The Walking Code: Tai Chi and Walking

Chapter 5

Tai Chi and Walking

Tai Chi is an ancient martial art developed in China that has been popularized around the world as a means to achieve better health and body balance. It is now used more for its health benefits than it is used as a martial art. Studies have shown that Tai Chi is the most effective form of exercise to reduce falls in the elderly. It is not uncommon to see Tai Chi practitioners of very advanced age performing fluid movement as if they were much younger. I believe that much of the benefit of Tai Chi comes from teaching practitioners how to properly direct all of their body movements from their core, and in so doing correctly control their weight shifting, maintain vertical posture, and control weight distribution over the correct portions of the feet. This training crosses over naturally from Tai Chi to the movements used in every day life, like walking.

I fell into Tai Chi practice by a very fortuitous accident. My intention was to take up Kung Fu as a means to get more cardiovascular exercise. In a great feet of innate martial arts prowess, I managed to sprain my hand during the introductory lesson. Not wanting to give up my plans on martial arts greatness so quickly, I signed up instead for Tai Chi figuring it would be hard to injure myself in slow motion. I very quickly came to realize that the movement I was attempting to perfect in my tango practice was governed by the same principles of movement I was learning in Tai Chi. The connection from there to normal walking mechanics came very quickly. I set out at that time to consolidate the techniques into one consistent body movement system. The combination of my dance training and Tai Chi training along with my enthusiasm for improving the health of my patients ultimately has lead to the development of the Quantum Movement System. The Walking Code is the branch of the Quantum Movement System that is the subject of this book.

One of the essential principles of Tai Chi is that all movement is governed by the waist. The arms and hands never move of their own accord, nor do the legs. The whole body moves as one unit with the waist at the center, guiding everything. Connection between all movements at all times is the key. When the waist stops moving, the rest of the body should stop moving, and when the waist starts moving, the rest of the body should start moving. This principle can be seen in the swinging of the arms with walking, guided by the repeating oscillations of the abdominal core muscles. The arms should not move on their own when walking, nor should walking exist without the motion of the arms because it is all part of one connected movement. When movements are incorrect, the fault likely resides in the core.

Relaxing the Waist and Hips

One of the 13 Essential Principles of Tai Chi theory is that the waist and the hips should remain relaxed at all times. This is necessary because the movements of the waist and hips, which comprise the core, are the means by which we steer the body. A tense waist would be akin to losing the power steering on your car. This idea runs contrary to what is often espoused by physical fitness trainers of various types who constantly implore people to tighten their abdominal muscles when exercising or even just in the process of maintaining proper posture. This may stem from the idea that the tighter and more often you contract your abdominal muscles, the faster you will get those rock hard abs that everyone wants. But that is not the path to achieving fluid movement, which requires relaxation. Although to be clear, relaxation in this context does not mean the muscles are not being used. It only means that they are being used to move the body, not to create nonproductive tension.

 
Intention

 
In Tai Chi, movement is accomplished using intention, not tension. Intention is the mind's direction of body movement without the use of force or tension. The mind "intends" to move the body and the body moves. Take for example the flexion of the arm, a very simple action. If you decide to flex your arm, your mind sends a signal to the biceps muscle which then shortens in order to flex the elbow joint. Assuming you are not holding a weight in your hand, this does not require a significant amount of force, only enough to overcome the minimal resistance of gravity. This is different than "flexing" your biceps as when trying to make a muscle to show off its size. When you make a muscle with your biceps, what you are actually doing is both contracting your biceps and the opposing triceps against one another. This increases tension in both muscles, causing them to bulge but not to move. This is nonfunctional contraction of the muscle, unless the function is trying to impress someone with the size of your bulging muscles. Tai Chi teaches the need to avoid this type of wasted tension at all times, rather focusing on the relaxed and functional movement of the muscles with the minimal amount of opposition and tension.

Both Tai Chi and walking require a more complex intention than that required to flex the arm. That is because there are many more muscles involved. However, intention has limits. Our minds cannot actively and independently coordinate all of the various muscles required to perform such complex tasks as Tai Chi or even seemingly basic tasks such as walking. That is why we are designed to be controlled by the core. The mind has conscious control of the core, and our postural reflexes help to coordinate the remaining muscle actions at such a speed that they occur seemingly simultaneously with the core movements. This can occur only when the mind is clear in its intention and when the body is relaxed and receptive. Tai Chi practitioners would refer to this as allowing the Chi to circulate through the body. Imagine, when you walk, you do not think of each muscle in your foot and ankle and what role they are to play in taking each step. That would be impossible. The focus, conscious or unconscious, is on the core.

Controlling the Core

The practice of Tai Chi involves repetitious and slow motion execution of the various movements in the Tai Chi forms. Over time, this allows the mind to develop the proper intention to control the core and reflexively the other more peripheral movements in the body required to perform the form properly. The correct practice of Tai Chi must be guided by a qualified instructor. That is because students without the needed expertise cannot recognize the flaws in their own form practice without the instructor's guidance. With the proper guidance, students are eventually able to internalize the correct way of practicing. Practicing Tai Chi incorrectly is no better than not practicing it at all. Walking requires the same principles used in the practice of Tai Chi, however there are generally no instructors and no instructional manual. People are consigned to the results of their own innate abilities, flawed as they may be.

The practice of Tai Chi for health is an indirect means of teaching the mind to control the core which can then improve every day function of the body. Unfortunately, for his to be successful, it takes years of continuous practice and really must be adopted as a lifestyle, not unlike people who are regular dancers or yoga practitioners. This is not the desire of the majority of the people who could benefit from improving their core movement technique. The method I am outlining here is a more direct means of achieving the benefits of years of Tai Chi practice, applying the theory directly to the movements that we are called upon to perform day in and day out.