Which one is better, yoga or Tai Chi

In fact, there is no standard answer to "who is better". The choice depends entirely on your own physical condition, practice goals and even the pace of life. To insist on a distinction goes against the core of the pursuit of physical and mental balance between the two sports.

I have a sister who has been practicing Tai Chi and yoga for almost seven years. In the early years, she had a protruding waist and suffered from chronic insomnia and anxiety. She signed up for a commercial yoga studio at the beginning, and practiced flow yoga and Ashtanga in the first half of the year. After each practice, she sweated all over her body and stretched out, which was great. However, occasionally her waist would still feel faint if she exerted too much force. She became sore, and later went to the park with her mother for morning exercises and stood there for three months without doing any major movements. Most of the soreness in her waist disappeared. Now she spends forty minutes on weeknights practicing yin yoga to relax, and goes to the park on weekend mornings to follow the master to do two sets of old routines, both of which are done without delay.

After being exposed to yoga, most of the people who prefer yoga are young people who live a fast pace and have fragmented time, especially office workers who have been sedentary all year round. When their shoulders and necks are so stiff that they can’t lift their arms, they can spread out a small yoga mat next to their work station and do a few sets of cat-cow and downward dog, and they can relax in about ten minutes. Come on, many yoga postures are designed to be very targeted, and they are very effective in improving rounded shoulders and hunching, and adjusting the posture very quickly. I used to have a colleague who was doing UI design, and his neck was as wide as two fingers wide. After doing yoga three times a week for three months, the line of his neck became much straighter when viewed from the side.

But if you ask an old boxer who has been practicing Tai Chi in the park for more than ten years, he will definitely tell you that Tai Chi is more nourishing. Tai Chi emphasizes "using the mind to guide the Qi and using the Qi to control the shape." There is no need to deliberately stretch to the extreme, and the pressure on the knee joints and lumbar spine is much less. Especially those with old joint injuries or older people, practicing Tai Chi There is no need to compare with others whether your movements are standard or not. Slow down and calm down to do a set. Your whole body will be hot but you will not be out of breath. Long-term practice will regulate your balance and cardiopulmonary function from the inside out. I have an uncle downstairs who suffers from essential hypertension. He insists on doing 24 postures of simplified Tai Chi for two years. Now he has reduced his antihypertensive medicine by half according to the doctor's advice.

To be honest, many people have a deep misunderstanding of the two. They think that yoga is just a little girl stretching, and Tai Chi is just an old man and an old lady wandering around. In fact, it is not the case - yoga also has mindfulness and meditation schools that focus on meditation, and Tai Chi also has explosive hammers and practical skills. Dharma, the two are essentially two paths grown in different cultural soils. One is a practice system originated from ancient India, and the other is a combination of traditional Chinese martial arts and health-preserving exercises. In the final analysis, they both help you understand your body better and find a comfortable rhythm with yourself.

If you are really stuck on which one to choose, why not give them a try for half a month. After practicing, whichever one makes you feel relaxed and you don’t have to grit your teeth to persevere, which one is the best for you. After all, exercise is like wearing shoes, the one that fits your feet is the most suitable.