Why Tai Chi Improves Your Balance?

We have received many reports from our participants - 85% aged 70 and over - saying how their balance has improved after joining one of our classes.

For some time now Helen and I have speculated that the eight core movements of the Tai Chi of Arthritis/Falls Prevention (TCA/FP) programme target some particular muscle groups seen as important in maintaining our balance, especially as we get older.


The eight core movements from Tai Chi for Arthritis/Falls Prevention - Part 1.

Research has shown the TCA/FP programme developed by Australian GP Dr. Paul Lam has proven beneficial in falls prevention as well as promoting improvement in general health and wellbeing:

“The Sydney Central Area Health Promotion study is community based and the world’s largest fall prevention study with 700 subjects. After 16 weeks of Tai Chi (80% doing Tai Chi for Arthritis), the incident of multiple falls was reduced by an incredible 70%.”

Alexander Voukelatos et all, Journal American Geriatrics Society, AUGUST 2007–VOL. 55, NO. 8, A Randomized, Controlled Trial of tai chi for the Prevention of Falls: The Central Sydney tai chi Trial. (NB: 80% of subjects were taught Tai Chi for Arthritis).

We think the benefits of the TCA/FP programme stems from the emphasis on the weight bearing movement from side to side found in the eight core movements. From an anatomical and movement science point of view we describe this side to side movement as happening medio-laterally and in the frontal plane.

Exercise physiologist and exercise scientist, Sean Wilson, in a recent article at his blog Fit Grey Strong has speculated, like us, that the muscles on the outside of the hip (the abductors) and inside leg (adductors) play a significant role in maintaining our balance as we get older. He references some very interesting research into the important role these muscle groups play in maintaining our balance. See below for the references mentioned.

The research suggests that exercise programmes aimed at improving balance and preventing falls could benefit from more emphasis on movements that strengthen these particular muscle groups.

The sequences found within the eight core movements called, Single Whip (to the right and left) and Wave Hands (to the right and left) target these muscles. Both sequences emphasize controlled transfer of weight from side to side, from one leg to the other and back again.

Many of our participants say they can feel how hard their hips muscles work when we practise these movements in our classes.

We aim to support all the programmes we teach with evidence from research, especially in relation to balance and strength in older adults. It seems we may now know a little more about why the TCA/FP programme has performed so well in falls prevention.

If you enjoyed this blog you may like our previous blog post on Keeping strong. As we get older we begin to lose muscle mass, strength and power. Staying strong can help us enjoy a high quality of life and have a positive impact on preventing falls as we get older.

Please do share this blog post with family, friends and colleagues who you think might like to read it.

Research referenced by Sean Wilson at Fit Grey Strong with three bonus papers on Tai Chi and its influence on our gait - 2. 8. & 9.

1.

Daun F, Kibele A. Different strength declines in leg primary movers versus stabilizers across age—Implications for the risk of falls in older adults? PLoS One [Internet]. 2019 Mar 7 [cited 2019 Aug 29];14(3). Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6405087/

2.

Tseng S-C, Liu W, Finley M, McQuade K. Muscle activation profiles about the knee during Tai-Chi stepping movement compared to the normal gait step. Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology [Internet]. 2007 Jun 1 [cited 2019 Aug 23];17(3):372–80. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1050641106000083

3.

Inacio M, Creath R, Rogers MW. Low-dose hip abductor-adductor power training improves neuromechanical weight-transfer control during lateral balance recovery in older adults. Clinical Biomechanics [Internet]. 2018 Dec 1 [cited 2019 Aug 19];60:127–33. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0268003318305199

4.

Inacio M, Creath R, Rogers MW. Effects of aging on hip abductor-adductor neuromuscular and mechanical performance during the weight transfer phase of lateral protective stepping. J Biomech. 2019 03;82:244–50.

5.

Porto JM, Freire Júnior RC, Bocarde L, Fernandes JA, Marques NR, Rodrigues NC, et al. Contribution of hip abductor-adductor muscles on static and dynamic balance of community-dwelling older adults. Aging Clin Exp Res. 2019 May;31(5):621–7.

6.

Takizawa M, Suzuki Y, Kobayashi Y. Adductor magnus is just as much an antigravity muscle around hip joint as gluteus maximus. Annals of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine [Internet]. 2018 Jul 1 [cited 2019 Aug 19];61:e536–7. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1877065718313241

7.

Mille M-L, Johnson-Hilliard M, Martinez KM, Zhang Y, Edwards BJ, Rogers MW. One step, two steps, three steps more ... Directional vulnerability to falls in community-dwelling older people. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2013 Dec;68(12):1540–8.

8.

Zhu Q, Huang L, Wu X, Wang L, Zhang Y, Fang M, et al. Effects of Tai Ji Quan training on gait kinematics in older Chinese women with knee osteoarthritis: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Sport and Health Science [Internet]. 2016 Sep 1 [cited 2019 Jul 7];5(3):297–303. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2095254616000272

9.

Hong Y, Li JX. Biomechanics of Tai Chi: A review. Sports Biomechanics [Internet]. 2007 Sep 1 [cited 2019 Jul 7];6(3):453–64. Available from: https://doi.org/10.1080/14763140701491674

Tai Chi for Health - Stay Strong, Improve Your Balance

Regular practice of any of the Tai Chi for Health programmes helps people to build and maintain body strength. The slow movements found in Tai Chi for Health offer a low impact way of building muscle tone without putting the joints or muscles under too much repetitive strain.

And why is it so important to maintain all round body strength? Well as we age and or experience long term illness, or if you find yourself in recovery from a significant surgical procedure you'll know just how quickly we can lose muscle strength. You'll remember just how long it can take to get full strength back to the level you enjoyed before.

This article in the New Scientist magazine suggests just how important maintaining muscle strength can be to our long term health and wellbeing. The Tai Chi for Health programmes you learn in our classes emphasise the progressive building of strength for this very reason.

Elderly Lady Enjoys Her Tai Chi Practice

 Image by Tom Thai - licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.

The UK's four Chief Medical Officers recognise the important role Tai Chi has to play in building strength and maintaining balance. It is your relative muscle strength that affects how well you can maintain your balance. One of the prime reasons for people participating in our classes is to improve their balance. We see more and more people with a recommendation from their GP or physiotherapist for this very reason.

Why should you think about balance as important to your overall health and quality of life? In the UK 30% of people aged 65 and over will experience a fall at least once a year. For people aged 80 and over it rises to over 50 per cent (NICE, 2013). Falls become the number one reason older people get taken to the emergency department in hospitals across the country. Most falls don’t cause serious injury but they can leave you distressed and begin to lose confidence. NHS Choices recommends regular practice of Tai Chi in its guidance on falls prevention.

Make sure you choose a reputable Tai Chi for Health Instructor rather than a tai chi teacher who expects you to learn the martial arts or expects you to perform strenuous movements by yourself or with a partner. Recommendations from the Tai Chi for Health Institute on what to look for when choosing an instructor include:

“All Board certified instructors have attended the workshop, completed prior preparation and fullfilled requirements to be a safe and effective teacher of the respective program, and registered with The Tai Chi for Health Institute. Our training is comprehensive and specific for our programs. All instructors are required to be updated every two years to maintain the certification.”

If you would like to find out more or think a family member or friend might like to read this post please do share.

If you have any questions please don't hesitate to get in touch. We'd love to see you in one of our classes covering Baildon, Bingley, Keighley, Saltaire, Shipley and Skipton.

All the best, Philip and Helen.