Here’s your chance to fall in love with tai chi and qigong. Your heart and health will thank you you for it.
If you want to feel healthier, live stronger for longer and get fitter without puffing, then tai chi and qigong can help you.
The team at Kia Ora Tai Chi are looking for adults of any age and ability, who are keen to make a regular commitment to their health. Come along to learn tai chi and qigong in our new classes for beginners . You can join any time up to (and including) Wednesday 10 March 2021, 6.30 – 7.15pm. Please arrive no later than 6.25pm.
We will be in the Manurewa South School hall, on Totara Road Manurewa, Auckland 2102 (refer to the map further below). Please note that the entrance to the hall and free parking is off Totara Road, which is a different street to the main entrance to the school.
If you’d like to try tai chi, there’ll be a warm welcome at one of the free introductory sessions on Monday 22nd and Wednesday 24th February, 6.30 – 7.15pm.
If you miss the introductory sessions in February, you are still welcome to join the February beginners up until Wednesday 10 March 2021. Your first class is free. After 10 March, anyone who hasn’t already joined the beginners class will need to wait until the next intake. The date is still to be confirmed but is likely to be July 2021 and/or February 2022.
If you’d like to attend, please text or phone Jocelyn Watkin on 027 493 9851 or please use the Contact Form.
After the free classes, you will be encouraged to attend two nights per week on an ongoing basis. However, if you are committed to practicing between classes then it is OK to attend just one class per week. Learning tai chi and qigong takes time but you if keen to gain all of the health, wellbeing and fitness benefits then this investment in your future good health will be worth it.
Here at Kia Ora Tai Chi, we are all constantly amazed at thehealth improvements that our students tell us about once they attend our classes on a regular basis:
sleeping better at night
feeling better all over and less stressed
improved breathing, with less wheezing or feeling like they’ve ‘run out of breath’
finding it easier to go up and down stairs
playing with their children or grandchildren for longer without getting tired
lowering their high blood pressure
feeling more flexible and moving better with less aches and pains
better balance/less falls
toned muscles.
The map below shows you where to find us. Please note that the entrance to the Manurewa South School hall and the free parking is at 18 Totara Road (please don’t go to the main entrance to the school, which is on another street). Please aim to arrive no later than 6.25pm.
To RSVP or to ask questions about the classes, please use theContact Form
Cost of classes: Your first class is FREE. After that, prices start from $9.50 per class. A discount is available for those who are referredby ACC and Age Concern for the Community Group Strength and Balance Exercise programme (“Live Stronger for Longer”). You must be aged 65+ to be referred.
What to wear: Please wear loose comfortable clothing and flat-soled shoes (such as sneakers, trainers or tennis shoes). Please also bring a drinking bottle of water.
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Learn to de-stress with tai chi and qiqog
There have been hundreds of clinical studies over many years that confirm the health benefits of tai chi, especially for the Tai Chi for Health programmes that we teach at Kia Ora Tai Chi. You can read more about these clinical studies here.
One aspect consistent across all studies and trials is that none of these benefits happen overnight or after just one class. The trials take place over several weeks, sometimes several months, and the people being studied do tai chi at least 2 -3 times per week.
Kia Ora Tai Chi students attend at least one class per week, often two, and several practice between each class. Improving your health, fitness and balance is worth a regular commitment to tai chi.
Find out more about Kia Ora Tai Chi classes, how to get to the venue, and what to expect.
Please RSVP for a free beginner’s class up until (and including) Wednesday 10th March by using theContact Form or text or phone Jocelyn Watkin on 027 493 9851.
Come along and say kia ora. We’d love to see you. We’re a friendly bunch at a great venue that has lots of free parking.
The summer tai chi sessions in Cornwall Park finished on Sunday 28 March, 2021.
To find out whether there’ll be other free sessions/workshops during the year or in the summer of 2022, please sign up for the free monthly newsletter (to the right of this page) or contact us.
Always wanted to give tai chi and qigong a go? Come along to Cornwall Park for FREE Kia Ora Tai Chi sessions over January, February and March 2021. Fun for all of the family, from children to grandparents.
The sessions start on Sunday 24 January 2021, 9 – 9:45am and will happen every Sunday(9 – 9:45am) until Sunday 28 March. This includes the Sundays of Auckland Anniversary Weekend and Waitangi Weekend. Come along to enjoy relaxing tai chi under the cool of the trees. All welcome.
Location: Under the trees on the left hand side as you’re coming up Pohutukawa Drive from Greenlane Road West. (look out for the signs).
Described as “moving meditation”, tai chi is an ancient Chinese martial art that combines mental focus and mindfulness with deliberate and relaxed movements that are gentle on the joints. Qigong is a meditative breathing programme designed to improve your breathing and wellbeing.
Summer tai chi and qigong in Cornwall Park is fun, free and suitable for all ages. You don’t need specialist clothing or equipment. Bring a water bottle, a sun hat, wear comfortable clothing and shoes, and see you there.
Find out more:
About me – Jocelyn Watkin, your tai chi and qigong instructor
Cornwall Park, an oasis in the middle of Auckland. and how to get there
Breathing – we all do it automatically: approximately 18 times per minute, 1,080 times per hour and nearly 26,000 times in a 24-hour day. You would have thought we’d got it down to a fine art?
