Isn’t QiGong just for Seniors?

Here’s how it can help just about… anyone!

A common misunderstanding in the west is that Tai Chi and QiGong are things that just senior citizens do on a saturday morning in the park. Indeed it is true that many senior citizens do practice these ancient arts but they can offer benefits to everyone of all ages.

How do i know this? Well, this is what both some of my students said and it was my personal view when i was a child. But this changed for me when i discovered it as a teenager.

I first discovered it when i was just 13. Yes, admittedly i was the youngest student in class, but the subtle form of exercise and rhythmic movement captivated my attention, and still does. Whilst i had to put it on hold for a few years with my studies, I have now had a regular practice for half a decade. 

So what is all the fuss about – waving your hands around in strange routines?
What’s the point?

QiGong had been practiced as a movement meditation, martial art and form of exercise for over 1000 years and originates from ancient China. People are drawn to it for different reasons. Some to calm the mind and find inner peace. Others to become more flexible. Spiritual seekers are drawn for self development. There are a few for who QiGong can help as a last stop to help ease chronic pain and illness, and in many cases, heal it.  

Did you know – QiGong is one of the few forms of exercise that works the whole body

All the muscle groups can be engaged in QiGong by learning to work with the Yin and Yang. This is done through balance, connectivity and flow working with passive and active movements. With this formula you can begin to truly get to know your body and move towards mind-body unity.

In our modern society, there is a prevailing fitness pattern of only using yang energy. In this context, this refers to the use of force that we exert in our efforts to keep fit.

Practices such as resistance training, anaerobic exercise and heavy weights training all fall into the category of yang energy. This involves the egoic mind working against the body to achieve a desired goal, achievement or body shape.

The body doesn’t get a say with yang exercise as in most cases the mind and body will be in complete disunity and the egoic mind running the show. The person will often be completely identified with their egoic mind patterns and their body a slave to them.

These practices can over time put enormous strain on the body. It is often unsustainable and can create blocks in the subtle energy system (the Chi) and cause our bodies to become run down and unhealthier in the long run.

This is where QiGong is different. It cultivates lasting muscle tone and definition working through gentle exercise and in harmony with the body and a balance with yin and yang.

You learn to access the many intelligences of the body in learning to balance it and to stimulate its innate self healing abilities. You also access the intelligence of the ‘Chi’ with its rejeuvenating and healing properties to nurture the mind and body. In Chinese medicine, the second brain in the body is located in the lower dantien (sacral chakra) that regulates and controls your chi energy that you learn to engage with.

Ultimately, It is truly something you have to experience to feel the benefits. If i have caught your attention, book in and come along to one of our classes to learn to feel your chi power, your true power.