"After the first class I immediately understood how special this practice is,” said Hale Family Y member, Lyudmila, about her experience with Tai Chi.
Lyudmila and her husband are members of our Y, and Lyudmila enjoys yoga for its relaxing and gentle style of movement. After a while, she began to struggle with her balance, which is a core part of yoga. Her yoga instructor suggested she try a Tai Chi class with Peggy, longtime South Shore Y instructor. According to Lyudmila, this class “changed everything.”
After her first Tai Chi class with Peggy, Lyudmila immediately felt the positive effects of this type of exercise. “Peggy is a natural teacher," says Lyudmila. "She is not only showing the exercises, but she is showing how to move your body and how it connects to other positions.”
The practice of Tai Chi involves slow gentle movements, originating as a martial art in ancient China. Lyudmila recognized the movements as similar to the ones she had done in physical therapy, just done slowly. “The muscles work harder doing the slow, controlled movements than doing these same movements faster with momentum.”
Over the years, Lyudmila has suffered from injuries to her shoulders, arms, and back. She credits Peggy’s methods of teaching are very precise, with attention to every detail, in supporting her continued recovery. “Peggy works with each student gradually, nothing skipped, while polishing every step.”
Lyudmila and Peggy are valued members of our South Shore Y community who remind us that Health & Wellness extend beyond vigorous exercise. We should strive the find balance in our daily wellness practice through managing stress, increasing mindfulness, and being gentle with ourselves.
