How to Read the Exercise Diagrams

Every exercise in Tai Chi Walking for Weight Loss is laid out the same way: a diagram on one page and the written steps on the facing page. The picture shows you what the movement looks like; the words tell you the order, the breathing, and where to stop if something feels wrong. Read the diagram first, then the steps, then move. That order — picture, words, movement — is the whole trick, and it works for all 35 exercises in the book.

There is a good reason the book pairs a picture with words instead of giving you words alone. Learning researchers call it dual coding: we remember things better when the same idea reaches us through two channels at once, a picture and words, rather than one. In one classic experiment, people who learned how a bicycle pump works from words and pictures shown together understood it far better than people who got words alone or pictures alone. The same idea applies to a weight shift or a knee lift: the figure gives your eyes the shape of the movement, and the steps give your mind the sequence. Together they are easier to follow than either one by itself.

Each diagram has four parts to look for. First, the figure itself: a simple drawing of a person in the starting position, with a second, lighter figure showing where the body ends up. Compare the two figures before you move — the difference between them is the exercise. Second, the arrows: a curved or straight arrow shows the direction of the movement, so you can see at a glance whether a foot travels forward, sideways, or back. Third, the numbers: small numbers on the diagram match the numbered steps on the facing page, so you can always tell which part of the picture goes with which sentence. Fourth, the support note: every exercise marks its seated or supported version, the Path A option, so you can see immediately how to do the same movement with a chair or a counter nearby. If a diagram ever looks confusing, find these four parts one at a time instead of trying to take in the whole picture at once.

Here is the reading routine to use with any exercise in the book. (1) Sit or stand beside your support and open the spread flat, so both pages are visible at the same time. (2) Study the diagram for ten slow seconds: find the start figure, the finish figure, and the arrow. (3) Read the steps on the facing page once through, out loud if that helps, and notice the breathing cue — most steps pair one movement with one breath. (4) Do the movement once, slowly, without worrying about getting it right. (5) Glance back at the diagram only for the part that felt unclear, then try again. The first pass is for learning, not for performing, so there is nothing to get wrong.

Two mistakes are worth avoiding. The first is skipping the diagram and reading only the words. Words alone make a movement sound harder than it is; a single look at the figure usually clears up what three sentences could not. The second is the opposite: copying the finish position in the diagram and skipping the steps that get you there. The slow weight shift between the two figures is the exercise — arriving at the final pose quickly and holding it is not. If you catch yourself rushing to match the picture, slow down until the movement takes a full breath.

One more thing the diagrams cannot show you, and it matters: your own range of motion. The figures are drawn at a comfortable, full version of each movement, but the Tai Chi JingFlow program is built on the idea that a smaller version counts. If a knee lift in the picture rises higher than yours does, lift yours as far as it goes comfortably and stop there — the benefit is in the slow, controlled shift of weight, not in matching the height in the drawing. The same goes for turns and side steps: a shorter step taken with balance is worth more than a long step taken with a wobble. Read the arrow as a direction, not a distance, and let your body set the size. If anything hurts, feels dizzy, or makes you unsteady, stop and sit down; the diagram will still be there tomorrow, and the next session starts from where you are, not from where the picture is.

The diagrams are drawn large and printed in the book's large-print layout for a reason. As eyes age, contrast and type size matter as much as the words themselves: typography guidance for older readers recommends at least 12-point type as a starting point, generous line spacing, and dark type on a light background — and the book follows that pattern so the steps stay readable at arm's length while you practice. If a diagram still puzzles you after a slow look, two helps are close by. Try the exercise seated first, using the Path A note, since a seated version is easier to compare with the picture. And remember that all 35 book exercises are also published free on this site with the same steps — for example, the Seated Ankle Circles — so you can read the same movement on a screen with the diagram beside it. A diagram is a map, not a test. Read it slowly, move slowly, and let the picture do half the teaching.