Fitness

The ancient practice of tai chi is more popular than ever. Why?

Published

1 year ago

November 9, 2024

The ancient practice of tai chi is more popular than ever. Why?

While workouts like high-intensity interval training (HIIT) have only been popular since the early 2000s, many other types of exercise have been around much longer. Pilates, for instance, began nearly a century ago as a method of rehabilitation for injured soldiers and dancers. Yoga’s origins can be traced back more than 5,000 years before that. And we know that wrestling is older still – as famous cave paintings of the sport date back to more than 15,000 years ago.

Tai chi began more recently than that, but is still considered to be an ancient practice because it was started by a Taoist monk who lived around 1300 AD. It’s also something still many practice today – and for good reason.

What is tai chi?

Tai chi is a yoga-like practice that involves a series of slow, gentle movements and physical postures, a meditative state of mind and controlled breathing, per the U.S. National Center for Complimentary and Integrative Health (NCCIH).

While we know that tai chi originated anciently from martial arts in China, over the years the exercise has become more focused on health promotion and rehabilitation. This is because tai chi has been at the center of more than 500 published medical studies. It’s a body of “credible medical research that has catalyzed tai chi’s popularity in the West,” notes Peter Wayne, director of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at Harvard Medical School and at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Massachusetts.

Indeed, today “tai chi is a practice that millions of people around the world participate in,” says Dr. Paul Lam, a family medicine physician from Sydney, Australia, who has been participating in tai chi since 1974 and is now a tai chi instructor. It’s practiced by following specific movements and physical postures in a similar fashion to yoga. In fact, because both tai chi and yoga are low-intensity ancient exercises that have been shown to have similar health benefits and be particularly beneficial for the elderly, the two practices are considered to have more in common than they are different.

What are the health benefits of tai chi?

There are numerous health benefits of practicing tai chi with the most well-studied and known benefits being associated with improved symptoms related to “arthritis, Parkinson’s disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD),” says Dong-Yun Wang, a physical therapist based in Flushing, New York, who recommends tai chi as a way of helping her physical therapy patients.

It’s also known to improve posture and sleep, and to “relieve stress, improve immunity and lower blood pressure,” says Lam.

Wayne adds that the exercise also “improves balance, mobility and reduces falls in older adults;” and that there is evidence “supporting its ability to reduce neck, back and knee pain,” and even to “improve cognitive function and mood.”

Tai chi can improve both lower-body strength and upper-body strength. “When practiced regularly, tai chi can be comparable to resistance training and brisk walking, which can enhance aerobic fitness in the elderly,” says Wang.

Are there any downsides to tai chi?

Despite such benefits, tai chi isn’t for everyone. “Like all activities and exercises, there is a risk of injury when participating in tai chi,” says Lam. Still, 2019 research indicates that tai chi injuries are far fewer than from other forms of exercise, and NCCIH research concludes that “tai chi appears to be safe” for most everyone to do.

At the same time, because tai chi is so different from other Western exercises with its emphasis on slow movements and mindfulness, “it can take a few weeks to get used to before it becomes enjoyable and beneficial,” explains Lam. To get started, Wang recommends going online to see where tai chi classes are being taught in your area or reaching out to someone who engages in the exercise to experience it alongside them.

If you live in a bigger city, “you may be able to find a group of people who already practice it in the park or other public place,” Wang says. She explains you’ll see an instructor leading the group and that you can simply request to join them before “following the movements of the group as you try to imitate the whole form.”

To make it more enjoyable and easier to commit to the practice longer term, advises Wayne, “ask an interested friend or family member to start with you.”

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Fitness

Stay on Top of Your Workouts and Health With the Best Fitness Trackers of 2026

Published

12 hours ago

March 25, 2026

Press Room

Stay on Top of Your Workouts and Health With the Best Fitness Trackers of 2026

Format: Would you prefer wearing a ring or a wrist-based device? If you want something understated that you can wear all the time and don’t mind not having a screen to glance at, then a ring would be ideal. If having a watch on your wrist is comfortable, then a smartwatch or wrist-based tracker may be the right choice.

