Tai Chi Gentle but With Strong Physical Benefits

Tai Chi Gentle but With Strong Physical Benefits

Tai Chai is an ancient Chinese martial art has real physical benefits—and without the physical stress that other forms of exercise, even yoga, can have on aging bodies.   Its low-impact and gentle movements put minimal pressure on your muscles and joints, and the risk of injury is low. Instead of going to a gym, you can do it anywhere, and it doesn’t require any special clothing or props.

In fact, tai chi may be a better exercise option for older adults than strength training, even though such exercises combat the wasting effects of aging. That's because strength training tends to stiffen arteries and the more flexible the arteries, the better one's overall cardiovascular health generally is. Poor arterial flexibility is an independent risk factor for diseases affecting the heart and blood vessels.

Although most people no longer use it as a martial art, you can think of tai chi as a way to fight back against the effects of aging: losing flexibility, balance and muscle strength.

What Is Tai Chi?

This centuries-old Chinese martial art involves a series of slow, continuous and meditative body movements that incorporate a series of motions named for animal actions.   As you move, you breathe deeply and naturally, focusing your attention, as in some forms of meditation, on your bodily sensations.

Benefits of Tai Chi

In China, it is believed that tai chi can delay aging and prolong life, increase flexibility, strengthen muscles and tendons, and aid in the treatment of heart disease, high blood pressure, arthritis skin diseases, depression, cancer and other illnesses. Unfortunately, there hasn't been a significant amount of scientific evidence to support all of these claims but several small studies show a positive connection between tai chi and many chronic diseases. Most of the studies offer tai chi as an intervention for a short duration, and long-term results or benefits of tai chi may vary by individual over time.

• Balance and flexibility. Most of the research on the impacts of tai chi on older adults has studied balance and fall prevention. Because tai chi often involves shifting weight from one leg to the other, it can increase both balance and leg strength in older adults. Tai chi also counteracts the loss of balance as we get older, because it improves the sense of one’s physical position in space.
• Heart disease. In a study at Harvard Medical School, 12 weeks of tai chi reduced blood levels of B-type natriuretic protein, an indicator of heart failure, and improved participants' ability to walk and quality of life. Another study suggests that tai chi may improve quality of life, mood and exercise confidence in people with chronic heart failure.
• Walking. One study found that individuals who practiced tai chi walked significantly more steps than individuals who did not; this is good news for older adults whose walking speed decreases with age.
• Sleep. In a University of California—Los Angeles study of healthy older adults with moderate sleep complaints, 16 weeks of tai chi improved the quality and duration of sleep significantly more than standard sleep education.

Source:  Senior Spirit Newsletter, October 2014