Local man teaches health and happiness




BILL SPARKES/Acorn Newspapers HELPING HAND—Maku Cuizon practices T’ai Chi Chuan.

BILL SPARKES/Acorn Newspapers HELPING HAND—Maku Cuizon practices T’ai Chi Chuan.


With the new year now upon us, many people will make resolutions to get into better shape. Getting fit, however, doesn’t always require a gym or a treadmill.

Maku Cuizon, 73, will tell you that another way to get your health, balance and well-being in order is by practicing T’ai Chi Chuan.

Cuizon teaches many classes of the Yang style of T’ai Chi Chuan and is out every Saturday morning at Reyes Adobe Park working on his craft, hoping to inspire other people to try the martial art.

“I come out on Saturday mornings, even if it is a holiday, to practice T’ai Chi,” Cuizon said. “I ask for nothing more than for people to come out and just enjoy it as much as I do.”

Many people have done exactly that.

“I started doing this about a month ago,” 61-year-old Agoura resident Sara Mizen said. “The first class I went to I didn’t think I could do it. Maku then gave me a DVD to watch, and that helped me. I am barely scratching the surface of it now, but I can see how it can become a lifestyle.”

On the DVD, Cuizon explains that although there are many different styles, there is only one T’ai Chi. He stresses relaxation and preaches that slowness doesn’t mean weakness. He said people should go at their own pace and listen to their bodies.

“Know your physical limitations; don’t squat beyond your abilities,” Cuizon said. “By continuing to practice, your flexibilities will change over time.”

Cuizon first heard about T’ai Chi in 1962 while practicing Judo. Although he didn’t get into it until about 20 years later, Cuizon now practices it regularly and has been performing the sport at Reyes Adobe Park since 2001.

“When I first heard about it, I thought it was the silliest thing,” Cuizon said. “But I think that was because I didn’t realize my intention for it back then. My intention now in using it is for good health and to benefit myself, not to use against an opponent.”

Since practicing T’ai Chi, Cuizon has seen a change in his lifestyle.

“I used to play racquetball about three times a week, and I was a very aggressive person,” Cuizon said.

“Now I am more calm and relaxed. It seems that I see things in slow motion and I can almost anticipate things before they happen. There is a softness to it, and I like the flow I get from it. When I finish I don’t feel like all my energy has been used.”

Cuizon said he feels very satisfied when people come up to him and tell him that they are now living healthier and calmer after taking his classes. Other students, like 61yearold Oak Park resident Sue Boecker, have seen a change in themselves, too.

“It is so soothing and calming,” Boecker said. “I come out four to five times a week. It seems to wrap your brain in a soft, healing blanket. I’ve been coming out for 10 months, and Maku is the best teacher I’ve ever had.”

For more information on Cuizon’s T’ai Chi classes, contact him at (805) 375-9988.

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