Being physically active is important for senior independence and overall health, but sometimes, older adults have a difficult time finding physical activities that they enjoy or that are gentle enough for the joints. If you feel like trying something new, you might want to consider the traditional Chinese martial art form called Tai Chi.
What is Tai Chi?
Tai Chi is an ancient form of meditative martial arts from China that consists of slow, gentle and graceful movements and deep breathing. The principles of Tai Chi come from Taoism, an ancient Chinese branch of philosophy that emphasizes the yin and the yang – living in harmony with nature and the natural balance of everything in the world. While practicing Tai Chi, instructors ask students to focus on the area below their navels, where your energy, or qi, is centered. The great thing about Tai Chi is that its poses can be adapted depending on your range of motion.
Why might you want to try Tai Chi? Here are some physical and emotional health benefits that you could gain while doing Tai Chi:
For physical health
According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, practicing Tai Chi brings greater flexibility, range of motion and better posture – all things that decline as we age.
Tai Chi has also been shown to help people with fibromyalgia, an often mysterious chronic pain condition. Researchers at Tufts Medical Center found that people with fibromyalgia who practiced Tai Chi for 12 weeks had less pain and fatigue and slept better than others with fibromyalgia. Mary Petersen, a 59 year-old woman with intense chronic pain reported to the New York Times that though she was very skeptical at first, after three months of practicing Tai Chi, about 90 percent of her pain was gone.
Additionally, the University of Maryland Medical Center suggests that Tai Chi is potentially good for people with arthritis, heart disease, diabetes and osteoporosis, among several other conditions. It also stabilizes and strengthens the knees and ankles, which improves balance and can help reduce falls.
For emotional health
The Mayo Clinic reports that Tai Chi is a good way to combat stress, and the University of Maryland Medical Center found that Tai Chi can benefit those with anxiety. Similar to other meditative practices, Tai Chi provides relaxing and anti-depression benefits because you are required to pay close attention to the movements of your body. This focused state serves as a “getaway” from everyday problems and stressful situations, allowing the mind to recharge.
Tai Chi also involves deep breathing, which has been shown to be calming and lower stress levels, which can in turn lower blood pressure.
The Tai Chi Health Institute offers DVDs to do Tai Chi in your home, including a Tai Chi for Arthritis series with adapted poses and movements, and there may be a health center near your home that offers Tai Chi classes.
If you are living with hearing loss, there are various assistive listening devices you can use, like personal sound amplifiers, captioned television or hearing aids so you can enjoy classes in person or at home.
If you want to try a new, calm routine as part of your exercise regime, consider learning Tai Chi. Learning new things is also great for staying healthy!
