Changes in EEGs during Taichi-quan

Changes in EEGs and other physiological data while practicing Taichi-quan were measured for subjects of various skill levels. Six volunteers participated and they had Taichi-quan experiences ranging from having done it only once to having studied it more than eleven years. The EEG a waves on the occipital area became larger during standing Zen meditation than in the regular resting state. On the other hand, during Taichi-quan, a method which involves movements, the a waves, especially of beginners, became smaller. After a practice session, the subjects relaxed and their a waves became large. The frontal a? waves were larger for advanced trainees and those ratios to the occipital ones, Fp2/O2, also became large. Lag times of the a phase between the frontal and occipital areas, as an indicator of concentration, were short for the beginners. The beginners must have stayed focus on the movements of Taichi-quan, though the advanced trainees performed them easily.