But, what if I told you that most of us could do this breathing thing a lot better? And, by better I mean having more more energy, less anxiety, better sleep, less stress, a better posture with less back ache, and that it was a way you could quickly calm your mind when it is revved up. Of course, you don’t have to do this type of breathing for all of those 26,000 breaths. Instead, you can try it for just for a minute or two and for 2-3 times per day – it could make a huge difference in your life and health.
Tai chi is an ancient, Chinese exercise programme and martial art that involves a series of movements performed in a mindful, focussed manner and accompanied by deep breathing.
You don’t have to know tai chi to learn tai chi breathing. I can show you how to do this so you can breathe your way to better health. You will be able do this anywhere, anytime at home, at work and even on a bus or train.
What happens when we don’t breathe properly? Journalist, James Nestor, and a friend decided to try it for just two weeks. He said on Radio NZ National this week, “We knew it wasn’t going to be fun, but we didn’t know it was going to be a bad as it was. Within a few hours my blood pressure shot up about 20 points. That night I start snoring and I had not snored before.”
Check out the RadioNZ broadcast with James Nestor in this link.
I’ve also written about WHY tai chi breathing is so good for you and how it can help you to bust stress in just a few minutes per day. Click here to find out.
If you want to get fitter without puffing, feel healthier and live stronger for longer, then tai chi can help you.
If this sounds like something you want then the team at Kia Ora Tai Chi would love to hear from you. We are looking for adults of any age and ability, who are keen to make a regular commitment to learning tai chi.
To find out if tai chi is for you, please come along to one or both of the free “taster sessions” on Monday 20th and Wednesday 22nd July 2020, 6.30-7.15pm in Manurewa.
To RSVP or to ask questions about the classes, please use theContact Form
After the free sessions, we encourage anyone who can attend AT LEAST once per week to enrol in a new tai chi class for beginners, which will start on Monday 27th and Wednesday 29th July 2020, 6.30 – 7.15pm.
Cost of classes: The classes on the 20th and 22nd of July are FREE. After that, prices start from $9.50 per class. A discount is available for those who are referredby ACC and Age Concern for the Community Group Strength and Balance Exercise programme (“Live Stronger for Longer”). You must be aged 65+ to be referred.
What to wear: Please wear loose comfortable clothing and flat-soled shoes (such as sneakers, trainers or tennis shoes). Please also bring a bottle of drinking water.
Here at Kia Ora Tai Chi, we are all constantly amazed at thehealth improvements that our students tell us about once they attend our classes on a regular basis:
feeling better all over and less stressed
sleeping better at night
finding it easier to go up and down stairs
improved breathing, with less wheezing or feeling like they’ve ‘run out of breath’
playing with their children or grandchildren for longer without getting tired
lowering their high blood pressure
feeling more flexible and moving better with less aches and pains
better balance/less falls
toned muscles.
Learn how to reduce stress with tai chi
There have been hundreds of clinical studies over many years that confirm the health benefits of tai chi, especially for the Tai Chi for Health programmes that we teach at Kia Ora Tai Chi. You can read more about these clinical studies here.
One aspect consistent across all studies and trials is that none of these benefits happen overnight or after just one class. The trials take place over several weeks, sometimes several months, and the people being studied do tai chi at least 2 -3 times per week.
Most of my students attend at least one class per week, often two, and several practice between each class.
We are now looking for a group of new beginners who accept that their health and well-being is worth a regular commitment to tai chi.
Find out more about Kia Ora Tai Chi classes, how to get to the venue, and what to expect.
What I love about seated tai chi is that enables all to enjoy the health and wellness benefits from tai chi, regardless of ability, age, size, shape or whether you have an illness or injury.
Often described as “moving meditation”, tai chi is an ancient Chinese martial art that combines mental focus with deliberate and relaxed movements that are gentle on your joints.
It is sometimes referred to as “taiji” or “tai chi chuan”. You can find out more about tai chi here.
The term ‘gentle’ does not mean ineffective. Seated tai chi can be an incredibly good fitness routine to strengthen your core muscles and your back.
I am a board-certified and premier instructor for Tai Chi for Health Institute. I am qualified to teach a number of Tai Chi for Health programmes, including Seated Tai Chi for Arthritis (TCA). Click on this link to learn more about me and the Kia Ora Tai Chi team
Give Seated TCA a try for yourself, whether at home or in the office. You’ll be able to learn it in eight easy steps in the video below, which I’ve made just for you.
FREE Tai Chi for Rehabilitation (TCR) to help you boost your immunity and reduce stress and anxiety. Dr Paul Lam of the Tai Chi for Health Institute is offering the entire TCR online learning programme free of charge.
Click on this link for Lesson one (just over one hour’s duration). We suggest you jump straight to the 48-minute point of the link below to learn the 1st two wonderful steps of TCR. After that, you can watch the rest of the video for juicy and fascinating information from Dr Lam on why and how TCR works. Subsequent lessons in the series will be available in due course.
This is a post from February 2021.
Here at Kia Ora Tai Chi, we are all constantly amazed at the health improvements that our students tell us about once they attend our classes on a regular basis:
The summer tai chi sessions in Cornwall Park finished on Sunday 28 March, 2021. 
Breathing – we all do it automatically: approximately 18 times per minute, 1,080 times per hour and nearly 26,000 times in a 24-hour day. You would have thought we’d got it down to a fine art?
Please note: This is a post from July 2020
FREE Tai Chi for Rehabilitation (TCR) to help you boost your immunity and reduce stress and anxiety. Dr Paul Lam of the Tai Chi for Health Institute is offering the entire TCR online learning programme free of charge.