ABOUT THE AUTHOR: GEORGE LOCKER
Over 40 years ago, I was introduced to Cheng Hsiang Yu, a Grandmaster of T'ai Chi Chuan (Taiji Quan), an ancient Chinese martial art. Master Yu had a profound understanding of the stability and power of T’ai Chi - how to acquire it, and how to apply it. No matter how strong and skillful my classmates and I became, Master Yu stayed well ahead of us, even into his 80’s!
My understanding of balance deepened when I began to teach T’ai Chi-inspired exercises to seniors. Even for the young, learning T’ai Chi is a physical challenge because of the emphasis on the legs. For an older adult, developing leg strength and ankle flexibility takes time, but it is the only way to better balance. Improving balance requires effort over time. If the sustained bent knee and ankle posture is removed, the exercise becomes dance, not the way to better balance.
POSTURAL RETRAINING
YI JIN JING
This led me to create Postural Retraining™, and to write Falling Is Not an Option: A Way to Lifelong Balance, and a Science of Healthy Balance: Why We Need One, What it Might Look Like.
I am currently on the faculty of the Omega Institute for Holistic Studies in Rhinebeck, NY, where I teach a 10-hour class, A Way to Better Balance.
Apart from T’ai Chi practice and teaching, I am a tenant's rights attorney in NYC; I ski and kayak in the Adirondacks; and I have a magnificent daughter.
At 75, my balance and stability are awesome.