Tai Chi or other types of gentle exercise

[HorseGuy]

At the weekends I get plenty of exercise. Lots of walking, pushing heavy wheelbarrows uphills, moving heavy 75Ah leisure batteries around for electric fences, bashing in wooden fence posts, sawing branches off hedges, trimming foliage and nettles by hand using shears, raking up horse poo from the fields and throwing it into hedges etc. It all feels like good healthy natural kind of exercise.

However during the week from Monday to Friday I have little opportunity to do much other exercise. I do a few strength style exercises like sit-ups and pull-ups in the middle of the week but as I age my body is starting to tell me that this kind of intense exercise is not ideal for my joints and that I would be better off doing some other kind of gentler mid-week exercise routine going forward. My girlfriend thinks that just going for a walk would be good and she is probably right. I was considering trying Tai Chi during the week as that is supposed to be good for the joints and general all round health and fitness.

Has anyone here tried Tai Chi or do you do it regularly?

Alternatively what are your thoughts or suggestions for a more gentle mid-week exercise routine which is a little less intense than doing pull-ups and sit-ups?

 

[Chris]

At the weekends I get plenty of exercise. Lots of walking, pushing heavy wheelbarrows uphills, moving heavy 75Ah leisure batteries around for electric fences, bashing in wooden fence posts, sawing branches off hedges, trimming foliage and nettles by hand using shears, raking up horse poo from the fields and throwing it into hedges etc. It all feels like good healthy natural kind of exercise.

However during the week from Monday to Friday I have little opportunity to do much other exercise. I do a few strength style exercises like sit-ups and pull-ups in the middle of the week but as I age my body is starting to tell me that this kind of intense exercise is not ideal for my joints and that I would be better off doing some other kind of gentler mid-week exercise routine going forward. My girlfriend thinks that just going for a walk would be good and she is probably right. I was considering trying Tai Chi during the week as that is supposed to be good for the joints and general all round health and fitness.

Has anyone here tried Tai Chi or do you do it regularly?

Alternatively what are your thoughts or suggestions for a more gentle mid-week exercise routine which is a little less intense than doing pull-ups and sit-ups?

I think more likely it’s that those exercises are fine, but you need to balance them with other forms of mobility and strength routines. If you’re under the age of 50 or 60 (or potentially even older) without other health issues, you should be able to do those things without it hurting your body. If it is hurting your body, that’s probably because other muscle groups and mobility/stretching are being neglected - think of the whole muscular skeletal system as full self-sustaining ecosystem, just focusing on a few areas without looking after all of it is going to stress those few areas without the support they need.

That said, adding something like yoga or tai chi (or even PG Tips) into the mix will help with mobility and strength. The key is variety, though.

I think @TeeDee probably has plenty of useful advice on this.

 

[Pattree]

There is research (I’ll try and find a reference - almost certainly some in New Scientist) that suggests that imagining strenuous exercise for a period of time and in a regular basis can show some of the benefits of doing the actual exercise. These benefits, if I remember aright, included observable improvements in muscle tone.

I remember wondering is there could be a market for a “gymnasium” full of couches, seats and comfortable static bike saddles each in front of a screen showing point of view activities.
I haven’t seen any research that followed this up.

New Scientist is exactly what it says on the cover: a publication of recent investigation. By no means is it certain that the early research is born out.

 

[Pattree]

There is research (I’ll try and find a reference - almost certainly some in New Scientist) that suggests that imagining strenuous exercise for a period of time and in a regular can show some of the benefits of doing the actual exercise. These benefits, if I remember aright, included observable improvements in muscle tone.

I remember wondering is there could be a market for a “gymnasium” full of couches, seats and comfortable static bike saddles each in front of a screen showing point of view activities.
I haven’t seen any research that followed this up.

New Scientist is exactly what it says on the cover: a publication of recent investigation. By no means is it certain that the early research is born out.

 

[Broch]

I gave my fitness coach (Chat GPT) my exact situation - age, weight, past sports and fitness, current activities (including strenuous work in the wood etc.), and asked it to come up with a weekly exercise and stretching plan to maintain/improve posture, strength, and flexibility. The result was very good; a graded plan of easy to achieve exercises that I can do at home.

I would like to try Tai Chi myself but I know that I would quickly run out of enthusiasm travelling 25 miles each way to a suitable instructor. I still go through some of my Taekwondo routines but I haven't attended a dojo for 30 years (for the same reason).

 

[HorseGuy]

I should have also mentioned earlier that I have and old tricep tendon injury from many years ago which took several years to heal. It has fully healed now I am fully able to move and do things again but when I do pushups or pull-ups it does irritate the old injoury it slightly and it feels 'wrong'. I do worry that continuing might cause another tendon injury again in the future if I'm not careful.

