Tai chi is a low-intensity, flowing internal martial art that emphasizes slow movements, breathing and mental focus. Its movements require your tendons to engage and stretch, making it beneficial for those with a decreased range of motion or stiff joints. During a complete tai chi sequence, your knees are always bent and your arm positions are constantly changing, working a myriad of muscles and tendons.
Tendons in the Lower Leg
During tai chi movements, the tendons in your lower legs are continuously in use as you shift your weight into and step off of your feet. In the Pay Respect to Buddha movement, you use tendons around your foot and ankle. Your extensor digitorum longus tendons work to pull your toes toward your shin while your Achilles tendon stretches as you shift weight onto your foot with your knee bent. The tibialis posterior tendon runs along your inside ankle and is used to maintain your foot arch, which stretches and contracts when you shift your weight.
Knee Joint Tendons
Your knee is the largest joint in your body and is critical to walking and running. Because you remain in a bent-knee posture for the majority of your tai chi session, the tendons surrounding your knee joint are strengthened and stretched. The quadriceps tendon attaches your quadriceps -- the front thigh muscle -- to you knee cap as well as your patellar tendon. These tendons contract to straighten your leg, and extend when your knee bends. Your back thigh muscles, or hamstrings, power the leg-bending motion. The hamstring tendons contract to pull the lower leg up and stretch when you straighten your leg.
Shoulder and Elbow Tendons
The upper body movements of tai chi move and help strengthen the tendons in your arms, including those in the shoulder and elbow. In the Single Whip movement you rotate your arms in circles and bend and extend your elbows. The rotator cuff rotates the upper arm bone around the shoulder socket, so the Single Whip arm motions rely heavily on these tendons. The bicep tendons help bend your arm at the elbow while your triceps tendons work to straighten the arm.
Tendons of the Wrists and Hands
The Single Whip also engages your wrists, hands and fingers; your wrists rotate, flex and extend while certain fingers extend and flex. The extensor carpi radialis brevis and extensor carpi radialis longus tendons extend and rotate your wrist. Your extensor digitorum tendon group extends the four fingers -- or pulls them upward. During Single Whip, your body puts these tendons to work. To bring your fingers together to form a point, the tendons of your flexor digitorum muscles are needed. You use your palmaris longus to flex your wrist and pull your hand downward.
References
- Tai Chi Society; The Correct Tai Chi Posture; Grandmaster Kellen Chia; December 2008
- Standford University; Tai Chi Movements; Pay Respect to the Buddha
- Northcoast Footcare: Tendonitis
- Knee Pain Info: Knee Anatomy
- Standford University; Tai Chi Movements; Single Whip
- University of Washington: Anatomy of Rotator Cuff
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