Energy Expenditure Characteristics Of Chinese Health Qigong Baduanjin

Abstract

Health Qigong Baduanjin (HQB) is a Chinese traditional method. During the pandemic of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the General Administration of Sport of China advocated citizens to practice Qigong indoors. PURPOSE: To determine the energy expenditure characteristics of Chinese HQB. METHODS: Forty-eight Chinese adults (27 female; age 22 ± 2 yrs, height 175.3 ± 3.6 cm, weight 72.0 ± 5.6 kg, BMI 23.5 ± 1.9) were selected volunteered as participants. They were divided into the skilled practice group (SP) and the primary practice group (PP) (male 12 vs. 11, female 10 vs. 15) according to whether HQB exercise duration had reached 2 years, which was obtained by consulting a Chinese Qigong expert. During the experiment, participants were required to wear a portable gas metabolizer and a cardiometer. All participants sat quietly for 10 minutes and practiced a session of HQB (a session of about 12 min). Energy expenditure (EE, kcal), the percentage of energy source, metabolic equivalent of energy (METs), and heart rate (HR, b/min) during exercise were collected and statistics. RESULTS: EE was higher in male SP (MSP) than in male PP (MPP) (44.66 ± 9.37 vs. 37.32 ± 7.3, p < 0.05), there was no difference between female SP (FSP) and female PP (FPP) (30.78 ± 4.99 vs. 26.65 ± 4.09, p > 0.05). About the percentage of energy source, ignoring protein oxidation, the percentage of fat was lower in MSP than in MPP (49% ± 27% vs. 69% ± 12%, p < 0.05), and the percentage of carbohydrate was higher in MSP than in MPP (51% ± 27% vs. 31% ± 12%, p < 0.05), there was no difference between FSP and FPP (% fat: 48% ± 18% vs. 47% ± 18%, % carbohydrate: 52% ± 18% vs. 53% ± 18%, p > 0.05). There was no significant difference in METs, either between MSP and MPP (3.19 ± 0.53 vs. 2.97 ± 0.46, p > 0.05) or between FSP and FPP (2.80 ± 0.57 vs. 2.58 ± 0.57, p > 0.05). HR was higher in MSP than in MPP (105.13 ± 14.73 vs. 88.39 ± 10.96, p < 0.05), there was no difference between FSP and FPP (103.44 ± 10.42 vs. 92.17 ± 10.48, p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: HQB practicing duration affects male’s energy expenditure, but it seems to not affect females. HQB can be considered a low-intensity exercise, which may bring less stimulation, but it is suitable for a wider range of the general public or patients with certain diseases to practice indoors. National Key R&D Program of China (2018YFC2000600)