Havea trawlthroughsome
classicgoals
“LookingonYouTubeatoldgoalsI remember
lovingyonksago,”isPaulfromGlasgow’s
suggestedtonicfora greywinter’sday.Betteryet,let
theendlesspossibilitiesoftheinternetembellishyour
cherishedmemories,withmultiplecameraanglesor
massivelyover-the-topSouthAmericancommentary.
Illustrations:MatthewBrazier
SimoneGillsellsTheBigIssueinPlymouth.
TobuyasubscriptionfromSimonewhileshe’sunable
tosellthemagazineonherpitchduringlockdownvisit
bigissue.com/vendors
Interview:SarahReid
Istartedo�fwithninjutsuwhenIwasveryyoungbutthat’sa
fightingstyleofmartialartandIrealisedIpreferredtaichi,which
ismoreforthemind,bodyandsoul.Yourqienergy(‘qi’literally
meanslifeforce)insidethebodycangetblockedattimesthrough
everydayactivitiesandtaichihelpstounblockitwithcertaintaps
onspecificpartsofthebody,forexampleontheribcageorthe
sternum.You’llknowifyourqiisblockedbecauseyou’llberun
downandfeellikeyou’reageingquicker.
Anybodycantakeuptaichiatanyage.Youcangetinstruction
froma DVDoronline.Physicallyit’sa low-impactactivitybutyou
havetostandstronginyourmovementsandrelaxyourbodyinto
them.Youcandoitinyourbedroom,youjustneeda coupleof
metresofspaceroundaboutyoutobeabletodothemovements.
Youdon’thavetodoiteveryday,thoughitisgoodtopractice
regularlysoitbecomespartofyourroutine.
I’vegotsciaticaandrheumatism,soformethemainbenefits
havebeenhowmuchit’shelpedtostrengthenmymusclesand
improvedmyeverydaymovement.I canmovea lotbetterthanI
wouldifI’dneverdoneit,I havea widerrange
ofmovementandmymuscles
strength.Youwon’tbeoutofb
themovementsareslowbutyo
upa bitofa sweat.Butit’sbest
themusclestoomuch,younee
intoit.Andlikeyoga,it’simpor
havea goodfocusandbeable
toreallyconcentrateonwhat
you’redoing.It’sa formof
mediationinthatsense.If
yougetintoit,you’llseewhat
I meanaboutitbeinggoodfor
thespiritandgoodforthesoul
OFTHE WEEK
Shinebrightwithhi-vis
winterwoolliesfrom
TheBigIssueShop
Thesewinter-warmingwoollyhats,
snoodsandheadbandsareknittedout
ofablendofwoolandlight-re�lective
yarnbyGLOW– a socialenterprise
workingwithskilledBAMER(Black,
Asian,MinorityEthnicandRefugee)
women.bigissueshop.com/vendor/
glow-and-see
- R
EA
DER
SUGGES
TIO
N•
ER
DA
ITSEGGUSRE
NO
WenamedRossKempa BigIssue
Changemakerfor 2020 forhis
award-winningLivingWithseries,
whichbroughtmainstream
attentiontotheproblemof
countingroughsleepers.Now
he’sbackedBigIssuevendors
duringthetoughwintermonths
byrecordinga shortvideo
encouragingpeopletosignup
forsubscriptions.“Yourhelp
willgoa longway,”hesays.
WatchitonTwitter@RossKemp
ENDORSEMENT
GetticketsfortheOldVic’sonline
performancesofAChristmasCarol
Thinkpantoseasonisspoiledthisyear?Ohnoitisn’t!One
ofLondon’smostfamoustheatresisrevivingitsbig-hearted
smashhitproductionofCharlesDickens’immortalChristmas
classic,starringAndrewLincoln,forstreamingaudiences
worldwide.Ticketsareonsalenow– orfreetoallUKcare
homesandstateschoolsinLambethandSouthwark.
December12-24;oldvictheatre.com
SimoneGilltookupthe
mostmellowofmartialarts
toeasehermindandbody.
Sheexplainshowtomake
it partofyour
everydayroutine
VENDOR EXPERT: TAI CHI
HOW TO TAKE
UP TAI CHI
FROM 30 NOVEMBER 2020 BIGISSUE.COM | 05