Compatibility: If you’re an Apple user, ensure your fitness tracker is compatible with iOS. The same goes if you’re an Android user.

Storage capacity: For those who don’t want their fitness tracker to be dependent on their phone, look at a device with its own storage capacity.

Special features: Before purchasing a fitness tracker, consider the health metrics that are important to you for your favorite workouts. If you’d like your tracker to do more than monitor your fitness, you’ll be better off with a smartwatch like the Pixel Watch 4 or Apple Watch SE 3.

Wi-Fi or Bluetooth: If you’re the type of person who likes to leave their phone behind when working out but still needs internet access, ensure your fitness tracker has Wi-Fi.

GPS? For those who run, hike or walk and want to keep track of metrics like distance and pace without their phone, choose a fitness tracker that has built-in GPS.

Screen size: Once you decide you want a fitness tracker with a screen, make sure it fits your personal preferences. A smaller screen may be better if you prefer for it to be less obvious that you’re wearing a fitness tracker on your wrist.

Battery life: How often do you want to be charging your fitness tracker? If frequently charging your devices is a pet peeve, ensure your fitness tracker of choice has a long battery life, especially for your preferred workouts.

Water resistance: Individuals who work out by swimming or those who enjoy taking a dip in the pool after exercising will want a fitness tracker that is water-resistant. Confirm your device is rated for the depth you plan to swim at.

Subscription cost: It’s common for fitness trackers to come with the added cost of a subscription, particularly if you want to access all available features or require extra features for your workout or fitness goals. To guarantee that a fitness tracker is in your budget, check not only the price of the device, but also how much your subscription of choice will run you over the course of a year.

Fitness

Exercise First Thing in the Morning for Better Heart Health, Study Suggests

Published

24 hours ago

March 24, 2026

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Exercise First Thing in the Morning for Better Heart Health, Study Suggests

If you typically work out in the morning, a new study suggests you may have a lower risk for high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and other contributors to heart disease compared with people who exercise later in the day.

“This study suggests that when you exercise may matter, not just how much you exercise,” says senior study author Prashant Rao, MBBS, a sports cardiologist and physician-scientist at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, both in Boston.

The research, which will be presented at the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session later this month, relied on minute-level heart rate data from nearly 15,000 adults. Dr. Rao says this allowed his team to capture long-term, real-world exercise data with much more detail and accuracy.

Early Morning Workouts Are Linked to Better Cardiometabolic Health

The study analyzed health records and Fitbit heart rate data collected over a year. Researchers identified periods when participants had an elevated heart rate for 15 minutes or more to track physical activity. Then they grouped participants into categories based on the time of day exercise occurred.

Researchers compared these timing groups with health data including rates of high blood pressure, obesity, high cholesterol, atrial fibrillation, coronary artery disease, and other cardiovascular health problems. They adjusted the findings to account for differences in age, sex, income level, total activity level, sleep, alcohol use, and smoking status.

The results showed that compared with adults who exercised later in the day, those who worked out in the morning were:

These risk reductions were independent of how much exercise people actually got. Adults who exercised between 7 and 8 a.m. had the lowest odds of coronary artery disease.

Aubrey Grant, MD, a sports cardiologist at MedStar Health in Washington, D.C., who wasn’t involved with the research, says the results suggest that “timing may be a previously underappreciated lever in cardiometabolic risk reduction.”

He adds that wearable technology is giving scientists more granular exercise data, which “opens a more nuanced conversation about how physical activity interacts with the body’s daily rhythms.”

Exercise Timing Is a ‘New Frontier’

A main limitation of the research is that it’s an observational study, “so we can’t establish causality,” Rao says. Because participants weren’t randomized to exercise at different times, the results only show a link, not that earlier exercise directly leads to the observed health benefits.

“While we did our best to adjust for confounders [factors that could muddy the results], timing may still reflect differences in work schedules, socioeconomic factors, or lifestyle patterns that aren’t potentially fully captured in our analyses,” he says.

The link between exercise timing and health is a “new frontier in exercise science,” says Dr. Grant. For decades, research has focused on “how much and how hard” people worked out — variables that still matter, he says.

