Tai Chi Qigong - Easy Simple Exercises Devised by the Chinese by Boz Odusanya - HTML preview

Easy to Learn — Easy to Perform — For all Ages Relieve Stress and Develop Chi in Just 20 Minutes a Day with the 'Chi' Secrets to Tai Chi and Qigong!

The beginners guide to

Go Chi i

Tai Chi Qigong

Some benefits of Go Chi i

* Enables you to practise on your own

* Assists control of Weight gain/loss

* Reduces Stress

* Improves Concentration and Intuitive Abilities

* Improves overall Health

* Increases Energy, Agility and Flexibility

* Loosens and Strengthen Joints and Muscles

* Helps balance the emotions

Boz Odusanya

You Are Cordially Invited To Visit: www.tai-chi-world.com CAUTION

The techniques, ideas and suggestions in this e-book are not intended as a substitute for proper medical advice. Any applications of the techniques, ideas and suggestions in this e-book are at the reader’s sole discretion and risk.

Copyright © 2010 Acu Media Books

PDF Book Version - All Rights Reserved

No Part of this publication may be used or produced without written premission from Amhed Odusanya (the Author) 2

Please note....

This e-book is best used as a study aid with the Online Tai Chi course or my workshops. However, it can also be used independently as a brief introductory guide to Go Chi-i.

For information of the Online Tai Chi Course please visit: www.taichi-tuition.com/taichi

3

Contents

Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5 . 6 . 7

The Body Posture Shapes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 . 9 . 10 . 11

The Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

The distribution of weight under the foot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Alignments of the Knee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

The Three Stages of Floating & Releasing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 . 16

Start of Go Chi - i . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

1. Beginning step and regulating breathing . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

2. Opening the chest . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

3. Dancing with the rainbow . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

4. Separating the clouds with swinging arms . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

5. Step back and repulse monkey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

6. Rowing the boat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

7. Supporting a ball in front of the shoulder . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

8. Turning the body to gaze at the moon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

9. Turning waist & pushing palm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

10. Wave hands like clouds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Completion of the 10 exercises of Tai Chi Qigong . . . . . . . . 28

Chart of 10 movements . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Miscellaneous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

4

Please read the following carefully in order to maximize the benefits of this qigong Please read first the sections on:

1) The Body Posture Shapes

2) The Centre

3) Even weight distribution

4) Alignment of the knee

5) Floating and Releasing

Now you have read the above articles, start learning and practising the Go Chi i (Tai Chi Qi Gong)

WHERE TO PRACTISE:

This type of qigong can be practised indoors and outdoors. A quiet and peaceful environment should be chosen with good air circulation. Avoid practising outside at times of severe weather such as thunderstorms or days with high smog alerts and strong winds.

BREATHING:

We will be doing a variety of three

types of breathing throughout these

qigong exercises:

1) Natural breathing

2) Buddhist breathing (abdominal)

3) Taoist breathing (abdominal)

5

Please read the following carefully in order to maximize the benefits of this qigong The best breathing to use with all these exercises is the natural breathing which is your normal cycle of breathing. You inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth, however, if you have a cold or blocked nose, breathe through the mouth as the breathing must always feel comfortable for you. Never strain the breathing by breathing in or out too much or holding the breath. If you force the breathing it will cause your chest to hurt, make you dizzy and make the exercises feel unpleasant. Over time the breathing will naturally extend its duration in length. Abdominal breathing is breathing using your diaphragm.

CAUTION: Both the Buddhist and Taoist breathing are advanced techniques and should not be attempted unless supervised by a competent instructor.

Abdominal breathing (Buddhist) is the movement of your diaphragm which will expand your lower abdomen during the inhale and deflate your lower abdomen during the exhale. The Taoist way is the reverse technique: the movement of your diaphragm which will expand your upper abdomen during the inhale and deflate your upper abdomen during the exhale.

MENTAL A

TTITUDE:

Come to the session with a positive attitude. Before you begin the session try to close the mind down, as if going to sleep. This is to help you feel relaxed and with a calm mind. When practising the qigong use concentration on making the movement smooth and continuous, listening to the sensations produced by the movements, such as joint alignment, and pressures created in and around the body. However, over-concentration can lead to headaches. Remember you are in control of your own development within the practice.

