5 Benefits of Tai Chi Chuan to Age You Gracefully

While Tai Chi Chuan is known to be a gentle art, you don’t have to wait until mid-life to enjoy all of the tremendous benefits that come with the practice of this internal martial arts style.

A Little History…

Tai Chi Chuan translates as the Grand Ultimate Fist. With roots from China stemming back to the 12^th century Buddhist monasteries and other sects, it is prominently known from the 5 styles (families) that are practiced worldwide.

Those styles are Chen, Yang, Hou, Wu and Sun.

There are many advantages in taking up this art sooner than later. Why wait until you get older? You can have the experience with a preventative intent. Here are 5 benefits of Tai Chi Chuan to age you gracefully.

 

1. Improves Balance – One of the most important elements of the body (and life) is balance. Tai Chi helps to maintain your proprioception (your ability to sense the position of your body in space), which tends to decline with age. With this improvement, your recovery from a trip or stumble is more efficient.

Imagine what it will feel like to have the balance of a 25 year old when you’re 50 because of diligent Tai Chi practice. To be able to go up 6 flights of stairs with very little labor because your tendons and ligaments are in great condition.

 

2. Muscle Strength – One common misconception about Tai Chi Chuan is its lack of benefit for muscle stimulation. This could not be further from the truth. With the slow movements involved in the forms, along with substantial and insubstantial stances, Tai Chi Chuan has been shown to improve common daily tasks such as standing up, sitting down, fast paced walking and minimum heavy lifting.

Muscle strength is very important in the aging process. We can’t deny that our strength changes as we age, but with consistent training, you will see the benefit.

 

3. Reduces Stress – Stress is one of main reasons why we don’t age gracefully. With so many issues to deal with in modern society, there has to be an outlet that will enable you to deal with it all. Tai Chi is also considered a form of meditation. The mind body connection is undeniable when it comes to living in harmony.

The mental control and concentration that you get from the meditative benefits will be like a breath of fresh air in those most stressful of times. Think of how wonderful it is to have an inner peace, even after the most exhausting board meeting or road trip with the family.

 

4. It’s Non-institutional – What I mean by non institutional is there’s no gym membership or large designated space that is required for this art. In the Yang style, for example, the first form you learn is a short form of 24 postures. This is better known as a circle form because it’s literally done in a circle.

Tai Chi Chuan can be done in place. The postures can be turned into singular drills which helps you understand the postures better as they relate to the health benefit and martial application. Once you learn your postures and forms, you can practice anywhere, anytime.

 

5. Builds Confidence – Confidence is the summation of the benefits listed above which will help you age gracefully. Knowing you will be able to go into middle age and your “golden years” with mobility, conditioning, strength, inner peace and balance makes this grand ultimate art worth experiencing.

It doesn’t matter which of the 5 styles you choose to embark on, the benefits of Tai Chi Chuan will help you age gracefully, giving you every bit of enjoyment out of your physical activities.

About The Author

Rahim is a health and wellness enthusiast who uses a good diet, body weight training and martial arts to maintain a healthy lifestyle. It’s his opinion that nothing in life means anything without mental and physical health. The better your mind and body are, the more you can enjoy full health.