Headway: Yoga

If I turn into a Yoga Bore, feel free to shoot me, says Billy Mann. In the meantime ...

To the innocent bystander, the transition from tai chi to yoga must seem like swapping a boiled egg for a poached one. Yes, the two disciplines do have similarities, not least in this case because again we are in the capable hands of Anne and Nora at Headway East London. The key differences between the two (tai chi and yoga, not Anne and Nora) are movement and breathing. Breathing is much more of a BIG DEAL in yoga, and the movement is more structured than in tai chi, aimed often at specific parts of the body. Moreover, whereas you can adapt tai chi exercises into something you can do easily at, say, the bus stop, or in the kitchen while waiting for the kettle to boil, yoga demands more focus, a focus that leads you to "feel" the movements and stretches.

We started the programme seated, which is a gentle way to introduce the movements. The Cat-Cow is a movement that stretches the back and neck by first rounding the shoulders forward then reversing the movement back while tilting the pelvis, arching the back, extending the chin and chest into what is hopefully a sort of elegant s-shape. Not sure I quite hit the mark on that one. The word elegant did not spring to mind. We went on to do some moves where we sit, hands together, elbows pointing right and left, in a sort of praying pose. Then we breathe in, extend our praying hands skyward as if reaching for heaven, then hold, breathe out, breathe in, extend hands towards the outer reaches of the universe, and hold, breathe out, breathe in, and slowly move your arms back to planet earth in a forward stretch that again arches the back, sticking out your chin and staring meaningfully at that spot on the wall. You then bring your arms first down to the side of your chair, then gather up your hands into your lap in what is supposed to look like a dignified, enigmatic yoga-type pose. I was convinced that I looked the part, but that could have been delusion kicking in.

If this is as far as I ever get in yoga, I shall be quite happy. The Cat-Cow thing could, in my view, be done easily while sat on the toilet. Who knows, we could have discovered a revolutionary aid to comfortable defecation? Send me the cheque. Anyway, I have already been able to build it into my daily routine to the extent that I can sit, stock still, in a straight, aligned and yogistically perfect way (or so I imagine) watching Midsomer Murders and not feel like a dickhead. It helps having a wife who is a Yoga Bore.

So, well done Yoga. Well done Anne for making it so easy for someone who probably would have previously shot anyone who dared to suggest my life might be improved by this Total Hippy Nonsense. I was wrong, you were all right, and I surrender. Defeat, bring it on xx

Headway: Tai Chi 2

Nora began the second Tai-Chi class at Headway East London by saying that this week there would be less talking and more action. I'm not sure ACTION was the best word for the level of tai-chi we are at, but you can see where she's coming from.

We revisited the moves we had been introduced to in the first session, but Nora added some seemingly small additions. This, I have come to realise, is very much the tai-chi way, to build very slowly but deliberately. The ball thing is still an enigma wrapped in a mystery for me, but by 'shrinking the size of the ball' to something like the proportions of a tennis ball, I think I might have found a way forward. I even found myself cautiously handling an imaginary sphere during the ad break in Midsomer Murders. Thank goodness I was safely hidden indoors because I must have looked like a right weirdo.

The weight-shifting from one foot to the other in the standing position also progressed to include lifting the heel of the resting foot. This tests the strength and balance in both legs and increases your awareness of any limitations. Nora described this action as floating, but for me it was more of a spring in the step.













These additions to what we had already learned further established the idea that practising ta-chi is for life and not just for the duration of a short programme. For me it has multiple advantages. Unless I can make exercise a routine and a habit, it is something that becomes all to easy to neglect. In this sense, tai chi is a good fit because already I actually ENJOY doing the moves. This might have something to do with their simplicity, but who cares? Simple is OK by me. And if I enjoy doing something (writing and drawing, too), I am more likely to continue. As that man says in the film Casablanca, this could be the start of a beautiful friendship.

Headway: Tai Chi

Today at Headway East London I joined a six-week introductory programme in Tai Chi, run by physio Nora with assistance from Anne. I had some limited prior experience of Tai Chi and had found some of the very slow, low resistance movements, as opposed to the high energy combat stuff, useful in everyday life. The basic moves are relaxing and offer an opportunity to focus and think about nothing in particular.

We practised some centring and balancing positions before moving on to that thing they do with the imaginary ball, which I had never previously been able to get the hang of. I am not quite sure I got it this time, either. Maybe I was allowing my "monkey mind", or whatever it is called, to boss my head around too much. But I did manage eventually to get some sort of meaningful movement to work for me by rotating my hands, so that rather than holding the imaginary ball with both hands parallel and facing one another, I held it in a position in a way that looked like a polite handclap poised and waiting for the moment of contact. That is about the best description I can come up with, I'm afraid.

The other tip I have taken and exploited from Lesson 1 is the balance and centring movement in which you stand, feet hip-width apart, and very slowly and almost imperceptibly shift your weight from one leg to the other, attempting all the time to 'root' your feet in the ground. This movement is very relaxing and almost hypnotic/narcotic in how it forces you to surrender control of your body. It progresses to a tiny lift of the feet on to your toes with each movement. This offers up the kind of dancing motion I have been searching for and is one movement I will be using a lot. It has also helped in developing a method of walking (without stick) in a gentle sway, which I hope will come to relieve some of the pressure my current robotic style of walking inevitably places on my hips and knees.

Things for me to work on are deep breathing (in and out through nostrils) all the way down to the abdominal core. I can do this in isolation and feel the benefits, but doing it while in movement is, for me, a different matter. I shall keep going with that and report back.

As Nora told us early on in the session, you are a beginner in Tai Chi for at least 10 years.

I'm in no hurry.