Tai chi in the park

It’s that tai chi in the park time of year. Normal classes are over for the summer and we are heading outside. There will be outdoor sessions in Parr Fold Park, Walkden; Bramhall Park, Bramhall; Pennington Hall Park, Leigh; and Leyland Park, Hindley.

Outdoor classes are less formal than the indoor classes — there will be no teaching as such, we are just going to warm up and run through a few forms together.

Although the weather has been iffy lately the forecast is good for this week.

 The spring timetable is now up at https://www.ahigherporpoise.com/classes. Classes start week commencing 10 January. There are two half price beginners courses, one on Wednesday afternoons in Hindley and one on Thursday evenings in Bryn.

Free class

There will be a free 4 week course for beginners starting on Wednesday 7 July. It will be on Wednesday afternoons 2.30pm-3.30pm at Hurst Dance Studios in Hindley. Places are strictly limited. Contact me to book a place.

"Just One Thing" episode

Over the bank holiday weekend I finally caught up with the "Just One Thing" episode that my brother and Mike told me about. I'm really glad I did. I've always known about the benefits of tai chi from first-hand experience but it is good to have them validated.

The podcast is actually about standing on one leg, and the benefits are amazing. As Dr Michael Mosley says: "Improving your balance really can have a life changing impact. It improves core strength, posture and coordination. Do that and you are more likely to walk upright rather than hunched, which will make you look younger and might even improve your mood. There's even research showing that balance is a great predictor of healthy life expectancy."

He asked Professor Dawn Skelton of Glasgow Caledonian University whether tai chi would work as well and this was her response: "Tai chi is one of the best activities to improve your balance. It's slow and controlled; it's three-dimensional so your head moves at different times to the rest of your body; you get all that feedback from the joints because it's slow and controlled. It's one of the best things to help prevent your first fall... really is a lot of evidence for that."

I always tell people that you don't have to stand on one leg to do tai chi. You can improve your balance and coordination just by paying attention to your posture and being aware of where your weight is.

Standing on one leg is a simple thing that you can do at home. Tai chi has all the health and wellbeing benefits of that and more: it can reduce stress, increase energy, and improve focus and inner calm. And if you join a class you get the social benefits as well. There is nothing quite like the feeling of being in a group moving and breathing as one.

Indoor tai chi classes start 17 May

Much as I love tai chi in the park, and I do, the British weather isn't always kind to us. So I'm very happy to announce that with the next stage of lockdown easing on 17 May, we can have indoor tai chi and qigong classes again!

The Monday morning class in Walkden and the Wednesday afternoon class in Hindley will return to their original venues.

Our usual venue for the Tuesday morning class in Leigh is being used as a vaccination centre, so that class will continue in the park, weather permitting as always.

Tai chi in the parks

 We have been so lucky with the weather this week. It was wonderful being able to do tai chi in the park again and it was so nice to be able to see people in person.

Tai chi in the park

 

From next Monday, organised outdoor sports can start up again. And you know what  that means. Tai chi in the park! Times and places are listed here. 

Tai chi in the park

We are now allowed to meet up outside in groups of six, as long as we practise social distancing, so it seems like a good time for tai chi in the park. I will be continuing with online classes but am going to try a couple of small outside classes, weather permitting, venues below. For these to work I need to strictly restrict class size to five people. This means that you do need to book in advance for every class. These classes will be £6/class. There is no monthly discount because I don't know how long they will continue, but like the online classes you can pay for more than one class at a time if you want to. Contact me to book a place. 😀

• Mondays, 10am-11am, Walkden Park, Walkden Road, Walkden, M28 7EA, Yang 24 step form.
• Mondays, 11.15am-12.15pm, Walkden Park, Walkden Road, Walkden, M28 7EA, Yang 24 step form.
• Wednesdays, 2.30pm-3.30pm, Leyland Park, Leyland Avenue, Hindley, Wigan, WN2 3SB, Yang 8 step form.

Outdoor tai chi

Well done to the dedicated group who braved ice, frost and friendly dogs to do tai chi in Walkden Park today.

Fingers crossed we will be back inside in the warm next week!

Feedback on Deal For Communities course

Thanks to funding from Wigan Council's Deal for Communities Investment Fund, from March to July last year North West and North Wales Tai Chi was able to put on a free tai chi/qigong course at Leigh South Community Centre for local residents. The class is still running on a private basis. Maureen and Alan talk about what they got from the course.

World Health Qigong Day 2019

 We had a lovely time in Lilford Park this morning celebrating World Health Qigong Day with some qigong in the park.

Upcoming events

There are lots of exciting tai chi and qigong events coming up.

On 22 June 10am-2pm Angela's tai chi school is putting on an applications/push hands workshop in Liverpool. Contact Angela Howarth for details and to book.

In celebration of the 70th anniversary of P.R. China, qigong masters from the Chinese Health Qigong association are touring the UK and we have dates in both Manchester and Liverpool.

Before getting to the North of England they will be part of a packed programme at the Deyin Tai Chi Summer Camp in Telford.

