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Newspaper Articles about us
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From:
The Wausau Area News
& Entertainment Weekly
City
pages
February 21-28, 2008.
Health/ Fitness by Brian Kowalski
Get Your Move On
A quick tour of some local fun - a
groove we'll call 'sneaky' fitness
Booty Moving
At Hot Feet Dance studio in Stevens
Point. I tried ........
Tai Chi for the soul
My next stop took me to the Wisconsin
Wen Wu School of T'ai Chi Chuan.
Tai chi
(tie-chee) is a Chinese exercise that emphasizes slow and flowing
movements in
a sequence. Any time a commercial wants
to demonstrate
serenity, they likely show some people doing tai chi in a park,
looking calm
and centered. Your general
image of tai chi might also include seniors
sweeping theirs arms serenely
through the air. So how hard could it be
for anyone younger than 60?
The notice for their class - held during winter at the
D. C. Everest
High School commons - says from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm.
I couldn't help thinking that after three hours I'd be a lot of
things:
sore, fatigued, but serene didn't exactly enter the picture.
I
arrived early, meeting both with newcomers to the group, as well as folks
who've been going since the group formed in 1992. The class is taught by
Sifu Larry Riddle
(Sifu pronounced like "seafood," means teacher in Chinese,
but is
something like father-figure). Riddle
has been practicing tai chi for over
25 years, or as he puts it, half his
life. Riddle emphasizes that his style is not
easy.
"To practice tai chi is like
putting money in the bank," he says.
"But instead of money you're
putting health in the bank. The more you put in now,
the more life you'll have
in the end."
Little did I know I'd make a big deposit that day. The group formed a circle
to start
stretching, which lasted an hour and a half and left me feeling more bendy
than
Gumby. Joy, one of Riddle's long-time
students, stood next to me and
explained the nuances of every move, helping my
posture so I got a good stretch.
And 90
minutes later I had stretched every part of my body, including muscles and
tendons I didn't know existed.
The time passed quickly. The group operates somewhat informally during
the stretch,
chatting and telling jokes.
Already I felt worked and loose, and felt a new kind of kinship.
I was
ready for the tai chi.
I should
note here that Sifu Larry is a larger man, and at first glance one wouldn't
expect him to be athletic and flexible.
But during the stretch, I saw him do the splits
and while standing, bend down
far enough to touch his head to his toe.
According to Joy, on a good day he can reach his chin to his toe,
something I pulled a muscle just writing about.
Riddle also adds grace to the mix. As he led us through the form,
a
feeling of being a part of an ancient dance overtook me as I struggled to
imitate
the movements. I couldn't escape
the feeling of being the ugly duckling in a
sea of swans.
Tai
chi is a martial art, and the series of movements are a lot like a form someone
would do in karate or tae kwon do, only extremely slowly. The basic idea of tai
chi is
that the natural and controlled movements help straighten the spine,
improve posture
and balance, and get the body's circulation going. Despite the slow speed, it's not easy.
I followed along as best I could, traversing
the series of strikes, pushes and kicks done
at snail speed, all while maintaining balance. The feeling after finishing the tai chi set
could only be described as meditative. I looked around at my fellow
practitioners.
No one said a word. A sense of peace pervaded the group, smiles
abounded -
that serenity I alluded to earlier? I
left feeling like a serene and fatigued Gumby doll.
Ping to the pong
The last stop on the fitness tour
took me to.....
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