Exercise #88 – EnergizingYour Internal Organs, Part 2

Welcome to

Healing T’ai Chi

…the award-winning blog of seated T’ai Chi and Qigong exercises to balance mind, body and spirit for people of all ages and levels of fitness.

(sponsored by the Exercise Equipment Super Store)

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“In holding the soul and embracing oneness
Can one be steadfast, without straying?
In concentrating the energy and reaching relaxation
Can one be like an infant?”

Tao Te Ching #10, translated by Derek Lin

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 In this series of exercises we are concentrating on movements that will stimulate, energize and massage our internal organs.  We tend to ignore these important organs in spite of the fact that the health of each of them is vital to our overall well-being.  None of the exercises are geared to one particular organ – all are benefitted by the movements and oxygenated by the specific breathing pattern that we have been practicing.

Palms up torso twists:

1. Sit as usual with your feet flat on the floot, shoulder-width apart, hips tucked slightly underneath you.
2. Breathe in slowly as you lift both arms out to the side, palms facing downward.
3. Turnt to your left as you breathe out slowly and twist your arms so that your palms face upward.  Remember this action locks the ch’i as it’s traveling down your arms
4. At the furthest point of the waist twist quickly release your arms thereby unlocking the ch’i and allowing it to rush strongly down to  your hands and fingertips.  At this point your palms are facing downward again.  Begin breathing out slowly as you turn back to the center.
5. Repeat to your right side and alternate with left and right twists for a total of 12 times i.e., 6 twists to each side.

 Reflexology exercise:

• Locate the liver point on the bottom of your foot on the inside of your foot at about the middle of your arch and a thumb’s width  inward.  Click on the link below to see a chart of this and other points on the bottom of your foot:

 http://www.circlesoflight.com/alternative/reflexology-chart.html

• Massage and knead this point for a few seconds and then hold your thumb firmly on the liver point for at least a full minute.
• Change feet and repeat the steps above.

 Benefits:  This reflexology/acupressure point is essential to your well-being particularly if you are taking prescribed medications that may adversely affect the health of your liver.

 

Don’t forget to drink water at the end of your exercise session or any time you begin to feel thirsty.  A Word of Caution…If you have or have had problems with your kidneys, please consult your physician.

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This week’s featured blog/site:

http://taoism.about.com/b/2009/11/03/in-praise-of-tension.htm

Featured video:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rcpD1I7×4Dk&feature=related

Find great deals on home exercise equipment at the Exercise Equipment Super Store.

http://www.joansweightloss.com

http://mybodysite.com/Publish/index.php

http://www.reikibyrockie.com

http://robertscottbell.blogspot.com/

http://thepeopleschemist.com/blog/

~The exercises in this blog are intended for educational purposes only.  Always consult with your health care provider before beginning a new exercise program.~

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Happy Thanksgiving

…from all of us at Healing T’ai Chi

 The year has turned its circle,
The seasons come and go.
The harvest all is gathered in
And chilly north winds blow.

 Orchards have shared their treasures,
The fields, their yellow grain,
So open wide the doorway —
Thanksgiving comes again!

~~~~~~~~~

We will be back next week with a new healing T’ai Chi/Qigong seated exercise.  See you then.

Exercise #87 – Energizing Your Internal Organs, Part 1

Welcome to

Healing T’ai Chi

…the award-winning blog of seated T’ai Chi and Qigong exercises to balance mind, body and spirit for people of all ages and levels of fitness.

(brought to you by the Exercise Equipment Super Store)

~~~~~~~~~~

“Cut open doors and windows to create a room
In its emptiness, there is the function of a room

Therefore, that which exists is used to create benefit
That which is empty is used to create functionality.”

Tao Te Ching #11, translation by Derek Lin

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 This exercise will massage and re-vitalize all your internal organs, stimulating their resistance to disease and strengthening your immune system.  

 Your posture should be the same as in previous sessions,  When you’re facing forward, breathe in through your nose as you expand your diaphragm.  Then breathe out slowly through your mouth until you have completed the twist.

