Tai Chi Chih Helps Insomnia

Tai chi chih, a Westernized offshoot of tai chi, has been proven to help insomnia sufferers. A recent Reuters article claims that practicing light exercise 20 - 30 minutes a day can improve your sleeping habits:

"Nearly two-thirds of people who learned the slow, gentle tai chi chih moves experienced significant improvements in sleep quality, compared to about one-third of those who participated in health education sessions that included information on how to get a better night's rest.

In fact, the benefits of tai chi chih were similar to those seen with drugs or cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), study chief Dr. Michael R. Irwin of the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA told Reuters Health."

Tai chi chih is comprised of 19 movements and one pose, and is often referred to as "moving meditation." It can certainly be beneficial for people who have trouble "powering down" in the evenings as well as those whose external stress make it hard for them to sleep.

For more information on Tai chi chih teachers in your area, check out this comprehensive, international list.