Remember the 70% rule. This is that you only put 70% of your overall physical exertion into the training. This is because if you physically exert yourself to the maximum your muscles will become tensed (contracted), you will distort the alignments of the body and also reduce efficient blood flow circulating around the body. Also, the required sensations produced from the qigong will be masked with the tension of the body.

6

Please read the following carefully in order to maximize the benefits of this qigong DISCOMFORT AND PAIN:

At first you might feel a bit of discomfort when doing the exercises if you are not used to exercising. However if the discomfort is too much then build up the exercises slowly (such as 3-4 repetitions, or shorten the practice session). A session lasts for approx 10 -25 minutes. If you feel pain while doing any of the exercises STOP doing it. The exercises are very gentle and should not produce any pain. THINK: are you overdoing the exercise; such as wrong alignment of posture/joint, over stretching, over breathing, tensing the muscles too much?

GETTING STARTED:

This qigong is very effective and easy to learn. Practise each exercise in succession; add a new exercise at least every 2-3 sessions. Over time you will refine the exercises and feel and understand them more clearly. You can repeat the amount of repetitions of each exercise as much as you want, time permitting.

If you are able to practise on a daily basis or every other day you will see good results over time. If you are a busy person, then try and fit some of the qigong in whenever you can. When practised regularly, most people will be able to do the exercises with a basic understanding of all 10 movements within three weeks. You should start to see some results if you practice this qigong exercise on a daily basis for three months.

After finishing a session you should feel relaxed and ready to take on the day.

Safe and happy training,

Boz Odusanya (Tai Chi Instructor)

7

The Body Posture Shapes - Upright stance

Most of the postures within Tai Chi Qigong are characterised by the use of the Posture shapes. These are the 1) the upright stance, 2) the bow, 3) the canoe, 4) the How A - Feet approx shoulder width apart. The toes The Upright Stance

appear to be slanted inwards, feet parallel on the outside. The weight should feel evenly distributed over the whole feet area.

Half Upright

F

B - The knees are slightly bend. The knees should NEVER go beyond the front of the feet (toes).

C - The pelvis rotates under slightly.

D

E

D - The shoulders relaxed naturally down the back.

E - The chin tucks in slightly. This is to help the neck to be straighten.

F - The head is upright. It is as though it is being suspended by a piece of string.

C

NOTE: Arms hang relaxed by the side of the body

When

one of the sides is

in this position we call it

t h e ‘ H a l f U p r i g h t ’ .

Therefore a half upright

can be joined on the

B

other side of the body

with the Bow, Canoe,

How etc.

A

G

G - When the pelvis rotates under fully the spine is opened (Therefore the back over time appears straight from the neck to the sacrum). When the pelvis rotates the knees will bend slightly forward (remember do not let the knees go beyond the toes).

When the pelvis is rotated under, you should feel an increase of weight felt under the feet evenly distributed.

Please note: These posture alignments are guidelines for the beginner. In some parts of the Tai chi and Qigong the alignment appear not to be adhered to, this is because later in one’s development the alignment works clearly and effectively in the background, so therefore the body starts to work with the stretches of the muscles (like a suspension bridge).

All Illustrations and text on page Copyright © 2010 Acu Media Books 8

The Body Posture Shapes - The Bow

The body is upright as if being

Centre Line

suspended by a piece of string, chin

The Bow Stance

tucked in slightly.

fig 1

Arms no higher than

shoulder height

Half Bow

All movement is around the

When one of the sides is

vertical central line (usually

in this position we call it

spirals). Never stray too far from

the ‘Half Bow’. Therefore

centre line. (This is to maximise

a half bow can be joined

the intensity of the deep

on the other side of the

sensations of the body).

body with the Canoe,

How, Upright etc.

The outside of each foot is

parallel with each other .

Legs never straighten

Looking from above feet

completely, always a slight

appear to be turned

bend.

inwards.

Centre line

Knees slight outward

deviation.

heel

Knees should never

sole

extend beyond toes

flat on

ground

measured

Feet flat on

from the centre

the ground

of each foot

fig 2

The arms are no higher than the

shoulder height of the body (fig 1), the arms always have a slight bend at the

elbows. Ideally, both of the hands should

be at the same height.

The bow seen from above looks like the

shape of a bow (fig 2).

centre line

Several reasons for perfecting the posture shapes: like the bow shape

Arms from above look

?

