My Summer Tai Chi Workout: Burning 1000+ calories with Tai Chi

Best wishes for a relaxing, safe, enjoyable long summer weekend.

With my Exercise Physiologist's hat on, I encourage you all to include some physical activity (PA) in your weekend. The health benefits of regular PA are well established. Regular PA reduces risks of many chronic diseases. Regular PA increases strength, endurance, and flexibility, all of which help our bodies maintain function as we age. Regular PA improves mood and quality of life.

Our bodies evolved to move, and all our systems function better when we get moving.

For those of you who are Tai Chi fans, what better way to get moving that some summertime Tai Chi!

As a little motivation, I'll share today's Tai Chi workout.

Today's Tai Chi Workout: The Plan

Workout objectives

For today's workout, I set out two objectives.

Objective #1: Skill Training. I wanted to work on some moves from the Wu Style Long Form (Master BK Frantzis version) that I find especially challenging.

One of the moves is called "Repulse Monkey." A Wu Style Repulse Monkey involves loading up the back leg, then slowly lifting, rotating, then stepping back with the unweighted leg. All while ascribing asymmetric, out-of-place circles with the arms and hands. Lots to coordinate.

Plus, because of the amount of time on one leg, along with the hip rotations, this move is especially challenge for balance, and helps put leg and hip strength and flexibility.

The other series of moves I wanted to train comes out of the Kick Sequence. It includes three kicks, with the option of a one-legged spin before the third kick. Again, lots of work on balance and leg and hip strength and flexibility.

 

I wanted to drill these two sets of what for me are especially challenging moves, aiming to improve my skill in performing them.

Objective #2: Aerobic Exercise. I wanted to explore how a Tai Chi workout could elevate my heart rate and burn calories. So I strapped on my Polar F7 heart monitor to collect workout data.

Workout plan

I often plan my workouts and practice sessions. I like the structure, and I love ticking off the repetitions in my log.

Here was my plan for today:

• 1 time through the Wu Long Form (~20 min)
• Repulse Monkey - 100 repetitions, 60 of those on my left (less stable) leg
• Kick Sequence - Single Whip through Spinning Heel Kick - 40 repetitions

With that, I headed out on the deck and began the workout.

The Workout Plan

Repulse Monkey x 101

I find by taking a single move like Repulse Monkey and doing lots of repetitions, I'm better able to troubleshoot points of instability and disconnection and make adjustments.

The high volume of reps also gave me more opportunity to incorporate internal practices or "neigong" into the movements. Neigong includes precise postural alignments, rooting, lengthening, twisting, and others specific procedures you do inside the body that helps gives Tai Chi it's smoothness, connection, and power.

Plus, 100 Repluse Monkeys are definitely exercise! Heart rate and respiration rate steadily increased throughout the reps.

Repulse Monkey #101 Whew!

Kick Sequence Practice

Next I turned to the Kick Sequence practice.

The first moves of Wu Long Form Section 2b, the Kick Sequence, involve three kicks. As an option before the 3rd kick, you can spin, roughly 180°.

I've engaged in lots of athletic endeavors over my life. But I never intentionally spun on 1 leg until I got into the Wu Long Form.

I find it very challenging. But when I land one, it feels wonderful.

For me, it takes lots of repetition to identify and attempt to correct the many sources of instability in my spins. I made a little progress today during 40 reps.

Plus, all that time on one leg increases the intensity of the workout. Heart rate and respiration rate continued to increase.

Here's #41—

Exercise Data

The volume of repetitions of moves involving balancing on one leg really increased the intensity of the workout.

Here's what my heart monitor reported:

Duration: 90 minutes
Calories burned: 1091
Max Heart Rate: 151 bpm
Ave Heart Rate: 124 bpm

For me, this reflects an excellent moderate aerobic workout. Very similar to a 90 minute bike ride.

But unlike a bike ride, today's Tai Chi workout really drilled one-legged balance, posture, and worked hip and leg strength and flexibility in unique ways.

Plus, I could do it all on a shady deck. 🙂

Workout Complete!

Practice Tips

My Tai Chi workout was "custom designed" by and for me, a person that does a lot of Tai Chi. But it provides a structure a Tai Chi practitioner at any level can follow.

For a beginner, I recommend you keep your practice sessions short. 10 - 20 minutes/day is ideal.

For example, you could repeat the moves you feel comfortable doing, 10 - 20 times. Then you might spend some time focusing on a move that is new or that you find extra challenging. 10 or 20 reps of that move. That's a great way to stabilize new material. The 10 - 20 minutes will be over before you know it.

For more advanced practitioners, you have more material, more experience, and likely have built up leg and hip strength and endurance. So you can extend your practice sessions.

And for those of you working on the Wu Style Long Form, are your Repulse Monkeys a little wobbly?

If yes, I empathize. And I recommend allocating some practice time to focusing on that move. The repetition will bring increased stability.

Sounds like a lesson plan for next week's Tai Chi 4 class!

Looking forward to seeing you then!

Sincerely,