"Tai chi fights stress, getting popular with Millennials"

"Computer tech people, they love tai chi. It's a good destresser for them: sitting hours behind a keyboard, hunched over doing programming," Dunn said. "A lot of these people are more introverted. They like that gentle nature of tai chi that doesn't have sparring and hitting bags."

....At the end of the tai chi class on Long Beach's Signal Hill, York says he brings his practice with him everywhere he goes.

"If I'm feeling agitated, it's a good lesson for me to remember to slow down and tune in with my breath. I do tai chi to get back into myself and to my center, because throughout the week, the world will pull us in different directions," York said. "I think tai chi is great for younger people because it forces you to disconnect from the world around you." Hoover agrees. "We all need a practice, whether it's tai chi or something else, that allows us to slow down." 

Read the whole article at CNN.

Tai Chi for Fall Prevention

"Minnesota has the nation’s fourth-highest rate of fall-related deaths," the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported in a recent article about how Tai Chi can prevent falls. Many studies have shown that Tai Chi helps improves many aspects of health, mobility, and balance. State commissioners of health and human services are seen here, following along in a training workshop.

Tai Chi participants can note a dramatic and quick improvement in balance and mobility by practicing even just the basics. Tai Chi is very multi-faceted, and can serve as a mindfulness exercise, as well as a martial art. See Great River's current schedule below for information on beginners classes.