by Cynthia W. Quarta

Seemingly simple and deceptively gentle, T’ai Chi delivers a workout that is superior to any exercise program in use today. The slow, easy to learn routines can be practiced by anyone regardless of age or level of ability. The seated version of these exercises can be practiced at home or at work, in an easy chair or a wheelchair, and without the need for expensive equipment or special clothing. As a style of martial arts that emphasizes internal power, T’ai Chi provides a life-long exercise system that delivers improved health and greater strength the longer you practice it.

Most Western exercise systems depend upon the number of repetitions and the rate of speed of each exercise for their efficacy. As Dr. Robert Chuckrow describes in The T’ai Chi Book, performing these exercises is like “trying to drive with the brakes on.” We spend much of our time contracting muscles and pitting one muscle group against another. The exercises become exhausting rather than energizing, painful and injurious rather than pleasant and healing.

Like the Western exercise systems, external fighting forms, such as karate, are recognizable by their stress on physical power. Practitioners of an external martial arts system strive to develop larger muscles and to build up calluses on their knuckles and feet.

Training in internal martial arts, such as T’ai Chi, on the other hand, concentrates on breathing exercises based on qigong and the development of ch’i (internal power) through the practice of directing the mind to command each movement.

While practitioners of external arts eventually become weaker as they age or suffer injuries, internal martial artists continue to be formidable because they maintain their ch’i or internal power - both mental and spiritual- in spite of injuries, disabilities, or the reduction of flexibility and strength that accompanies the aging process.

There really is nothing too surprising about successful results from the practice of T’ai Chi, for it is truly a simple, non-stressful, and most importantly, holistic exercise system. All of the movements are based on the belief that the human body contains a system of pathways along which energy travels as it nourishes and heals muscles, bones, and organs and are based on a natural but synchronized pattern of breathing.

T’ai Chi is a relaxed process, the movements slow and meditative while the mind remains alert to the relationship between the body and its surroundings. The exercises that comprise any T’ai Chi form are said to cause the release of the body’s natural energy to and through the body’s organs and systems while bones, muscles, and joints are being exercised and strengthened.

A number of studies show that many T’ai Chi practitioners have developed a marked improvement in balance, blood-pressure levels, flexibility, strength, peak oxygen intake, and body-fat percentages. Though all of the studies to date have involved the use of standing T’ai Chi exercises, I believe that a program of seated T’ai Chi, such as described in my book, T’ai Chi in a Chair, is just as beneficial.

I developed this system of seated T’ai Chi exercises while employed as the program supervisor at a local retirement community. My challenge was to find exercises that accommodated all of the participants – those in wheelchairs, amputees, stroke victims, and others of varying abilities. Most importantly, this new exercise program had to be designed in such a way that strengthening, flexibility, improved circulation, and so on, were not lost as a result of the necessary modifications. T’ai Chi proved to be the ideal solution. It lends itself to any age, level of fitness, or type of disability, and can lead to a lifetime of improved health and increased strength.

The exercises shown below and all those described in T’ai Chi in a Chair (published by Fair Winds Press, 2001) comprise a comprehensive wellness program. They are designed in such a way that they can be modified to meet specific needs. For example, many of the upper body exercises involve reaching above the head but they are equally effective if the arms are lowered to chest or shoulder height. In addition, these exercises can be practiced anywhere - at home or at the office, indoors or out - all you need is a comfortable chair and loose clothing.
Find a quiet space, put on some soothing music, if you wish, and you’re ready to go.