 Torso twists:

1.  Hold your hands in front of your shoulders, palms facing away from you.  Take a deep breath through your nose expanding your diaphragm.
2. Twist from the waist to the left as you breathe out slowly, pushing your arms out until they are fully extended but without locking your elbows.  Pause in your breathing for a second and then begin breathing in again as you twist back to face forward.
3. Immediately begin breathing out as you twist to the right and extend your arms.  Remember to visualize the movement of your ch’i as it travels from your lower dan tien (3 finger-widths below your belly button in the center of your body).  Direct your ch’i upward through your chest to the shoulders and down your arms to your hands. 
4. Release the used-up energy through your palms.  Pause for a moment in your breath cycle before your begin breathing in again and return to face forward.
5. Continue alternating from side to side with special attention to the “gathering” of your breath and ch’i  and the “releasing” of the stale breath and used-up energy.  I would suggest no less than 12 repetitions or 6 on each side.

Reflexology exercise:

Whether you have problems with your liver or are just interested in keeping this very important organ healthy and strong, the technique below can be of great benefit.

• Cross one leg over the thigh of your other leg so that you can easily reach the bottom of your foot.  You may lie down to do this or sit in a chair. Pick the position that  is the most comfortable for you.
• Beginning at the back of the heel and using both thumbs, slide your thumbs alternately ( i.e. the right one than the left one)back and forth  in  a sawing motion across the your heel working your way up to just below your toes.
• Reverse the direction from toes to the end of your heel.  Change feet and repeat.

Benefits:  Use this massage technique daily to strengthen your liver.  It is also beneficial to relax sore, tired feet.

 

Don’t forget to drink water at the end of your exercise session or any time you begin to feel thirsty.  A Word of Caution…If you have or have had problems with your kidneys, please consult your physician.

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This week’s featured blog/site:

 http://www2.macleans.ca/2009/11/10/antibiotic-use-threatens-healthcare/

Featured video:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOIxRYc9GnQ

Find great deals on home exercise equipment at the Exercise Equipment Super Store.

http://www.joansweightloss.com

http://mybodysite.com/Publish/index.php

http://www.reikibyrockie.com

http://robertscottbell.blogspot.com/

http://thepeopleschemist.com/blog/

~The exercises in this blog are intended for educational purposes only.  Always consult with your health care provider before beginning a new exercise program.~

Exercise #86 – Energizing the Gateway Between Mind and Body 4

 

Welcome to

Healing T’ai Chi

…the award-winning blog of seated exercises to balance mind, body and spirit for people of all ages and levels of fitness.

~~~~~~~~~

“The greatest virtue is to follow Tao and Tao alone.
The Tao is elusive and intangible
Oh, it is intangible and elusive, and yet within is image.
Oh, it is elusive and intangible, and yet within is form.
Oh, it is dim and dark, and yet within is essence.
This essense is very real, and therein lies faith.
From the very beginning until now its name has never been forgotten.
Thus I perceive the creation.
How do I know the ways of creation?
Because of this.”

Tao Te Ching #21, translated by Gia Fu Feng and Jane English

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In this exercise we will be loosening and relaxing our shoulders.  Don’t try to breathe in time with the movements just breathe normally.  However, it is always a good idea to take 3 to 6 slow diaphragmatic breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth before beginning each exercise. 

 Shoulder shrugs and circles:

1. Begin seated as usual with your feet flat on the floor shoulder-width apart, hips tucked under.
2. Lift your shoulders toward your ears and then let them drop, remaining completely relaxed so that they drop of their own accord.
3. Repeat the shoulder “shrugs” 6 to 12 times then circle both shoulders backward for the same number of times you “shrugged” them.
4. Reverse and repeat the same number of circles forward staying relaxed throughout.
5. Complete the exercise with 3 repetitions of Centering Ch’i as described below.

 Centering ch’i:

1. Breathe in through your nose tightening your abdomen as you do so.  (Note that this is  the opposite of the way we breathe during the other exercises.)
2. Lift your arms out to the side, slowly twisting them so that your palms will be facing the ceiling when over your head (toward the back of your head so that your hands are directly over the 3 major pressure points).
3. Your arms are twisted so that the ch’i is “locked”.  Look  upward as though you can see your hands through your head.
4. Breathe out through your mouth and release the ch’i quickly by turning your  hands so that the palms are now facing downward.
5. Lower your arms slowly as you breathe out and release just your lower abdomen, returning your arms to the position in front of the lower dan tien.  Remember – this lower ch’i storage area is about 3 finger-widths below your belly button in the center of the body. 

 Acupressure point:

  

 (illustration from Michael Reed Gach’s Acupressure’s Potent Points)

•  Gates of Consciousness (GB20) is located at the back of the head below the base of the skull.  You can find this point in the hollow between the 2 large vertical neck muscles.
• Press firmly on one point or on both points at the same time for no less than a fulll minute as often as necessary.

Benefits:  This effective pressure point will relieve a stiff neck, a headache or arthritis of the shoulders and neck.

Don’t forget to drink water at the end of your exercise session or any time you begin to feel thirsty.  A Word of Caution…If you have or have had problems with your kidneys, please consult your physician.

