Muscle | ||
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Sarcopenia (muscle loss with aging)
Adults over the
age
of 50 lose approximately
1% of muscle mass each
year as a natural consequence of aging.
The only way to offset this is to engage in a strength building regime that can
be sustained throughout your natural life.
Qigong and tai chi qualify as ideal methods for
accomplishing this goal.
However, daily practice is a must.
Dynamic tension
Muscles turn energy into motion, enabling
us to speak, move and perform tai chi.
To move bones, one muscle releases (lengthens) and the other contracts
(shortens) - this is healthy and normal.
The problem arises for people when they fail to release the contracted
muscle after it has moved the bone, or when they over-use one muscle group
at the expense of another; causing imbalance and
weakness.
'Tensing-up' is the habitual over-contraction of a muscle, such that it
impedes joint movement.
Flaccidity is almost as bad; failing to support the bones properly.
Tone
Our approach to tai chi uses opposing muscle
groups to balance and tone the body.
The ideal measure of tone is that you employ only as much contraction or
release as is required to accomplish the required task.
This is usually far less than you think.
Side-effect
One side-effect of learning our style of
tai chi is that it will change your muscles considerably.
Some muscles will grow larger and others will transform through
relaxation.
Tai chi should make your body substantially stronger.
Your arm muscles will not develop unduly unless you do a lot of stick work
or standing qigong every day.
However, your legs, back, shoulders and mid-section will substantially
increase in size. Casual practice will not produce this.
Muscle memory
One major advantage of consistent on-going home practice is the cultivation
of muscle memory. Rather than having to recall every movement, the
exponent's body knows where to go and what to do.
This is the first step in moving in a tai chi way... What's the catch?
To accomplish this, frequent, mindful practice is
needed. There's no other way to attain this skill.
The more often your body performs tai chi movements, the more likely it is
to remember them automatically.
Autopilot
High repetition of qigong and tai chi movements results in muscle memory.
The muscles are familiar with how and where to move and the brain directs
the action.
It will feel as though they moved by themselves. This is essentially no
different to what happens when you drive a bicycle or a car.
However, with tai chi you are learning long, complex sequences of
movements/combat drills/applications, so the challenge is greater and more
diverse. The advantage of muscle memory is habit.
You do not have to think as much. You can become immersed in the event
itself.
Constructive rest
Oddly, the most passive exercise of all may just have the biggest effect on
your body. Most people have a very constricted chest, hunched or lifted
shoulders and an over-developed upper-back.
When you lie down daily, your chest begins to open in the middle as it
learns to relax. This is not muscle growth, but
relaxation. Supple muscles are longer and healthier in tone.
As your chest opens-up you will breathe better
and feel more upright, your chest will relax and your shoulders drop
naturally. The bunched tension at the top of your spine will diminish.
There is a great danger in
pushing forward relentlessly.
If energy is used to excess, exhaustion follows.
This is not the Way.
Whatever goes against the Way ceases to live.
(Lam Kam Chuen)
Psoas exercises & connection
A healthy psoas muscle will increase the
benefit of all other movement by providing a stable base from which your
body can operate.
Taking the time to practice the simple exercises will amplify the effect of
your routine. The psoas exercises will help your body to tie the extremities
into the centre.
When lifting your arms during form, it will feel as if the movement can be
felt right down to the hip joint. This may feel mildly challenging at first.
It tones the front of the torso from the abdomen to the chest.
Standing qigong
Standing qigong will strengthen your back, legs and torso. Although the
exercise is relatively passive in nature, it requires tremendous strength to
hold the arms in place for 15-40 minutes without fatigue.
Breathing naturally and easily oxygenates the blood and this will reduce
fatigue in the muscles.
Harder qigong
The various postures of full circle qigong challenge your body to maintain
the position without tensing-up.
As you become stronger, your body relies more upon the elastic tissues to
assist the muscles: tendons, ligaments and fascia.
By cycling through 6 postures, different muscle groups are challenged to
release their tension and relax whilst working.
Moving qigong
Ba duan jin is tremendous for building-up strength. By imagining an obstacle
to lift or move and getting your body beneath or behind it, you increase
muscle workload without lifting weights.
Slow motion movement is necessary for this. The 15 moving qigong exercises
are good for developing the legs and back; rippling the spine requires a
very good connection throughout the entire body.
Healthy muscles are not simply larger in size, they need to be mobile,
flexible, supportive and supple.
More...
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created 17 April 1996
Last updated
16 June 2023