There are countless ways to lose extra pounds and improve your health. Along with modern methods, those that have been known to the world for decades and even centuries are also popular. Among them, qigong, a traditional Chinese system of health-improving gymnastics, occupies a strong position. It combines poses and movements that are accessible to every person.
Despite the simplicity of the exercises, supporters of the eastern practice are confident that it promotes health, weight loss and normalization of mental state. We'll tell you how Chinese miracle gymnastics actually works.
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How did the Eastern method originate?
The founder of qigong in its modern interpretation is considered to be the doctor Liu Guijen
, a Chinese Communist Party worker. In 1948, colleagues recognized the specialist as terminally ill, because by the age of 27 he suffered from neurasthenia, tuberculosis and a severe stomach ulcer, and also weighed less than 40 kilograms. Liu was sent to retire to his native village, but, to the surprise of everyone, he was able to improve his health.
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Thanks to his uncle, Guijen became acquainted with traditional Chinese medicine. His treatment was more like an unusual health camp. Almost all the time for three months, the doctor was engaged in movement and breathing practices, repeated mantras and followed a diet. After 100 days, he was able to gain 15 kilograms and return to work.
Liu's colleagues were so impressed with his recovery that they sent a specialist back to his uncle. Now it’s no longer time to undergo treatment, but to find out all the nuances of the healing technique. Guijen separated gymnastics for body development from religious and feudal remnants, systematized a set of exercises and obtained what is now called qigong.
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Qigong in the modern sense
Now qigong refers to a whole system consisting of gymnastics, breathing exercises and meditative practices. The technique is divided into internal and external. The first is associated with such a concept of Chinese medicine as Qi energy. According to Eastern teachings, in a healthy person it moves freely throughout the body, and if this process is disrupted, then diseases occur. Essentially, Qigong aims to restore the movement of Qi in the body and get rid of ailments.
External practice is much easier to understand. It includes smooth movements, control of thoughts and exercises with breathing - natural or abdominal, hard or soft. Roughly speaking, this is a kind of meditation that allows you to get rid of stress and keep your body in good shape.
Among the practices are:
- static
- aimed at maintaining postures and working on breathing; - dynamic
- in them the emphasis is on performing movements and sometimes elements of self-massage.
The Chinese Health Qigong Association distinguishes four areas of gymnastics.
- Ba Duan Jing
- "eight magnificent movements." The complex includes smooth changes of poses in which muscle tension and relaxation alternate. - Wu Qin Xi
- "games of five animals." The exercises imitate the movements of a deer, crane, bear, monkey and tiger. - Liu Ji Jie
- "the art of creating six healing sounds." These are breathing exercises in which you need to make sounds while exhaling. - I Jin Jing
is “classical gymnastics for tendons and muscles.” The complex develops strength and flexibility, includes body rotations, tension of muscles and joints, bending and twisting.
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Chinese gymnastics
The human body is self-sufficient and unique in its structure. Many health problems can be solved without any outside intervention. You just need to choose the right key for you. One of these keys is breathing exercises, which is vital for a person. With their help, you can bring all systems of the body into balance, including returning your weight to normal .
For this purpose, Chinese gymnastics for weight loss has been developed, excellent in areas such as Tai Chi, Qigong, Wushu, Taijiquan, Jianfei. With the help of special training based on special breathing techniques, such gymnastics helps us overcome our ailments. Depending on training, age, and health status, everyone can choose a suitable set of exercises for themselves. Any of them will lead to the following results, noticeable within a month:
- relieving fatigue;
- strengthening the immune system;
- improvement of metabolism;
- relief of arthrosis, spinal hernias;
- rejuvenation, weight loss, longevity.
For beginners
Unusual training is not very easy for people performing it for the first time. The difficulty of gymnastics lies in the synchronization of movements and breathing. Since all weight loss exercises are performed at a slow pace and carefully worked out, a beginner’s breathing may not keep up with them. Gymnastics trainers advise not to focus too much on breathing at first, learning how to correctly perform the technique of movements.
Gradually, your stomach will learn to involuntarily retract as you inhale and protrude as you exhale, as required by the rules. Both breathing and moving need to be equally slow and measured. In addition, you should try to concentrate your attention on the part of the body that you are using. If the position implies this, during gymnastics you can follow your movements with your eyes.
