What is Qigong?
Qi (pronounced Chee) means energy or focused intent.
Gong means to do work.
Qigong is an ancient Chinese system of exercise that incorporates physical postures that focus your mind and increase your energy levels.
Many people thinking of Chinese exercise visualise an old person waving their arms around in a park. Any fool would believe these movements are easy….until you try them.
When performed correctly these “gentle” movements have a profound effect on the body both mentally and physically.
The “Gong” in “Qigong” is not there for no reason!
What Types of Qigong Are There?
There are four main types of Qigong.
Sitting, Standing, Moving and even Lying down Qigong exercises.
Basically you can practice at any point in the day…. anywhere…. any time.
So there is no excuse for not making this a regular part of your day.
Benefits of Qigong
These gentle exercises help to reduce stress and improve your health. The postures build physical and mental stamina as well as increasing your energy levels whilst activating the natural self-regulatory capacity of the body to heal itself (A Comprehensive Review of Health Benefits of Qigong and Tai Chi Jahnke, Larkey, Rogers, Etnier, and Lin; 2010)
It is a great form of exercise that helps balance your mind and body. Far from it being “only for old people”, qigong is an excellent tonic for young people in their twenties and thirties who want to harness and store their energy, building up reserves that will fuel an energised way of life even as they get older.
How Do I Get Started?
The right time to start practising qigong is now.
Watch the video below and follow along with a simple beginners level qigong exercise:
If you would like to learn more then come along to my next beginners course. You can find full details at lishi.org/classes/leeds
Lishi incorporates all four types of qigong as well as deep-breathing exercises, Tai Chi and Self-Defence. The course will teach you how to quiet the mind and you will practice focusing on one thing with full awareness.
It will calm your chattering brain and emotions so things in life don’t feel so overwhelming and you will learn to focus on the job at hand rather than procrastinate and choose to eat cereal or clean the fridge instead 🙂
