Tai Chi growing in popularity throughout Indiana

Tai Chi growing in popularity throughout Indiana
By Karin GrundenThe Tribune-Star

— Harriett McNeal still remembers the Tai Chi instructor she met two decades ago during a trip to China. He was 85, yet as spry and flexible as a 20-year-old. “I thought, my gosh, if I can be like that,” McNeal recalled of the man who introduced her to the ancient form of Chinese martial arts. Twenty years later, the Terre Haute woman credits the slow, graceful movements of Tai Chi with significantly improving her balance — so much so that she hasn’t stumbled since starting classes eight years ago.Before then, it wasn’t unusual for her to trip a couple of times while walking her dog around the block. “I was a real klutz,” said the 77-year-old retired Indiana State University professor. “Knock on wood, I haven’t tripped in eight years.” Tai Chi, which mixes deep breathing with flowing gestures, is growing in popularity throughout the state, said Roy Geib, director and assistant dean of the Indiana University School of Medicine at Terre Haute.Last week, a workshop featuring Tai Chi master Dr. Paul Lam of Australia drew 100 participants to St. Mary-of-the-Woods College. Participants came from as far as Australia, Japan, England and Canada, Geib said. Denise Duggan of Terre Haute was among those who attended. She began practicing Tai Chi six years ago when her husband, Mike, was recovering from open heart surgery. In addition to health benefits of the martial art, Denise Duggan views Tai Chi as a way of clearing the mind.To properly perform the meditative physical exercise, it takes the kind of concentration in which you let your mind go blank, Duggan said. “It’s cool. You’re opening up your energy gates. You’re letting your qi flow,” she said. Qi refers to spiritual energy. McNeal, who practices Tai Chi in her driveway for about a half hour daily, said the art form can take months to perfect. The entire body is part of the movement — from eye placement to the precise position of one’s hands, she said. McNeal said she’s so focused during her sessions she doesn’t notice passers-by who might stare or comment. “You really kind of go into a trance when you do it,” she said. Duggan has grown accustomed to a few curious looks when she leads a Wednesday evening class that rotates between local parks. Young children, in particular, seem fascinated, she said.Vi Bell of Terre Haute, one of Duggan’s students, has helped give Tai Chi demonstrations in area nursing homes. “Everyone thought it was odd and laughable when we first started,” said Bell, but people are more accepting with time.That may be the case especially when they discover the health benefits, which have said to include less joint-pain in arthritic patients and pain relief from other chronic conditions. Geib of the IU School of Medicine said he’s planning to conduct research beginning this fall on the health aspects of Tai Chi. Several studies are under way elsewhere to examine the effect of the martial art on cardiology patients and diabetics, he said. For Bell, it won’t require results of a study to keep her active in Tai Chi. She’s already convinced of its benefits. “I’m 85 years old and I’m still moving,” she said.

Karin Grunden can be reached at (812) 231-4257 or karin.grunden@tribstar.com.
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