On Sunday 30 June 1pm-4.30pm is Daoyin Yangsheng Gong 12 Fa in Old Trafford. Contact Contact Ms Xing Mei of Xinhua Chinese Association on 07863 563217 to book.

Then, on Monday 1 July there will be a lecture at Liverpool University 11am-midday followed by a workshop on Ba Duan Jin 2pm-4pm. Contact Dong Barraclough on 07990 012731 or Dong.Barraclough@gmail.com for both.

And on Saturday 27 July Master Faye Yip will be visiting Liverpool to give a morning workshop on Mawangdui health qigong and and afternoon 24 step improvers' workshop. Contact Angela Howarth for details and to book.

World Tai Chi and Qigong Day 2019

World Tai Chi and Qigong Day is nearly here.

Celebrate this free event in Liverpool:

Saturday, April 27th at 10am
St John’s Centre, Steble St, L8 6QH.

Doors open 9.30am for a prompt 10am start.

The event will include free workshops, refreshments and a chance to meet with other
tai chi enthusiasts and teachers.

Everyone is welcome. :)

Gift of wellbeing

Give the gift of wellbeing this Mother's Day and buy her a place on a qigong course - Wednesday mornings in Leigh or Thursday evenings in Hindley. Both courses are great value at £50 for the 10 week course.

Just like tai chi, qigong is a great exercise for health and relaxation. It is suitable for all levels of health and ability and can be adapted to the individual. The courses are designed for beginners and no previous knowledge is required.

The daytime class is on Wednesdays, 10am-11am, at Leigh South (TocH) Community Centre, 32 Hope Carr Road, Leigh WN7 3ET, and runs from Wednesday 3 April to Wednesday 5 June.

The evening class is on Thursdays, 6pm-7pm. at Hurst Dance Studios, 51 Market St, Hindley, Wigan WN2 3AE, and runs from Thursday 4 April to 6 June.

For the Wednesday morning classes in Leigh:

And for the Thursday evening class in Hindley:

Wednesday afternoon class opens to new beginners

It has been lovely doing tai chi and qigong among the books at @HindleyLibraryAndCommunityCentre. A big thank you to Chapter One Tea Rooms for getting the class started.

We've outgrown the children's section now though and it's time to move on. From this Wednesday 7 November classes will be at @HurstDance studios.

This means that we can now take on beginners again so if you would like to join the class do get in touch. We will be doing tai chi and qigong on Wednesday afternoons, 2.30pm to 3.30pm at Hurst Dance Studios, 51 Market Street, Hindley WN2 3AE.

(: Happy World Mental Health Day :)

(: It's World Mental Health Day today. We all need to look after our mental health, so be happy and nourish mind and body with tai chi and qigong. :)

Leigh Carnival 2018

We were on stage at the Leigh Carnival today doing some tai chi and qigong. Well done to everyone who took part - you were amazing!

You can see more pictures here or on the A Higher Porpoise Facebook page.

Joanne in the news

It's nice to see Joanne making the news and spreading the word about the wonderful health benefits of tai chi. You can read the article here.

In other news, I will be putting in an order for class polo shirts next week, so let me know by next Wednesday if you want one. You can get them in navy blue or light blue.

There will be no classes on Bank Holiday Monday so enjoy the sunshine and maybe do some outdoor tai chi instead.

World Tai Chi and Qigong Day

This Saturday is World Tai Chi and Qigong Day. There will be events all around the country and all around the world. Come and join me at our event in Liverpool at St John's Community Centre, Steble Street, Liverpool L8 6QH.

The event is free but we are raising money for Sport Relief. You can sponsor someone, make a donation on the day or donate via our Sport Relief Giving page here.

The programme is as follows. There will be a prompt 10am start.

10am start warm ups and qigong
10.30-11.30 Taiji Qigong Stick and Tai Chi walk and 24 step
11.45 - 12.45 Classic Eight Treasures Qigong and Body Conditioning
1 - 2 Seated Daoyin 12 Qigong and Taiji Sword/sabre
2.15 - 2.45 Finish with gentle qigong to warm down and conclude the day.

Upcoming events

April is always a good time for tai chi events and this year is no exception.

I was going to let you know about the Deyin Taijiquan Institute Spring Wellbeing Bootcamp in Telford on 21 April, but unfortunately it is already booked up. It's always worth booking early for these workshops.

You don't need to book for our World Tai Chi and Qigong Day event on 28 April though - you can just turn up. Our event is taking place again this year at St John's Centre, Steble Street, Liverpool L8 6QH and everyone is invited to attend from beginners to masters! There will be eight instructors (maybe more) delivering one hour sessions throughout the day on various aspects of tai Chi and qigong. A fabulous opportunity and it's FREE! This year we are going to combine the event with Sports Relief and hold a taichiqigongathon.

There are different ways you can get involved:
1. Be sponsored for as many hours as you wish to do (5 hours in total). You can download a sponsorship form here.
2. Make a donation - collection tins available on the day.
3. Donate online at https://my.sportrelief.com/sponsor/taichiqigongathon.