When too many bad sub-prime mortgage loans failed, which is one of the Yin factors in the economic system, it triggered the negative chain reaction in our economic system and out-powered all the healthy economic practices, which is the Yang, as the capability to originate new mortgages from the banking system diminished.

Read the full article here.

The Mayo clinic has published a nice article on Tai Chi, naming stress reduction, balance and agility as benefits you reap from a regular practice. 

And finally, the Orlando Sentinal reports on a study tracking centeniarians. What is the secret to living to 100 years of age? Emotional stability. The study concluded that “longevity was associated with being conscientious, emotionally stable, and active.” Tai Chi makes an appearance in a list of tools that type-a personalities can use to change their ways.

In more Olympic news, taekwondo gold medalist Chu Mu Yen credits Tai Chi for helping him achieve his gold medal aspirations in this article.

And finally, an article in Tampa Bay Online says Tai Chi can help those with mobility problems.

The Web site of the National Center on Physical Activity and Disability lists several benefits of tai chi, including promoting relaxation, improving lung capacity and cardiovascular and respiratory function, improving balance and posture, increasing flexibility and reducing pain.

Read more about it here.

Nearly two-thirds of people who learned the slow, gentle tai chi chih moves experienced significant improvements in sleep quality.

Read the full article here.

In other Tai Chi news for July, BlogCritics Magazine has a review of 1993 film Tai Chi Master starting Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh. It is a work of Yuen Woo-Ping who has choreographed martial arts scenes for Kill Bill: Vol 1 & 2 and the Matrix trilogy. Read the review here.

If you’re in St. Paul, MN this summer, head over to Rice Park for free Tai Chi sponsored by the St Paul Public LIbrary. Get details here.

Have you thought about getting your kid into Tai Chi? This article might convince you to do so.

And here’s yet another study showing that Tai Chi is good for arthritis. The article also has information on free Tai Chi classes in Clinton, NY.

[The study] showed that practicing tai chi chi alone boosted immunity to a level comparable to having received the standard vaccine against the shingles-causing varicella zoster virus.

Read the article here.

Stuff.co.nz has an interview with Tai Chi expert Loo-Chi Hu. Loo-Chi Hu is the subject of a documentary called Huloo that is screening at New Zealand International Film Festival in Wellington and Christchurch in mid-July.

Before I learned tai chi, I learned the hard martial art and with the hard martial art your behaviour is hot and you sometimes fight with people. My father advised me to practise tai chi, and since I have never got in a fight.

Read the article here.

And lastly, GadsdenTimes.com reports on a variety of meditative practices becoming popular among psychotherapists. Mindfulness Meditation, Tai Chi, Transcendental Meditation, and Yoga are among the most popular.

The National Institutes of Health is financing more than 50 studies testing mindfulness techniques, up from 3 in 2000, to help relieve stress, soothe addictive cravings, improve attention, lift despair and reduce hot flashes.

Read the article here.

[Keanu Reeves] has been talking to Matrix stunt choreographer Yuen Wo Ping about doing a new kung fu movie. The film is called Tai Chi Tiger, and Keanu would be the villain. A guy named Tiger Chen Hu would star as the movie’s hero, a Tai Chi master.

The WCFCourier of Waterloo, Iowa has a nice article on the holistic health benefits of tai chi.

First Coast News of Jacksonville, FL discusses the local hospital’s recommendation of tai chi to ease the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease.

And finally, CEE-foodindustry.com carries on the recent spate of articles linking dairy production with tai chi. Organic dairy farmers in the UK say it helps relax their cows which makes for good milk production:

Being an organic dairy farmer is hard work. I want to make sure I am as relaxed and focused as possible. My mood definitely transfers to my cows and as organic farmers we believe happier cows produce better milk.

Read the full article here (bottom of page).

Tai Chi for Everyone is also available as a PDF download at a reduced price from Lulu.com. They have a preview of the book which will show you the first 30 pages before purchase.

• Warm up before you start something new
• Having diversity enriches your experience
• There is time to meditate
• Get outside your comfort zone
• Leave every encounter with a smile

Read the full article here.

A shorter article can be found at the Fayetteville Observer about a retired Army officer who suffers from multiple sclerosis. He credits Tai Chi with keeping him mentally fit and out of a wheelchair.

“If all I did was sit at home in front of the TV or the computer, I’d probably be in a wheelchair by now,” he said.

Read the full article here.

“If you combine this concept of movement and circulation through the joints with the lengthening and strengthening of the muscles in yoga, then you get what Zen Yoga is trying to accomplish in getting the whole body working and flowing with energy,” he said.

Read the full article here. You can find Zen Yoga at Amazon in DVD format or paperback.