All over the world, different traditions have developed to help people stay in shape and lead healthy, centered lives. From martial arts to yoga, there are routines you can add to your own daily routine to get movement into your day, while also learning about the history and culture of another country! Here are three movement traditions you can try out if you’d like a new way to move.
Japan: Rajio Taiso
“Rajio Taiso,” or “Radio Calisthenics” in English, is an aerobic routine that’s played on Japan’s national radio every morning. People can follow it from home, work, school, a park—really anywhere and many people of all ages start their day with this low-intensity series of movements. The tradition began in the 1920s as a public health initiative and was taught originally by postal workers who would demonstrate in the streets joined by anyone who wanted to.
Spain: Bossaball
A fairly new but very unique sport, Bossaball combines volleyball, football, Brazilian capoeira, and more. Even more unique, it’s played on big inflatable trampolines with a net in the middle, often on beaches such as those in Andalusia. It’s named after the bossa nova music that’s often played during games.
India: Yoga
You’ve probably seen or tried yoga in its modern form, but what you may not know is that it’s over 5,000 years old and was originally an amorphous collection of practices and beliefs found in ancient texts. It was only in the second century (still very ancient, of course!) that it was first codified as a path to enlightenment, and several centuries after that that it was shifted to focus on the physical body. Modern yoga as we know it today has only existed in the West for a couple of hundred years—so there’s lots more to study beyond what you’ve probably seen.
