TAi Chi For The Young At Heart

Roberta Marshall, 88½, has been a participant of the Tai Chi class for "several years". Roberta, a resident of Vista Villa said, "It is good for bones and muscles" and "I hear it helps with balance." Roberta and the rest of the Tai Chi class meet Wednesdays, 12:05 p.m. at the Senior Center.

Their instructor, Charlotta Young, teaches the class for free. Charlotta said "You have someone who will come and do it with you, because the truth is we all kind of like movement and we realize that it is really good for us. But we don't always have the discipline to do it."

Charlotta gained her knowledge in Tai Chi from workshops at Scottsbluff and she, herself, has been practicing Tai Chi for the past ten years.

According to Charlotta, the class "Tai Chi Easy-Moving for Better Balance" will improve posture and balance, limber up and increase mobility, strengthen muscles and build confidence, and cultivate serenity and concentration.

The 45 minute class is broke down into four sections-the lesson begins with warm up exercises, then they proceed to Tai Chi Easy which has five moves but no walking. Next, they are learning and practicing the eight steps to the walking Tai Chi, and finally they conclude the 45 minute session with lifting weights.

Charlotta is a strong supporter of weightlifting. She said she found a book "Strong Women Stay Young" by Miriam E. Nelson. Based on research according to Charlotta "The premise of the book is that we tend to behave old because we have lost our strength." She continued to talk about the study done by the author of the book and that people stop participating in life because they have lost their strength.

Currently about 20 students of all ages take the Tai Chi class, but there is plenty of room for more and the price is right