Fitness/wellness expert and former Abs of Steel star Scott Cole has motivated audiences in over 30 countries, and has appeared on “LIVE with Regis and Kelly,” “The View,” “CNN Headline News,” “The Early Show,” HGTV, E!, Style and the Food Network’s “Weighing In.” Cole has contributed to over 400 publications worldwide, including The Wall Street Journal, SHAPE, GQ, Men’s Fitness, Family Circle and O. He also has a DVD series entitled Discover Tai Chi.

Gay & Lesbian Times: How did you first get involved in the field of holistic health, and more specifically, Tai Chi?

Scott Cole: I actually started doing partner stretching with my private clients in the mid-late ’80s… and I realized there was such a need to relax and de-stress, so I began formulating what were considered “new age” fitness techniques.

I had been lecturing/presenting high-level aerobic choreography for years in over 30 countries, and I began to promote and include mind-body/holistic sessions in my repertoire. My own stress had built up quite a bit as I traveled the world in Lycra as a National Aerobic Champion, and I eventually became a burned-out fitness pro.

I entered my first Tai Chi class as a student because it looked enticingly slow and graceful, yet extremely powerful. Tai Chi actually helped me come to terms with some anger and grief that I was carrying around in my body for years – and in the process, I became hooked on this magnificent martial art.

GLT: What are some of the benefits of regular Tai Chi practice?

SC: Everything: increased muscle tone, decreased stress, better circulation, digestion, breathing, not to mention the mental/physical connection to your core as you learn a most fascinating martial art. Tai Chi teaches you to channel and direct energy effectively for your own health, emotional processing and self-defense. Tai Chi is a moving meditation; in the moment and full of power.

GLT: The question all the guys – and girls! – are dying to ask: What does your diet look like?

SC: Well, I just had a vanilla malt, but other than that, I usually limit my dairy. I am mostly vegetarian, except for fish: salmon, tilapia – any Japanese food really works for me, including Otokoyama sake. I basically eat when I am hungry. When you are active enough, your body will tell you what you need. A person needs to be aware of his or her potential addictions, though, and make sure that their eating regimen is balanced. I grew up in Texas, so I had enough beef for a lifetime by the time I was teenager – beef really ages you… especially the way ours is processed, “hormoned” and prepared. I recommend the Okinawa Program book … for a holistic diet/longevity approach.

GLT: What should someone just starting with Tai Chi and meditation know?

SC: The Zen answer: Nothing. The American answer: Hurry up and relax, breathe, and get over yourself.

GLT: What are some of the core values of your practice?

SC: My core values include core-centered movement, but more importantly, participating in the world around me, and this includes interaction with nature. My Wednesday morning 7:00 a.m. Tai Chi class in Palm Springs is so gorgeous that one cannot help but move and be moved…. We have red-tailed hawks fly above us, we have coyotes trotting by, hummingbirds buzzing around. I teach students and clients to be open, to let go of critical self-judgment, and to allow themselves to move with no contrived agenda.

All of these things I need to learn as well. For example, as I answer these questions, I have been in Houston for two weeks with my mother who has a brain tumor. It has been a daily “new reality,” and Tai Chi/Taoist principles have helped me immensely to take each moment and make the most of it. If we are constantly focused on what may happen, or the constant worst-case, fear-based scenario, we miss out on the journey – and, I feel undermine the lesson, losing our buoyancy and quality of life through constant worry.

GLT: So, what are some of your other interests and hobbies… when you’re not working out?

SC: Two-man beach volleyball, “enlightening” Republicans, hiking, prank phone calls, philosophy, writing, communication, eating at different restaurants, traveling, and playing Yahtzee at my cabin up in Idyllwild.