Articles | YMAA

Building Situational Awareness to Keep You Safe
April 1, 2024
Learn the three phases of situational awareness, “pre-departure,” “travel” and “arrival” for safe while traveling. 8 Min. Read
Intel Briefing
January 1, 2024
If you found information relevant to the group’s safety during your intelligence gathering, share it during the intel briefing. Reading Time 3 minutes.
A Mind-Body Prescription for Fatigue
October 2, 2023
To relieve, deal with and eliminate fatigue, YMAA Author Ramel Rones has created a Mind-Body routine based on the Eastern health and martial arts philosophies, Chi Kung, Tai Chi, and Meditation.
Civil Unrest Precautions While Traveling
May 1, 2023
Always keep your eyes open and your situational awareness level high when you’re in large crowds or near densely populated tourist attractions.
Contingency Planning for Vacationers
April 10, 2023
If you have a response to emergencies planned out in advance, your reaction and resolution will be much quicker, giving you more time to relax and enjoy yourself once everything is dealt with. Besides, that’s why we take vacations in the first place, isn’t it—to relax?
“Pack” Situational Awareness into your Vacation Suitcase - March 27, 2023
When you’re preparing for a trip away, the first step in identifying potential problems begins in the planning phase. Proper planning requires more than just picking a vacation spot and packing a bag. It requires some in-depth research and preparation.
Teaching Teens Safety Skills - August 15, 2022
Before we can have useful discussions about situational awareness and personal safety, both teens and parents must be willing and able to recognize their flaws.
Communicating With Your Teen - June 6, 2022
If you see a change in your teen’s daily ability to function, ask about it and be supportive (without being judgmental). They may need your help, and it could be a sign that they need to talk to a mental health professional.
Awareness Basics For Spotting Teen Danger - April 11, 2022
So, what should you be looking for? In the beginning, the more important question is, what are criminals looking for? To fully understand the process of situational awareness, we need to take a step back and evaluate ourselves, our movements, and how others perceive us. To do this, we need to understand what predators look for in their victims and why they choose the people they do.
Spotting Danger Before It Spots Your Teens (An Introduction) - March 28, 2022
If you’ve read the first two books in my “Heads Up” situational awareness series, you may have already known that Emily is my youngest daughter. Her plan to escape the man in the truck wasn’t perfect, but it was efficient. The fact that she could fight off the effects of an adrenaline dump, devise a plan, and return home safely was good enough for me…This is a book about situational awareness, what it is, and how to teach it to your teens. That’s the goal here.
Meet The Author: Ramel Rones Talks with Gene Ching About Bringing Tai Chi into the Medical Community (video) - February 2, 2022
YMAA author Ramel Rones talks with Gene Ching about his pioneering work bringing tai chi and qigong into the medical community for decades.
Meet the Author: Marisa Cranfill (YOQI) Interview About Qigong for Immunity (video) - January 10, 2022
YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching interviews YOQI master Marisa Cranfill about her blend of Yoga and Qigong and how to practice to boost the immune system.
Meet the Author: Chenhan Yang Discusses Wu-style Tai Chi with Gene Ching (video) - January 8, 2022
YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching interviews master Chenhan Yang about the unique details of Wu-style Tai Chi Chuan (taijiquan).
Meet the Author: Chenhan Yang Discusses Sun-style Tai Chi with Gene Ching (video) - January 8, 2022
YMAA Staff Writer Gene Ching interviews master Chenhan Yang about the unique details of Sun-style Tai Chi Chuan (taijiquan).
Give your Children Options - October 25, 2021
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You’re on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who’ll decide where to go...” —Dr. Seuss
Situational Awareness for Kids - August 9, 2021
Natural disasters and medical emergencies occur without warning and can cause a significant amount of fear and confusion in a young child. We adults must take the time to explain what constitutes an actual emergency and work with our children to create step-by-step plans for how to react in those situations.
Learn Wu-Style Tai Chi Chuan - July 19, 2021
To be good at Wu-style tai chi, it takes a lot of practice. Make sure every hand movement, body movement and footwork is precise. The absolute precision of every movement is the ultimate goal for practitioners. Throughout the form all movements and energies should be smoothly and fluidly connected without any pauses or stops.
Learn Sun-Style Tai Chi - July 5, 2021
Sun-style tai chi is characterized by a very unique flavor. Its agile footwork and emphasis on the circulation of qi and health benefits make it a very popular style of tai chi among all ages of tai chi practitioners. It usually takes about 10 months to learn the Sun tai chi 73 routine in our school. And it takes years of practice to be good at it. To master it, it will take a lifetime of training.
Teaching the Basics of Situational Awareness to Kids - June 14, 2021
Although much less stressful, teaching your child a new skill such as situational awareness is no different. You need to start with the basics, and then work your way slowly into the more complex aspects of situational awareness.
Working Together - May 24, 2021
The only way to be certain that your child is getting the most out of these lessons is to let them know that you’re working as a team. There’s no obstacle that they (kids) can’t overcome when they know they have you in their corner.”
How To Know If You're Being Followed - April 26, 2021
We've all experienced that "I think this guy’s following me" feeling. It's a weird sensation, and it's based mainly on intuition, but knowing if you are being followed and being able to verify that fact is an essential skill when it comes to personal safety. During basic training in the Federal Air Marshal Service, we spent a lot of time on what we called “domain awareness training,” which culminated in a practical exercise at the local shopping mall. During the exercise, several civilian role players would be given photographs and physical descriptions of us trainees.
Qigong Flow to Boost the Immune System - April 5, 2021
With the COVID-19 virus pandemic, understanding the immune system has become an important topic of healthcare and self-care. The immune system is an intelligent matrix of biological structures and processes that protects your body against pathogens like bacteria, viruses, parasites and fungi.
Avoid Teaching Fear to Your Children - March 15, 2021
Although some fears may be irrational, they are all very real and can have devastating effects on our mental state. The fear of interpersonal human aggression can be very frightening and cause us to avoid interacting with others. The fear of financial loss, the death of a loved one, or sickness are all genuine and relevant fears. As adults, we deal with these fears as best we can, and we try not to let the effects of this fear spread to our children.
YOQI: Qigong for Winter - December 21, 2020
Physically, winter qigong practices focus on the organs of the water element: the kidneys and the urinary bladder. In the Five Elements Phases of Traditional Chines Medicine, winter expresses the water element.  In your body, the water element particularly affects your kidneys, urinary bladder, fluids, spinal cord, bone marrow and brain.
Qigong Flow For Happy Organs - Part 2 - November 2, 2020
Qigong Flow for Happy Kidneys is a complete routine designed to balance and nourish the kidneys and urinary bladder. In traditional Chinese medicine, the kidneys resonate with the water element and the spirt of willpower. Happy kidneys are the key to energetic stamina, sexual potency, and longevity. They not only regulate the body fluids and filter the blood, but they are also considered the energy batteries of our body. The kidneys store yuan qi, the precious gift of innate qi inherited from our parents.