For the elderly
Performing many activities in old age becomes a problem. What kind of gymnastics can we talk about when it’s difficult to even climb the stairs or bend down to the floor? When regular physical exercises become impossible, Chinese gymnastics for older people will help you regain your strength . It has some features:
- Does not aim to lead to any athletic results, but only helps improve overall health.
- When performing gymnastics, it is necessary to gradually increase the load, because the muscles get used to it, and the exercises cease to be effective.
- It is advisable to include training for all parts of the body in the complex.
Wellness
Any type of Chinese gymnastics brings healing results. Activation of the work of all organs and systems is its goal. With the help of training you can achieve:
- Involving the maximum number of muscles and joints. This leads to strengthening of the muscular and skeletal systems, normalization of blood circulation, and elimination of congestion.
- Deep rhythmic breathing ventilates the lungs well, thanks to which the body is fully saturated with oxygen, the respiratory and cardiovascular systems improve their functioning.
- The speed of metabolic processes returns to normal, which leads to the natural burning of fat deposits.
- The training has a positive effect on the entire vital tone of the body, reducing fatigue, helping to fight stress, improving well-being and mood.
The influence of Chinese gymnastics on the body
With the help of gymnastics, as with any other physical therapy, you can improve your health, stretch your muscles and even lose extra pounds.
Although qigong does not give a lot of stress, in some poses you need to maintain balance and try to maintain balance. In this case, the stabilizer muscles actively work, and the muscle corset develops evenly. In addition, deep diaphragm breathing speeds up your metabolism, which helps you lose weight.
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The exercises are also aimed at tensing, relaxing and stretching the muscles. This causes blood flow to them and nourishes the tissue. Bends, turns and twists improve the mobility of the spine and have a positive effect on posture.
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What is Qigong gymnastics?
Qigong gymnastics for the spine is an ancient Chinese teaching that is aimed at working with energy. Its essence is that by performing certain exercises, you can restore the functioning of the spinal nerves, and this in turn will help improve the functioning of the internal organs and heal the spine.
Qigong has many advantages: it is considered as safe as possible for the spine and joints; these exercises can relieve a person of any spinal problems without additional stimuli (for example, drugs or surgery). This gymnastics does not require a warm-up; it already combines smooth and slow techniques for relaxing and strengthening the muscles and nervous system.
Recommendations and contraindications
Qigong is a good way to prevent illnesses; its movements are accessible even to people with physical disabilities. Experts from the USA, Brazil and China published a systematic review of Eastern practice and its meta-analysis. They concluded that such activities were beneficial for quality of life, sleep, balance, arm strength, trunk flexibility, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and resting heart rate.
Researchers from universities in the US and China have shown that exercise can reduce joint muscle pain and improve overall sleep quality in people with chronic diseases.
In addition, scientists from the universities of Paris-Saclay, Paris Descartes and the Montsouris Institute for Mutual Aid found that qigong works in the treatment of anorexia nervosa. It can enhance psychotherapy and promote the healing process of patients.
Sometimes the technique is used in the complex treatment of arterial hypertension. In 2015, a review of scientific articles was published that prove the effectiveness of practices in the fight against this disease.
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A set of exercises is contraindicated during exacerbation of chronic diseases. And if you have problems with the spine, knee and hip joints, you should consult a doctor before starting classes.
Wushu-sanda on the street
How well does sanda work outdoors? Actually, just like any other sports discipline of hand-to-hand combat. Since the athlete has extensive experience in tough sparring and competition, such a fighter will feel quite comfortable on the street if he overcomes the habit of rules and working in artificial conditions. And the combination of punches and throws gives him a decent head start over street troublemakers.
It is only important to remember that in a street clash, psychological preparation and the ability to quickly think and make decisions are often more important than a trained blow and filled fists.
Where to start classes?
Gymnastics begins with a warm-up: warm-up exercises, circular movements in the joints, stretching, tapping on the stomach, chest, legs and shoulders. It is advisable to practice qigong every day, but if you don’t have such an opportunity, it’s okay. The main thing is to choose a suitable schedule for yourself and follow it without skipping workouts.
Most styles do not involve the use of special equipment. For equipment, you will need loose clothing that does not restrict movement. You can exercise without shoes: barefoot or in socks.
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Practices can be carried out independently or under the supervision of an experienced mentor to understand the basics. If you don’t want to look for an instructor, then, fortunately, there are many video tutorials on the Internet that help you understand the essence of all movements and breathing exercises. For example, on YouTube, Lee Holden and master Wang Lin talk in detail about gymnastics.
