your muscles will be free of tension.

Retain your youthful looks.

So it’s clear that to stay looking young you need to relax and reduce your stress levels. If you follow the advice below your skin will noticeably improve and stay looking young.

1.  Sleep

Sleep helps to rejuvenate the body and mind, meaning everything functions better. This includes the health of your skin. Typically people require from six to eight hours sleep a night. If you struggle with your sleeping patterns you may want to look at another article – Ways To Sleep Better.

2.  Diet

Your skin needs the certain nutrients to keep its youthful appearance. To make sure you are getting these nutrients you should up your intake of fruit and vegetables while reducing the consumptions of salty or sugary foods. Omega fatty acids such as those found in fish are also incredibly beneficial to your skin so you should aim to try and eat at least two or three portions of oily fish a week.

3.  Exercise

Exercise is one of the cornerstones of any health regime. It even has a positive effect on your skin. Exercise has been shown to lower stress levels and is well known to give people a “healthy glow”. Just thirty minutes of walking a day will visibly improve your skin. One point of note though is that sweat contains salt, so after working up a sweat you should make sure to wash it off with warm water.

4.  Facial Massage

Treat yourself to a few bottles of massage oil. Every night you can gently massage the oil around your face (be careful around the eyes). This relaxes the facial muscles and stimulates blood flow.

5.  Relaxation Techniques

There are a number of relaxation techniques you can use to improve your skin and stay looking young. Perhaps the best of all the options is hypnotherapy. Not only does hypnotherapy relax you but you can get sessions specifically catered towards skincare. For example HypnoBusters have Sensation Skin Hypnosis and Hypnotic Botox MP3s that can work wonders. This can be listened at bedtime, they will also help you drift off to a deep, restful sleep.

A young woman in a yoga stretch.

The original purpose of yoga was a spiritual one. While spirituality has almost disappeared from Western society we have still managed to find a place for yoga in our lives. A poll taken in 2006 revealed that over fifteen million Americans practice yoga on at least a semi-regular basis. Now people tend to treat yoga as another form of exercise, a way to improve flexibility and overall fitness, however without even realising many of these people will feel the mental benefits yoga provides.  Through a combination of physical poses, breathing techniques and meditation yoga you will feel much more centred, calm and relaxed after you have practiced yoga.

The goals of yoga depend on the individual. Some practice yoga to loosen their muscles, others to find enlightenment, while others still do it to reduce their stress levels and relax after a busy day. Whatever your goal yoga can probably help you to achieve it. And the great thing about yoga is it can be tailored to anyone of any age, size or level of fitness.

Getting Started

It’s hard to describe many yoga positions or exercises textually which is why I posted a video earlier which contains a great beginners guide to yoga. You might like to try these exercises for a few weeks before purchasing a DVD full of yoga exercises or alternatively many leisure/rec centres and gyms hold regular yoga classes with fully qualified instructors.

Useful Yoga Resources

Here are a number of sites, articles and videos that you might to like to visit to find out a little more about yoga and its many positive effects.

Yoga Movements

Yoga Journal

Yoga Equipment Store

Disabled Vet Walks Again Thanks to Yoga *MUST SEE*