But more data on timing is starting to appear. Just this January, for instance, another published study found that older adults who identified as “night people” had worse cardiovascular health compared with adults who said they were “morning people.”

Why Exercise Timing May Lower Cardiometabolic Risk

“The honest answer is that we do not fully know yet” why this link is appearing, Grant says.

“Morning exercise may align better with circadian physiology,” or how bodily functions naturally correspond to the time of day, he says. “Cortisol peaks early in the day and can prime the body for physical exertion, potentially enhancing metabolic efficiency,” Grant adds.

Exercise is also a natural stimulant. When you work out early, it revs up your bodily systems and energizes you for the day, says Andrew Freeman, MD, director of cardiovascular prevention and wellness at National Jewish Health in Denver. Dr. Freeman was not involved with the new study.

People who work out earlier may also have healthier lifestyle habits, overall, says Alex Rothstein, EdD, an assistant professor of exercise science at the New York Institute of Technology in Old Westbury.

“If you work out earlier in the day, you tend to have fewer excuses to not work out,” and you may exercise more consistently, says Dr. Rothstein, who was not involved with the new research.

Should You Start Exercising in the Morning?

Freeman recommends getting 30 minutes a day of “breathless physical activity,” including a combination of cardio and strength training. But if you prefer to work out in the afternoons or have responsibilities preventing you from exercising in the morning, don’t worry.

“It does not mean people should feel guilty about evening workouts,” Grant says. “It means that when we counsel patients on optimizing their health, exercise timing is now a legitimate part of that conversation, alongside sleep, nutrition, and stress management.”

If you have flexibility, though, Rothstein suggests exercising in the morning, as it’s less likely that something will interfere with your workout later on, and it may offer extra heart health benefits.

“The most important message is still: Exercise consistently, regardless of timing,” Rao says. However, “Timing may represent a simple, low-cost way to potentially optimize health.”

Fitness

The HFA Show 2026 Demonstrates the Power of Community With Strong Turnout and Programming – Health & Fitness Association

Published

1 day ago

March 24, 2026

Press Room

The HFA Show 2026 Demonstrates the Power of Community With Strong Turnout and Programming – Health & Fitness Association

From the HFA Hall of Fame to Innovation Alley to the launch of new products from more than 60 companies, The HFA Show 2026 delivers a standout week.

The 2026 HFA Hall of Fame inductees pose together (left to right): Cirulli, Eschbach, Landers, Mills, Runyon, and Elaine LaLanne. Missing are Dave Mortensen, who could not attend, and Jack LaLanne, who received the award posthumously. In the second photo, Keith Morrison, a correspondent for Dateline NBC, presents Elaine LaLanne as an inductee.

The HFA Show 2026 recorded 10,300 registrants, 380 exhibitors, 52 sponsors, and 150 speakers for the March 16-18 event in San Diego, according to the Health & Fitness Association (HFA). It was also the launching pad for new products and services from more than 60 companies.

“What an incredible week full of high energy, dynamic networking, insightful learning, and new product discoveries,” said HFA President and CEO Liz Clark. “It was gratifying to support such an extraordinary group of industry leaders and innovators from around the world with this year’s show. Our team has poured more than a year of work into this event, and we’re already energized to make next year’s gathering in Las Vegas on March 10–12, 2027, even more spectacular.”

Clark went on to thank additional groups beyond HFA team members.

“We’d like to thank all our sponsors, exhibitors, speakers, and board members for making this year’s event such a strong and inspiring showcase for the industry,” Clark said. “Your commitment and partnership helped create a world-class experience that truly moved our industry forward.”

The unofficial launch of the event occurred on the evening of March 15, with 240 people gathering for the HFA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, sponsored by The Bay Club Company, to honor the organization’s second class of inductees: Gainesville Health & Fitness CEO Joe Cirulli, Exhale and ResetOne Founder Annbeth Eschbach, Fitness Formula Founder Gale Landers, Les Mills Founder and Managing Director Phillip Mills, Purpose Brands Co-founders Dave Mortensen and Chuck Runyon, and fitness icons Jack and Elaine LaLanne. Ticket sales and sponsorships for the HFA Hall of Fame ceremony raised more than $200,000 for the HFA Foundation, a 501(c)3 public charity that works to support health through exercise.