Oddly though when I do more natural exercises at the field, some of which are every bit as intense and strenuous and doing push-ups or pull-ups that doesn't effect the old injury it at all.

 

[slaine_23]

There is research (I’ll try and find a reference - almost certainly some in New Scientist) that suggests that imagining strenuous exercise for a period of time and in a regular can show some of the benefits of doing the actual exercise

So the research indicates that thinking about it, or watching it, has some of the benefits of doing the exercise? Sounds unlikely to be fair, but new scientist tends not to be full of nonsense, be interesting if you do dig out the links.
Could be listening to an exercise pod cast while making the dinner, to balance out the excess of cream etc used in the dishes? Gets my vote.

 

[Pattree]

I got the impression that you had to imagine the effort rather than just observe.

 

[Broch]

Does imagining it also produce the pain as well as the gain?

 

[Pattree]

That’s an interesting question @Broch

I have never subscribed to the maxim “No pain, no gain.”
nor
“Whatever does not kill me makes me strong.”

Both seem a bit puritanical/masochistic for my philosophies. I well know that others will disagree. I can however imagine an athlete (at any level) gauging their effort by muscle pain and gaining a positive reward for achieving it. Some of the more detailed texts on this subject look at the brain’s effort/reward system.

There is no indication in what I have read that it was necessary to imagine distress or pain.

I’ve dug around in NS and can’t find it in the four years of archive that are immediately available to me. I shall dig deeper.

I don’t like using AI but the NS (beta) Curiosity Engine responded comprehensively to the argument:

Can I benefit from imagining exercise?

Either this site or NS won’t let me post a direct copy of the NS response in the post so I’ve typed out the abstract:

Yes, you can absolutely benefit from imagining exercise. It might sound like something for couch potatoes, but a remarkable study showed that you can build muscle and strength just by using your imagination.

This is just an abstract. There were many pages.

Edited to add:
I can see the original screen shot in an attachment but can’t put it into the main post. Dunno whether you can see it.

A lot of the references hark back to work done at the University of Ohio.

 

[Stew]

So the research indicates that thinking about it, or watching it, has some of the benefits of doing the exercise? Sounds unlikely to be fair, but new scientist tends not to be full of nonsense, be interesting if you do dig out the links.
Could be listening to an exercise pod cast while making the dinner, to balance out the excess of cream etc used in the dishes? Gets my vote.

So I have a degree in Sport& Exercise Science and one of the things discussed was visualisation. I do recall is that Steve Backley the javelin thrower was out for some time with injury but managed to maintain a level of performance by using good visualisation techniques. Weird but then I guess it's fooling the mind to think it's doing the thing to build /maintain those pathways.

 

[Stew]

I should have also mentioned earlier that I have and old tricep tendon injury from many years ago which took several years to heal. It has fully healed now I am fully able to move and do things again but when I do pushups or pull-ups it does irritate the old injoury it slightly and it feels 'wrong'. I do worry that continuing might cause another tendon injury again in the future if I'm not careful.

Oddly though when I do more natural exercises at the field, some of which are every bit as intense and strenuous and doing push-ups or pull-ups that doesn't effect the old injury it at all.

I'm going to suggest you start using indian clubs and then later start to introducing kettlebell(s).

Indian clubs for the injury rehab and further mobility as warm up.
Kettlebells because they're perfect for exercise snacks for those that are time poor.

 

[TeeDee]

At the weekends I get plenty of exercise. Lots of walking, pushing heavy wheelbarrows uphills, moving heavy 75Ah leisure batteries around for electric fences, bashing in wooden fence posts, sawing branches off hedges, trimming foliage and nettles by hand using shears, raking up horse poo from the fields and throwing it into hedges etc. It all feels like good healthy natural kind of exercise.

However during the week from Monday to Friday I have little opportunity to do much other exercise. I do a few strength style exercises like sit-ups and pull-ups in the middle of the week but as I age my body is starting to tell me that this kind of intense exercise is not ideal for my joints and that I would be better off doing some other kind of gentler mid-week exercise routine going forward. My girlfriend thinks that just going for a walk would be good and she is probably right. I was considering trying Tai Chi during the week as that is supposed to be good for the joints and general all round health and fitness.

Has anyone here tried Tai Chi or do you do it regularly?

Alternatively what are your thoughts or suggestions for a more gentle mid-week exercise routine which is a little less intense than doing pull-ups and sit-ups?

Hello

When you say you do pull ups and sit ups in the middle of the week - can you give me an idea of how you approach them? is it one or two all in - balls out efforts or multiple sets at sub optimal execution?

My visualisation of fitness and longevity is to think of oneself as a car.
( Bear with me - it does get better )


So as we age we need to make sure all aspects of our car are well maintained.
In the UK and for a while its been very much an aerobic fascination over the last 3/4 decades that has defined what 'fitness' means to many of us.
And that mostly means the ability for out heart to produce and maintain an aerobic output in a steady state.

And as part of a more structured plan there is nothing wrong with that - but all that is allowing us to do is keep the engine in a state what provides an idling turnover.

So by potentially focusing upon this one aspect we negate maintenance of everything else.
Shock absorbers
Body Work
Mechanical joints
Delaying of rust on key stress points.



So for a more balanced broad range approach to longevity I think some focus must be a structured by varied routine that intentionally plans to increase strength and fitness in all these key parts.
I think also their is ALOT of benefit into leaning into the things we think we maybe should lean away from.

 

[TeeDee]

I should have also mentioned earlier that I have and old tricep tendon injury from many years ago which took several years to heal. It has fully healed now I am fully able to move and do things again but when I do pushups or pull-ups it does irritate the old injoury it slightly and it feels 'wrong'. I do worry that continuing might cause another tendon injury again in the future if I'm not careful.

Oddly though when I do more natural exercises at the field, some of which are every bit as intense and strenuous and doing push-ups or pull-ups that doesn't effect the old injury it at all.

How did you injure your tricep and what movement or plane of movement ( Overhead , infront , pushing down ) causes it to flare up?

 

[Silverclaws2]

At the weekends I get plenty of exercise. Lots of walking, pushing heavy wheelbarrows uphills, moving heavy 75Ah leisure batteries around for electric fences, bashing in wooden fence posts, sawing branches off hedges, trimming foliage and nettles by hand using shears, raking up horse poo from the fields and throwing it into hedges etc. It all feels like good healthy natural kind of exercise.

However during the week from Monday to Friday I have little opportunity to do much other exercise. I do a few strength style exercises like sit-ups and pull-ups in the middle of the week but as I age my body is starting to tell me that this kind of intense exercise is not ideal for my joints and that I would be better off doing some other kind of gentler mid-week exercise routine going forward. My girlfriend thinks that just going for a walk would be good and she is probably right. I was considering trying Tai Chi during the week as that is supposed to be good for the joints and general all round health and fitness.

Has anyone here tried Tai Chi or do you do it regularly?

Alternatively what are your thoughts or suggestions for a more gentle mid-week exercise routine which is a little less intense than doing pull-ups and sit-ups?

Yeah I do Tai Chi and it's stablemate: Qi Gong. To say despite the fact that I have been suffering with both a back injury and GTPS these past six months, my weekly Tai Chi practice doesn't seem to have aggravated the injury, to say something about it. In addition my physio was impressed I was using Qi Gong exercises to manage the ongoing.

 

[TeeDee]

Alternatively what are your thoughts or suggestions for a more gentle mid-week exercise routine which is a little less intense than doing pull-ups and sit-ups?

I've no experience of Tai Chi - On first view I'd suggest making a more balanced structure to the cals bodyweight work and include going swimming a few times a week for light resistance , joint mobility and breath work.

 

[Glow_worm]

Completely wacky suggestion and not in line of what you were thinking, but I've been really enjoying doing a bit of rebounding (mini trampolining) recently and I've no idea why it isn't more popular with men. Very low impact compared to running but with all the benefits, and you can add weights in to work on arms as well as legs and core. Great for the lymphatics. Plenty of workout videos online starting at gentle 10-minute sessions for beginners upwards.

You can pick up a rebounder for £10-20 on marketplace and move it on the same way if it doesn't work for you.

 

[HorseGuy]

How did you injure your tricep and what movement or plane of movement ( Overhead , infront , pushing down ) causes it to flare up?

Tricep extensions with a dumbbell in the gym using too heavy a weight and with fast, jerking movements instead of slow, smooth controlled movements.

It was many years ago and I was young and dumb.

When you say you do pull ups and sit ups in the middle of the week - can you give me an idea of how you approach them? is it one or two all in - balls out efforts or multiple sets at sub optimal execution?

Warm up a bit first. Start with gentle exercises like touching my elbows to my opposite knees, touching toes and doing bird dogs. Then progressing to doing some sit-ups, press-ups, and chin-ups. One set of each.

 

[HorseGuy]

I'm going to suggest you start using indian clubs and then later start to introducing kettlebell(s).

Indian clubs for the injury rehab and further mobility as warm up.
Kettlebells because they're perfect for exercise snacks for those that are time poor.

Interesting concept. I've never heard of those and will investigate further.

 

[Stew]

My arms feel great after an indian club session.