Tai Chi for Diabetes (2002)

Physician and tai chi expert Paul Lam has created a 77-minute tai chi workout with movements specifically chosen for those with both Type I and Type II diabetes. In the seven-minute introduction, Australian medical experts explain the disease and endorse tai chi, with its gentle combination of muscle-strengthening and relaxation exercises, as ideal for diabetic patients. Then Lam and his assistants begin a program of warm-ups, stretches, and  qigong  movements designed to improve energy along the meridians affected by diabetes. (Lam explains meridians as part of the Chinese concept of Qi--"life energy"--and how they affect the body.) They follow with both basic and advanced dance-like movements, which have such delightful monikers as "fair lady working at the shuttle" and "waving hands in the cloud." Lam includes a separate demonstration without instruction for those who master the movements and want a fluid routine to follow.  --Kimberly Heinrichs