The evening also included a celebration recognizing Elaine LaLanne’s 100th birthday, which was March 19. Keith Morrison, a Dateline NBC correspondent and friend of Elaine, presented Elaine and her husband Jack, who passed away in 2011, for induction. Celebrities such as Billy Crystal, Mark Wahlberg, and Tony Danza sent videos congratulating her on her 100th birthday.

HFA handed out three other awards at the event. The Jim Worthington Advocate of the Year Award went to Chris Craytor, CEO of ACAC Fitness & Wellness Centers, for his service to the fitness industry and HFA. The John Holsinger Global Leader Award was given to LifeFit Group CEO Martin Seibold. Bodytech Colombia Co-founder and Executive Vice President Gigliola Aycardi received the Woman Leader Award in Honor of Julie Main.

This year’s keynoters (left to right): Dhawan, Itzler, and Ohno.

The HFA Show included annual President’s Address by Clark as well as three keynote addresses:

March 16 – Clark recapped the highlights of the past year for HFA and urged even further engagement by industry leaders as global influence and expectations grow for the industry.
March 16 – Author and teamwork expert Erica Dhawan shared strategies for building trust, fostering agility, and strengthening collaboration in the age of AI. Her keynote was sponsored by Zenoti.
March 17 – Author and entrepreneur Jesse Itzler shared lessons about creating opportunity, cultivating resilience, and building a life that achieves big goals without sacrificing what matters most. His keynote was sponsored by Matrix.
March 18 – Olympic speed-skating champion Apolo Ohno shared lessons on reinvention, adaptability, and performance in a rapidly changing environment in his keynote, sponsored by ROR.

Other highlights of the conference program were:

The 29th Annual Financial Panel, which was renamed the Rick Caro Financial Panel in honor of Rick Caro, president of Management Vision, who created the panel 28 years ago and had moderated it each year until his death in August 2025. This year’s panel was sponsored by AltaDX.
The Women’s Leadership Summit and Reception, sponsored by Daxko.
The Brazilian Forum and the Latin American Forum, both sponsored by ABC Fitness.
The Canadian Forum, EMEA Forum, and APAC Forum

Highlights of the trade show floor were:

Innovation Alley (sponsored by Sweatworks) featurinh the following companies: Alchemy Innovations LLC, AI Advertising by Mixo Ads, BELLIX, Bolt Recovery, Buzz Bomb Caffeine Company, DetecFit, Fit – M.O., Fit-X, HipDoc, InSquare, MatFresher, Milton AI, Nervō Labs, ObliQ Fitness, OmniFit, OnSight, Silient, Superset App, and xplate.
Innovation Alley Pitchfest, which featured many of the Innovation Alley companies offering a three-minute pitch of their product. The winners of the Pitchfest will be announced soon. They will receive a complimentary booth at The HFA Show 2027 and will be recognized in a future issue of Health & Fitness Business.
The New Product Zone featuring nine companies: Body Energy Technology, Buzz Bomb Caffeine, Core Champion, Echelon Fit, Escape Fitness, Linear Bar, Martoni Bikes, The Abs Company, and WeGym
The Pickleball Experience
The Demonstration Stage
The Recovery Lounge (outside the trade show floor) with products from Am-Finn Sauna Company, CryoBuilt, Silent, WellFit, and WellnessSpace Brands.

“What stood out this year wasn’t just the scale of the event, but the strength of the conversations happening across every part of the show,” Clark said. “From the keynote stage and education sessions to the trade show floor, industry leaders came together to share ideas, explore innovation, and build the relationships that will help shape the future of health and fitness.”

HFA would like to acknowledge Alloy Personal Training Solutions, LLC for authorizing the use of its registered trademark “Stronger Together” as the theme for The HFA Show 2026. The HFA Show 2027 will take place March 10-12, 2027, at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.