Therapeutic Exercises
People in many parts of the world discovered therapeutic qualities of physical fitness. Historians found that in ancient times, Egypt, Assyria, Babylonia, Persia, Palestine, and Syria emphasized the importance of physical fitness among their soldiers, so they would perform better on the battlefield. Probably the oldest exercise system whose purpose was spiritual and physical wellbeing was yoga. Although, according to historians, yoga was developed by Hindu priests to unify body and mind for improved spiritual growth, rather than specifically for health reasons. Scientists still struggle to find out yoga’s origins, but evidence suggests that it’s been around for the last 5,000 years. Ancient Chinese, most likely, were the first to recognize that exercises can improve and maintain people’s health and developed a number of different systems of physical fitness, from exercises that appeared to be forms of active entertainment to methodical systems developed specifically for therapeutic purposes. At the Advanced Holistic Center, at our Downtown Miami, therapeutic exercises and Miami Beach therapeutic exercises come from several methods and traditions, but the traditional Chinese medicine therapeutic exercises are our specialty.
Therapeutic Activities in Western Medicine
Greek physicians such as Hippocrates, Galen, and Herodicus grew up in a society that puts great emphasis on fit body and thought of developing the body as being equally important as developing the mind. They, therefore, recommended physical fitness, and gymnastics became one of the disciplines included in the standard education in ancient Greece. During the times of Roman rule, physical fitness was also appreciated, although much more for military capabilities than aesthetics. During the Dark and Middle Ages, physical fitness was essential for survival, but during the Renaissance, the purpose of physical fitness shifted back to a glorification of the human body. During the 1700s through the 1850s, however, physical education programs began appearing in Sweden, Great Britain, Denmark, and Germany, under the term gymnastics. At the Advanced Holistic Center, at our Downtown Miami therapeutic exercises and Miami Beach therapeutic exercises, our therapists use some elements of gymnastics, depending on individual patients’ goals and circumstances, and their individual treatment programs would be adjusted according to their personal needs and/or preferences.
Exercise Therapy and Traditional Chinese Medicine
Along with acupuncture, moxibustion, cupping, and other modalities of traditional Chinese medicine, exercise therapy comprises traditional Chinese medicine. Unlike its western counterpart, exercise therapy in traditional Chinese medicine avoids sudden movements that can damage muscles, tendons, bones, and even organs, and preference is given to either slow movements or staying in specific positions, like in yoga, for long periods of time. Several studies reported that the practice of qigong is useful in the rehabilitation of drug addicts as well as smokers. Similar to the success of combining different methods for the treatment of many various conditions, therapeutic exercises demonstrate greater effectiveness than each of the methods alone. For example, using qigong along with drug therapy in hypertensive patients led to a reduction of incidence of stroke as well as mortality, and the patients reduced the drug dosage to maintain lower blood pressure. At the Advanced Holistic Center, at our Downtown Miami therapeutic exercises and Miami Beach therapeutic exercises, our therapists specialize in exercise therapy according to traditional Chinese medicine, which means that they typically use specifically selected exercises as part of treatment, in conjunction with acupuncture, cupping, herbs, and/or other modalities, for individual patients.
Something Else
Advanced Holistic Center is a NYC based acupuncture and holistic healthcare clinic. Advanced Holistic Center has more locations and longer open hours than almost any complementary and alternative healthcare facility in all of NYC. With four offices manned by our fully licensed and board certified acupuncturists and herbalists, a team of highly-qualified: assistants, meditation teachers.
The Benefits of Therapeutic Exercises
While understanding what qi is and how it affects human health remains a difficult task for western-trained researchers, their experiments with traditional Chinese exercise methods, primarily with tai chi and qigong, each of which incorporates many methods that differ from each other to a lesser or greater degree, have consistently demonstrated success. Tai chi and qigong exercises appear to be effective in increasing bone density, improving and maintaining cardiovascular health, reducing falls and related risk factors, decreasing a variety of psychological symptoms, improving quality of life, and boosting immune function. Interestingly enough, even though many different, as well as similar systems, fall under the categories of tai chi and even a greater variety of methods under the term qigong, research has demonstrated significant and consistent results for many health issues, this evidence is similar and equal for tai chi and qigong. At the Advanced Holistic Center, at our Downtown Miami therapeutic exercises and Miami Beach therapeutic exercises, our practitioners rely heavily on tai chi and qigong exercise systems as part of traditional Chinese medical treatment, but they also keep up with the latest research findings, and they try to incorporate most effective methods for our patients.
Does it hurt?
Advanced Holistic Center is a NYC based acupuncture and holistic healthcare clinic. Advanced Holistic Center has more locations and longer open hours than almost any complementary and alternative healthcare facility in all of NYC. With four offices manned by our fully licensed and board certified acupuncturists and herbalists, a team of highly-qualified: assistants, meditation teachers.