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Tai Chi : A preventive and curative Tool
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Arthritis & Rheumatism In terms of being a movement study, T'ai Chi is emphatically joint oriented. The basic idea is that the joints govern movement in the body, both physical and energetic. The joints were oftened referred to as "gates" which implied that they controlled how much energy would move through the body. Therefore a good state of health is recognized to necessitate the need to maintain a high degree of joint flexibility and strength. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, there is a foundational life philosophy called the 5 Elements. This is a model of the cosmos in respect to five component factors; fire, earth, metal, water, and wood. Each of these elements contribute an essential ingredient to one's complete health experience. The wood element is that which governs the joints. T'ai Chi practice supports the improvement of circulation due to a strengthening and expanding of range of movement of the joints, especially those of the ankles and hips. If a joint condition such as arthritis is at an advanced stage, T'ai Chi might offer some relief and improvement. If the situation is at an earlier stage, practice can be enormously beneficial as a preventative and curative therapy.
Back Problems Certainly the experience of having back problems can be one of the most painful and debilitating of physical conditions. T'ai Chi practice cannot be more beneficial than in instances of people suffering from back problems. Many, if not most, back problems originate in poor movement patterns. The tendency to bend, lean, and twist the trunk places great stress on the muscle groups and vertebrae located in the lower back. These muscles are not designed for strength. The muscles of the lower back (lumbar-sacral area) are intended to supply support for the lower back area, not to be work oriented or weight bearing.When we use our body in ways that distort the trunk position, as previously mentioned, work that should be performed by the large muscle groups in the legs is transferred up to the lower back. This sense of poorly defined muscle use is a prime contributor to back problems. The intention of T'ai Chi to allow the legs to bear more of the weight of the body, can be truly miraculous in terms of alleviating much of the cause of lower back discomfort.
Balance T'ai Chi views balance, the single most important movement skill, as the relationship between the body and the natural force of gravity. The ancient Taoists referred to gravity as the "Heavenly Chi seeking the Earth". This image is actually very important because it describes gravity as being a source of energetic movement rather than a simply a sense of body weight. In T'ai Chi we imagine a perfect plumb line descending from the heavens, entering into the crown of the head, continuing down through the trunk, exiting the pelvic floor and going into the earth. This is our guideline for the upper body's contribution towards good balance. The idea of being well balanced physically is simply a foundation for a similar ability to maintain a good sense of balance which includes the emotions and the mind.
High Blood Pressure Contemporary health statistics tell us that exercise is a must for anyone who wants to maintain or regain their health. In our day and culture, most medical conditions are understood to be stress related, to the extent that over 75% of doctor visits are considered so. For people with heart conditions, such as high blood pressure, the contemporary Western therapeutic approach consists of exercise, medication, and diet. As the exercise aspect of this program T'ai Chi offers a number of special benefits. Because of its gentle approach to movement, T'ai Chi allows even a person recuperating from a serious illness or operation the opportunity to begin moving the body. In T'ai Chi this quality of movement, which includes shifting the weight, trunk rotation, and taking steps, is used to enhance circulation throughout the body, including the circulation of the blood through the veins, arteries, etc. T'ai Chi, as therapeutic movement, is designed to be a non-stressful use of physical movements in order to facilitate organ health (heart, lungs, liver, spleen, and kidneys), rather than an emphasis on muscle strength.
Convalescence Treatment Recently a number of hospitals have included T'ai Chi as a treatment intended to hasten recovery of the patients in their post operative phase. The therapeutic affects of T'ai Chi have always placed great emphasis on a movement experience that strengthens the immune system by. On the emotional and mental level, a major and understandable concern of many patients has to do with a question of being able to function after surgery.
The practice of T'ai Chi, if presented in a skilful and appropriate manner can greatly help in mobility improvement, improvement in balance , improvement in strength and confidence. All these can be great emotional/mental contributors to the overall process of recovery after surgery.
Stress Reduction T'ai Chi might well be considered the world's oldest stress reduction program. For the most part stress is understood to be a mental/emotional situation expressed through the physical body. Anxiety, worry, fear, and a host of related negative mental states can and do cause serious physical symptoms including increased blood pressure, impaired organ function, and accumulated tension in the muscles and joints which can lead to arthritis and other joint afflictions. T'ai Chi, like contemporary Western psychiatry, understands that it is very difficult to directly influence the mental/emotional state. So what has developed over the centuries is a very simple yet highly sophisticated method of influencing mental/emotional changes through body experiences. T'ai Chi , as a branch of Traditional Chinese Medicine , looks at the mind, emotions, and body as interconnected. Their relationship is one of constant exchange of information and influence, and so, in a very real sense, mind, emotions, and body are one and the same. Therefore if we create a positive change in one, all then receive the information of that change, and then are changed themselves. So in T'ai Chi we use a process of relaxing muscular tensions, improving posture, and a deepening of the breathing process to affect in a positive way the stress levels of the mind and emotions. It is understood that in a very real sense all tension and stress are expressions of imbalance. Therefore the cultivation of improved balance, once again as a mind/body experience, can only have the affect of reducing stress.
T'ai Chi and Sport Regardless of the specifics of the particular sport, all athletics require a good sense of balance, coordination, and, surprisingly to some, relaxation, which in T'ai Chi is defined as being free to move. n world class sports, trainers often video an athlete in their activity, and watch in slow motion in order to diagnose deviations in good form or body mechanics. This is exactly what we attempt to do in T'ai Chi. Most of our practice is done slowly, not because it is felt that one should always move at that speed, but rather to take advantage of the learning opportunity that this provides. By doing T'ai Chi an athlete refines those movement qualities that are essential in order to bring the body up to peak performance capabilities. The intention is to use our exercises to develop a heightened sense of body awareness so that we can begin to detect our poor movement habits and replace them with more skilful ones. This requires a strengthening of one's concentration, the ability to slow down, and the willingness to change old habits. The result of these three steps is that of a greatly improved athlete.
T'ai Chi for Senior Citizens
T'ai Chi is a study that places great emphasis on balance, both physical and mental. It is very common for people, as they get older, to begin to lose their sense of balance and therefore become much more susceptible to falls and subsequent injuries. It has been documented that the fear of falling is one of the greatest concerns of Senior Citizens. In T'ai Chi practice, the principles of balance, which include joint involvement (ankle, knee, and hip), lower body awareness, and posture as it is involved in all body movements are explored and improved. This leads to a better sense of body movement and a growing confidence that permits a person of any age to live a fuller and more productive life.
Weight Management In Traditional Chinese Medicine there is this basic tenet called the Five Elements: those of fire, earth, metal, water, and wood. Each of these different elements represents a completely different body type, from tall and thin, to short and broad. None of the types are considered more beautiful, more desirable, nor healthier. The intention of the practice is to engage in the process of learning who and what you are, and then going about improving what that is to the best of your ability. This is never to be confused with the frustrating attempt to try to be someone else, or something that you're not.
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