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just trained to relax, but it is trained to build a sense of awareness of energy or qi inside the body, thus it is an ‘internal art.’ Further, the mind is trained to direct movement of qi with mind intention...and that movement of qi is what directs the physical body. The result is that the brain strives to create the mental image, not an isolated arm or leg movement.
Merged PET-MRI brain section illustrating changes in cerebral blood flow during movement visualization. From: Lafleur, M. F., et al., 2002. Motor learning produces parallel dynamic functional changes during the execution and imagination of sequential foot movements. Neuroimage. 16, 142-157.
Tai Chi training tools greatly enhance mental agility by tapping into the mind connection between visualization of internal energy (qi) and movement. For example, the simplest meditation is done at night before going to sleep. The meditation that I teach guides you to fill the brain and body with energy, light and love. This practice brings spiritual energy and earth energy to the heart, profoundly affects your sense of well-being, calms the nervous system, reduces fear and anger, and trains the mind to bring healing energy to specific affected areas of the body. This practice benefits sleep and reduces stress, anxiety and depression.
Balanced left-right movement balances left-right brain activity:
Fourth, balanced, integrated, left- and right-sided movement, as found in Tai Chi, must be accompanied by balanced brain activity; i.e., accessing the brain's neural circuitry is a direct approach to enhancing function or to healing physical and mental dysfunction resulting from mental trauma, mechanical injury or biochemical imbalance. I often think of Tai Chi as EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Therapy) using
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