Balance

Chief among the claims made about the Health and Wellness benefits of Tai Chi is it's ability to improve balance.

Health and Wellness justifies its existence by claiming that more visits to the doctor reduces the incidence of serious chronic ailments and thereby reduces the overall costs of healthcare for our society.

But it can also be viewed as a way to justify more and more comprehensive insurance, that is, more and more expensive.

A hospital administrator in Oakland told me that lots of people just wait until they are sick enough to go the the emergency room-- and that's an expensive visit.

I don't know, I like Toyotas because they are cheap, safe and last a long time.  If you ask me how to fix healthcare, I'll tell you to model it after the Toyota!

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This is no longer just a fad.  There are numerous studies about Tai Chi and improvements in balance.  People are being sent to me by doctors for the single purpose of improving there balance.  Hospitals are now offering "balance" classes.  I'm game.  Teaching balance is so easy.  It's like cheering at sporting event.  Raaaaaaahh were winning.  It's a pretty small part of Tai Chi, and if that is all new students are interested in, I'm going to get bored pretty fast.  But it is amazing how much a person can improve their balance when they are given a few simply exercises!

Check out this fun video by fellow George Xu disciple Susan Matthews: