The Shoulder Girdle Comes Alive in Tai Chi

In Tai Chi, the shoulder girdle helps us to achieve relaxation, balance, alignment of the thoracic spine, stability and energy flow.

How does this happen?

The key movements of the shoulder girdle are raising and lowering of the shoulders, protraction (rounding shoulders forward) and retraction (rounding shoulders backward), and full rotation of the shoulder. Given this immense scope of movement, stability is compromised somewhat, explaining why shoulder dislocations are a common occurrence. As you can see, the shoulder girdle is a complex anatomical structure that connects the upper limbs to the axial skeleton of the upper spine and thorax.

How does our Tai Chi practice activate the Shoulder Girdle and what are the Health Benefits involved?

In Tai Chi, our posture encourages us to drop our shoulders, pointing the elbows downward with our wrists typically in front of the shoulders. It is important to clarify that relaxed shoulders does not mean we force our shoulders down, as this triggers tension in the neck and upper back. Instead, we hang our shoulders loosely, enabling us to truly relax. We are also mindful to keep a slight curve in our arms when we extend them, while remembering to keep a small open space under our axilla (armpits) where the lymph nodes are. These postures are all possible thanks to the complex mechanism of the shoulder girdle.

Proper alignment of the shoulder girdle in Tai Chi offers many health benefits. By maintaining the relaxed arm postures described, our arm meridians are kept open and Qi energy can flow more easily between the upper body and the lower dantians. Improved circulation and greater vitality are the result of such an opening. Our breathing is also enhanced since we minimize the use of the accessory neck muscles, allowing for a deeper diaphragmatic breath, optimizing lung capacity and oxygenation.

Tai Chi also engages the shoulder girdle during the active movements of the set. Given the various angles and repeated circular motions involved, our overall shoulder mobility, including that of the scapula, is maximized.

Most of us believe that arm movements come from the shoulders, though. When, in fact, arm movements essentially start with the scapula. In our practice, we use the muscles between the scapula and the spine to move (at the scapulothoracic joint), and this releases the arms forward. This is why Master Moy asked us to keep our arms “light as a feather”. Our Tai Chi movements originate from the spine and scapular segment of the shoulder girdle. And our arms are relaxed in posture. Moving in this fashion is what allows for improved shoulder joint mobility to occur while any tight fascia that is trapped in the scapular area is also released.

Which Tai Chi moves engage the Shoulder Girdle the most?

1. Fair Lady Works Shuttles: These movements involve repeated and controlled rotation and expansion of the shoulder girdle, especially in the scapula. Soft tissues, including fascia, are also stretched and released.
2. White Stork Spreads Wings: This movement is all about the scapula. The scapula must glide easily along the thorax for our arms to raise in a relaxed fashion. A supple fascia is needed for this to occur.

Once again, we are grateful to Master Moy for this wonderful Art that helps us to appreciate the beautiful interplay between our skeleton, muscles, fascia, movement, and energy flow.

**Please enjoy the video link below that demonstrates both the gliding and stabilizing movements of the scapula in Tai Chi. Although it is in Chinese, the instructor works hard (forward to the 5-minute mark through the video) to demonstrate the prominent role of the scapula in raise hands while his onlooking students observe.

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Translation by Jordi Awarita, Cathy Filion