Hwa-Yu Tai Chi physical conditioning promotes strength; increases bone density and suppleness in the joints and limbs through twisting, bending and stretching movements that also free limbs from harmful adhesions. It is a moderate daily exercise program that will serve to counter negative, cumulative daily stress while lowering blood pressure, increasing circulation, stamina and re-energizing a person both mentally and physically. The Hwa-Yu Tai Chi methods and principles of practice greatly increases the student's awareness of centered posture and body alignment that will improve their reaction reflex, perception and coordination.

The Hwa-Yu art has a propensity to free its practitioners to be more creative mentally, gaining more flexibility, grace and range of movement physically. The art teaches stress management in handling crisis situations. The effectiveness of this type of self-defense is startling in its simplicity. The art is designed to assist the practitioners to break through the fear of failing, to live more intelligently and responsibly, and to be able to make sensible and healthy lifestyle choices. Hwa-Yu Tai Chi's impeccable movement vocabulary is a must for anyone who is sensitive to the aesthetic beauty of movement arts and for those individuals who sincerely desire to heighten their kinetic balance and excel in any physical endeavor.

Dr. Steven Wolf of Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia, found that older people who participated in 15-week Tai Chi program reduced their risk of falling by 47.5%. Dr. Leslie Wolfson of the University of Connecticut Health Center in Farmington found that older people who participated in Tai Chi gained strength and improved their balance. The participants kept their strength and balance throughout several months of Tai Chi practice.

Falls among older people in America are responsible for more than 12-billion dollars in health-related costs each year. The cost of physical frailty is much higher. The NIA study recommends Tai Chi as a "low tech" way of improving the strength and balance of older people.

"The FICSIT studies have shown that a range of techniques, from the most sophisticated medical interventions to more "low tech" methods, can help older people avoid frailty and falling" says Chhanda Dutta, Ph.D., Director of Musculoskeletal Research in the NIA's Geriatrics program. "We must make sure that we look at every approach, especially inexpensive ones like Tai Chi for Seniors" says Dutta. "People can do this at home and with friends once they have had the proper training."

Therapeutic Tai Chi has also been proven effective in helping heart-attack victims recover faster. In 1996, Sheffield University in England tested 126 heart-attack patients. Researchers had them practice Tai Chi, do aerobic exercises or do no exercise. The British Medical Association's Postgraduate Medical Journal reported that: "Both forms of exercise reduced blood pressure, but only Tai Chi showed a significant reduction." The researchers said exercise is important in helping heart-attack patients recover, but that many do not feel strong enough to exercise much. They said the gentle, graceful movements of Tai Chi could be just the trick.

Steven Blair and Melissa Garcia of the world-renowned Cooper Institute for Aerobics Research in Dallas, Texas are quoted as saying: "The principal advantage of Tai Chi exercise is that it is a low-technology approach to conditioning that can be implemented at relatively low cost in widely distributed facilities through the community."

Many recent medical studies support the effectiveness of Therapeutic Tai Chi:

• Significant improvement in balance maintained (Wolfson 1996)
• Most recommended aerobic exercise for coronary artery disease (Ng 1992)
• Reduced tension, anxiety fatigue, depression and confusion (Jin 1989)
• Improved mood states, reduction of anxiety states (Jin 1992)
• Reduced falls by up to 47%, reduced fear of falling (Wolf 1996), (Wolf 1997), (Henderson, 1998) , (Myers & Weiner, 1996)
• Marked increase in Blood T-Cells during and after practice (Sun 1989)
• Enhanced ventilary capacity without cardiovascular stress (Brown et al, 1995)
• Efficient use of ventilatory volume, efficient breathing patterns (Schneider 1991)
• No exacerbation in joint symptoms of individuals with RA (Kirstens 1991)
• Improved co-ordination, skeletal muscle strength (Koh 1982)
• Relaxation therapy for chronically ill (Jin 1992)