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Who taught you how to use your body?
This is a reasonable question, and most people could not give a
decent answer.
Did anyone teach you:
Healthy skeletal alignment?
Optimal body use?
How your muscles work?
Timing?
How and why to relax your body?
Balance?
Proprioception? (relative position of body parts/awareness of how much strength is being applied)
Rhythm?
Mind/body unity?
Leverage?
Kinaesthetic awareness? (knowing where your limbs are positioned without needing to look)
Footwork?
Biofeedback?
Ambidextrous use of the limbs?
Gait? (manner of walking)
Ergonomic body use?
These skills are known as 'motor learning'.
Your parents probably did
not teach this to you.
School did not teach it either.
A person who is considered
to be fit in the West may be able to do over 100 push-ups, run a marathon,
possess a beautiful, muscular physique – and yet not be internally healthy.
He or she may have a bad back, damaged joints, liver problems, unbalanced
emotions, an inability to handle stress and sexual weakness or dysfunction.
(Bruce Frantzis)
Motor learning
Motor learning is about the process of using the body, rather than simply
exercising the body.
Agility,
mobility, relaxed
spontaneous movement, balance,
structure, alignment, biomechanics, efficiency,
ambidextrous body use, joint
health, coordination,
skill,
emotional wellbeing or
psychological flexibility.
Tai chi combines exercise with motor learning.
Reform
Physical Education at school should actually educate people on physical
matters:
•
How to use your body in a healthy manner
•
Sport is relegated to
an after school club for those who are 'sporty'
•
Kids who have postural/gait/movement issues should be given
specialist rehabilitation in order to restore healthy body use
•
Personal hygiene and cleanliness should be taught
•
Ergonomics - sitting, lifting, good usage
•
Anatomical knowledge; leverage, balance, strength, stance,
poise etc
•
How to avoid strain, discomfort, injury
•
Everyday body use
Bad habits
Many health problems are caused by the way
in which we stand, walk, sit and use our bodies during
everyday activities.
Headache,
fatigue, stiff neck, bad knees, back problems are usually
caused by our own bad habits.
Incorrect muscle use, imbalance, poor physical awareness, work and many
forms of exercise only serve to perpetuate poor fitness and muscle
tension.
Solution
The solution is quite simple.
We need to discover how to use our bodies in a healthy, natural, balanced and
comfortable manner.
Tai chi is intended to improve health and
wellbeing through frequent, regular
practice using low effort.
From car seats to constrictive clothing, from chairs to shoes that distort posture, many features of modern life curtail our natural movement patterns.
(Liz
Koch)
Tai chi
Tai chi is concerned with re-training the body for optimal functioning.
To use the body skilfully, you must dynamically balance muscles within the body
and use the bone structure in a healthy way.
We teach people to become incredibly aware of their own bodies.
Bones
Correct alignment of the body will enable you to use your body with
less effort and greater strength.
Counteracting the force of gravity is a key consideration.
The vertebrae and joints must be free to move in a fluid, smooth manner.
Movement
Physical tension and bad muscular habits impede the ability to move
spontaneously and freely.
Tension is the enemy of movement.
The more tense you are, the less you can move.
Muscles
Muscles serve two main functions: they help to hold the skeleton
upright and they move the bones.
To move bones, one muscle releases (lengthens) and the other contracts
(shortens) - this is healthy and normal.
The ideal measure of muscle tone is that you employ only as much
contraction or release as is required to accomplish the task.
This is usually far less than you think...
Tensing-up
People fail to release a contracted muscle after it has moved the
bone, or they over-use one muscle group at the expense of another.
'Tensing-up' is the habitual over-contraction of a muscle, such that it
impedes joint movement and distorts the skeleton.
This causes imbalance, weakness and postural tension.
Mind/body unity
Modern life involves a lot of boring activities. People are
accustomed to daydreaming or 'spacing out'.
Tai chi necessitates complete attention. It helps the mind to become calm and
centred.
Nervous system
The nervous system is responsible for gauging how much strength needs to
be applied.
As you exert pressure upon an object, your body experiences resistance and there
is biofeedback which tells you how much strength is necessary.
Faulty
Over time, the nervous system of most adults has become faulty, and it
provides the
brain with inaccurate information.
Instead of applying only the necessary amount of strength, it is normal and
comfortable to use an incredible excess.
This fatigues the muscles, blunts the nervous system and makes you clumsy.
Tai chi represents optimal body movement, honed over centuries.
(Jessica Rose, PhD)
The aim of
tai chi is to
teach and encourage optimal body use.
A body that is capable of spontaneous movement in any direction;
comfortably, safely, with the necessary support and stability.
By sitting, standing and moving in a natural, healthy way you will feel
energised, relaxed, comfortable and agile.
We encourage students to be fresh and open,
supple and curious...
Little & often
Tai chi advocates moderation; not taxing or
tiring the body.
Rather than train for a lengthy period of time, aim to
practice little & often.
20-30 minute increments, with rest breaks in-between is ideal.
Instead of
pushing your body hard and putting it under duress,
just do a little exercise.
Resting will keep your
concentration sharp and offset fatigue.
Page created 2 March 1995
Last updated
16 June 2023