The T'ai Chi Ch'uan exercize doesn't include almost any resistance and uses minimal weight. This has proven its positive effect for the health of bones, i.e. it slows down the loss of osseous tissue and a lower number of bone fractures among women in postmenopause. People who train T'ai Chi Ch'uan are happier, more productive, have a sharper concentration and other mental functions.
Their coordination and the harmony of their movements are in line, they have more successful interpersonal relations and are more adaptive to stressful changes. Apart from physical advantages of T'ai Chi, it shows a number of positive effects to the mental health because it eases mental states such as anxiety, depression, too much stress and low self-esteem.
You do not need to be strong or fast in order to perform the exercizes. This is why this activity is available to everyone, the old and the young, if you are a woman, a man, healthy or ill. By performing easy and relaxing movements, you move the muscles, joints and tendons in a natural way, as well as your internal organs and the cardiovascular system.
The T'ai Chi Ch'uan skill has a positive effect on bones and joints, on the functions and the flexibility of tendons and muscles, it helps the blood and the nutrients to travel to all parts of the relaxed body, it regulates the functions of the nervous system, relieves stress, brings the inner organs back into balance, strengthening the metabolism and the immune system. T'ai Chi Ch'uan can be trained at any time of the day and can be performed anywhere, individually or in a group. The result of correct and everyday training is a general relaxation of the mind and the body.
T'ai Chi Ch'uan helps regulate blood sugar levels, strengthens the heart muscle, balances the muscle tone, improves alertness and concentration, lowers stress and stabilizes emotions, helps coordinate movement, increases balance control, corrects the posture and helps regulate breathing. It is proven that T'ai Chi Ch'uan helps people who suffer or are recovering from a stroke, osteoporosis, high blood pressure, multiple sclerosis (MS), heart attack or heart failure, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and fibromyalgia.
T'ai Chi can be of good use to older people as well as younger population, amateur or professional sportsmen because it leads to an improvement of the general physical and pshychological state. Although you won't be sweating too much, that doesn't mean that you won't be burning any calories.
Sweating is not a necessary indicator of the body's straining during workout because sweating is the body's way of cooling itself. It is possible to burn a lot of calories without sweating too much.
Because of the human need to make a balance between the mind and the body, we might say that, everything starts and finishes with by training a T'ai Chi - "supreme finite”.
Let's conclude by saying that if the T'ai Chi Ch'uan exercize is not performed correctly, i.e. some movements are not done well, the exercize will be less effective for the body, but there won't be any negative side effects.
This is the basic difference - or advantage in relation to all other physical activities.
All the Best from Croatia
David“Sensei“ Stainko
Mag. of kinesiology
Master 8th Dan - mixed martial scientist