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Chi is a universal energy that flows through the body and can be cultivated through chi kung, a discipline that uses meditation, movement, and deep breathing exercises. Proper breathing techniques and movement coordination help increase the flow of chi and promote health and longevity. Qigong has several health benefits, including improved cardiovascular and respiratory performance and reduced stress.
Chinese medicine and philosophy are largely based on the concept of chi, a universal energy that flows through and propels the body. Chi is said to enter the body when a person breathes in, circulate through the body, and leave when exhaling. An unimpeded flow of chi promotes health, happiness, and longevity, while a blocked flow of chi leads to illness and depression. Chi kung, also spelled qigong, is a discipline used to cultivate chi in the human body through the use of meditation, movement, and deep breathing exercises. This practice has a number of health benefits, mainly because it reduces stress.
Most people breathe shallowly using their chest and throat, which limits the amount of oxygen and chi that is drawn in with each breath. Chi kung, however, teaches the proper method of breathing into the diaphragm to expand the stomach. This increases the amount of oxygen that is taken in with each breath. One of the most basic breathing exercises in qigong is to inhale slowly through the nose for four counts while touching the palate to the tongue; holding your breath for two counts; and exhaling through the mouth for four counts. There are other methods, such as alternate nostril breathing, and their purpose is to deliver more oxygen to the brain.
Breathing methods are not the only component of chi kung training; Moving meditations also help cultivate chi. In fact, the principles of chi kung are incorporated into Chinese martial arts, such as taijiqian and the various schools of hard martial arts. Coordination of movements with proper breathing and the flow of chi increases the power of the blows and helps the practitioner maintain a grounded posture. The movement sequence in taiji, also known as the 24-way Yang tai chi, is considered a moving meditation because it focuses on slow movement into postures; The mental focus required to do this is a form of meditation.
Another concept in chi kung is the existence of meridians. Similar to blood vessels, meridians carry chi throughout the body from the central point, the dantian. This is the center of gravity located below the navel. Chi moves from the dantian through the torso and out to the extremities subject to the direction of yi, or conscious willpower.
Practicing qigong has several health benefits. It improves cardiovascular and respiratory performance in part due to the increased flow of oxygen in the bloodstream. Deep breathing exercises also reduce or eliminate stress because it directly counteracts the body’s natural response to stress: the introduction of adrenaline into the bloodstream, increased heart rate, and faster breathing.
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