  ~~~~~~~~~

This week’s featured site/blog:

 http://freedomoftruth.wordpress.com/2009/10/28/h1n1-vaccine-dangers-in-canada-and-the-u-s/

Featured video:

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kImPKVrIfKk

Find great deals on home exercise equipment at the Exercise Equipment Super Store.

http://www.joansweightloss.com

http://discoverandrecover.wordpress.com

http://mybodysite.com/Publish/index.php

http://www.reikibyrockie.com

http://rsbell.com/radio/

http://thepeopleschemist.com/blog/

Download your free e-book here:

View this document on Scribd

 

~The exercises in this blog are intended for educational purposes only.  Always consult with your health care provider before beginning a new exercise program.~

Exercise #85 – Energizing the Gateway between Mind and Body 3

Welcome to

Healing T’ai Chi

…the award-winning blog of seated exercises to balance mind, body and spirit for people of all ages and levels of fitness.

~~~~~~~~~

“ It is more important
To see the simplicity,
To realize one’s true nature,
To cast off selfishness
And temper desire.”

Tao Te Ching #19, translated by Gia Fu Feng and Jane English
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This exercise is a continuation of movements from the previous 2 posts.  We are striving to energize the neck and shoulders to relieve discomfort and loosen the muscles that often become stiff from tension or because we spend a lot of time hunched over a computer.

1. When you complete your last head rotation, breathe in and then turn your head to look over your shoulder as you breathe out.
2. Return to the center and allow your eyes to focus forward.  Breathe in again and then turn your head to look over your other shoulder.
3. Continue to alternate head turns for at least 6 times over each shoulder.
4. Now, begin turning your head again from side to side but this time, look to the side and up toward the ceiling.  Always follow the movements of your head with your eyes so that you also benefit from exercising your eyes.
5. Return to the center after each look to the side and up.  As  you return, look at the wall opposite you and focus on that spot as you breathe in again.  This will prevent you from getting dizzy from turning from side to side.
6. Repeat head turns and looking up from side to side for at least 12 times.   When finished, sit with your eyes closed while you breathe slowly in and out, concentrating on the movement of your breath and energy.

Use the pressure point  Heavenly Pillar (B10) to complete your exercise session.

(illustration from Acupressure’s Potent Points)

• You will find this effective presure point on the back of your neck on the 2 large ropy muscles.
• Press on both muscles with your fingers about1/2 inch below the base of the skull.

Benefits:  Heavenly Pillar will help relieve stress and exhaustion as well as a stiff neck or a sore throat.

Don’t forget to drink water at the end of your exercise session or any time you begin to feel thirsty.  A Word of Caution…If you have or have had problems with your kidneys, please consult your physician.

~~~~~~~~~

 This week’s featured blog/site:

http://drkellysennholz.wordpress.com/2009/10/19/dr-kelly-sennholz-does-vitamin-e-prevent-lung-cancer/

Featured video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QduOZS33reo

Find great deals on home exercise equipment at the Exercise Equipment Super Store.

http://www.joansweightloss.com

http://discoverandrecover.wordpress.com

http://mybodysite.com/Publish/index.php

http://www.reikibyrockie.com

Download your free e-book here:

View this document on Scribd

~The exercises in this blog are intended for educational purposes only.  Always consult with your health care provider before beginning a new exercise program.~