Seniors! The greatest Physical Difficulty as We Get Older – and Some Solutions

Reduce Falls by Becoming Balanced Keeping one’s balance is what keeps us sure of taking steps without having to look at the ground to check if our feet are going to make it! Have you noticed? People who are unsure of their balance (their connection to the earth, the ground) always seem to look at the ground as if to check it’s still there… I am joking of course, but there’s some truth in this! Hesitancy and having to see where our feet are landing is a great sign of insecurity conce ing our balance. Why does this happen? Chinese peasants don’t look to check their feet. Even, maybe French peasants don’t look to check if the earth is still there! But in our society most of us seem to have somehow lost our connection to the earth. We have been giving such predominance – especially in the last 50 years or so – to our intellectual and mental faculties, heavily encouraged to accumulate of lot of knowledge at school and university, to then get paid to use that brain load to develop more thinking and ideas that will bring in more money and… progress of course! So much so that we are heavy in the head and light in our belly and our feet. No wonder as we age we tend to lose our balance and fall! The reverse should be happening for a harmonious being. It is recommended in Chinese health-oriented practices to have ‘warm feet, a full belly and an empty head’. Well, this does not literally mean that our belly must be full of food at all times of the day, although we must feed ourselves adequately, of course. · A full belly means that the lower belly - where the ‘energy cauldron’ of the body (according to Chinese energetic principles) is located - is full of the precious ‘chi’ (vital energy) that is developed by the food we eat, the air we breathe and the proper exercise we take. · Warm feet means that our vital energy is strong enough to circulate and keep our feet warm and connected to the earth, thus enjoying its benefits. · An empty head means a ‘free’, high-spirited mind that is available in the present moment to respond adequately, without being overloaded with information and therefore unable to be available to ‘life’. So, how to develop that precious yet simple function that is ‘balance’? · By taking heavy steps on the ground – stamping - while making the sound “HA, HA” from your belly! · By walking! I mean actually walking in natural surroundings · By the practice of easy tai chi for example, or even qigong; really any holistic exercise of ancient Chinese origin, as over thousands of years these people have developed methods that involve and take into consideration the whole person, whether in their medicine or physical exercises You’ll then reconnect to the earth and find security in it via your feet.