Minimise the contraction of certain muscle groups.

?

Maximise relaxation/ stretch of certain muscles.

?

Detect by sensation certain muscles to benefit the postures.

?

Minimise the possibilities of injuries due to over stretching.

All Illustrations and text on page Copyright © 2010 Acu Media Books 9

The Body Posture Shapes - The Canoe

Range of movement (fig.3). This range is all that is The Canoe needed when doing the Taiji Qigong or Tai chi form.

This maximises the active stretches.

fig 3

Half Canoe

centre-line

When one of the sides is

in this position we call it

t h e ‘ H a l f C a n o e ’ .

Therefore a half canoe

can be joined on the

other side of the body

with the Bow, How,

Upright etc.

centreline

We are only interested in the

front part of the canoe

centre-line

Several reasons for the posture shapes are to:

?

Minimise the contraction of certain muscle groups.

?

Maximise relaxation/ stretch of certain muscles.

?

Detect by sensation certain muscles to benefit the postures.

?

Minimise the possibilities of injuries due to over stretching.

All Illustrations and text on page Copyright © 2010 Acu Media Books 10

The Body Posture Shapes - The How

The How

The how looks like someone is holding their hands up to surrender or when one of the either sides is lifted into this position it looks like a ’Red Indian Greeting’.

When one of the sides is in this position we call it the ‘Half How’. Therefore a half how can be joined on the other side of the body with the Bow, Canoe, Upright etc.

Finger tips approx height

Half How

of top edge of the ear

Several reasons for the posture shapes are to:

?

Minimise the contraction of certain muscle groups.

?

Maximise relaxation/ stretch of certain muscles.

?

Detect by sensation certain muscles to benefit the postures.

?

Minimise the possibilities of injuries due to over stretching.

All Illustrations and text on page Copyright © 2010 Acu Media Books 11

The Centre MUST always move first in any direction The CENTRE area

includes waist & hips

The ‘Centre’ is like the axle on a wheel, it is the main hub of the body. The ‘Centre’

moves first before any movement of the trunk and outer limbs of the body.

The Yi (mind) initiates the centre to

move first in all movements of Tai chi

or Tai chi Qigong.

The ‘centre’ is the hips and waist

(within that region).

Skeletal region

ANALOGY: A length of wood with a mark in the

centre, move the wood in any direction from the centre - the wood will move as a complete unit.

Now - Imagine the piece of wood is a piece of flexible rubber, when the centre is moved the rest of the rubber will move, however it will have a bit of a time lapse, because the rubber will stretch and distort. This is how we want the human body to move, so that it can produce

waves going through the body.

REMEMBER the main component to assist

waves in the body is the ‘Centre’ initiating all Body region

movement.

The intermediate level of Tai chi is when the person is able to make the ‘centre’ the initiator of all movements in Tai chi (up; down; left; right; sidewards; twisting etc. In any three dimensional situation)

12

Even weight distrubution.

Even distribution weight

under the foot.

It is important that on every movement

that you sense that the body weight is

detected evenly over all the foot. In any

exercise, form or partner work you must

always adhere to the above principle. If

the foot detection is to one side of the foot, then to rectify this problem adjust the

pelvis area.

The even contact on the floor by each foot

is corrected by the adjustment of the knee

and the pelvis (hip).

Feet flat on ground - Both feet (the pads

under the foot) are flat on the ground, try

to feel for the pads under the foot (fig. 2)

fig. 2

In practice of any Tai Chi/Qigong, always look for the foot to have even contact under the foot. This takes a focused concentration on the practitioner. This develops the mind to be able to identify (become sensitive) to the small changes of the muscles and alignments of the skeletal bones. Constant practice of this method will influence the mind to move to the foot before a muscular/skeletal movement has been initiated.

13

Alignments of the Knee.

At an early stage it is important the alignment is as accurate as possible. Give full concentration to the precise alignments at this early stage. With the correct alignments the Tai Chi postures will without a doubt improve positively overtime.

It is important to have correct alignment because it aids:

•

? The improvement of the movements and postures of the Taiji.

•

? The smooth transport of Qi and fluids throughout the lower and upper body.

•

? To strengthen the bones and muscles.

•

? To support and develop flexibility in the lower body.

When the knees and feet are in the correct alignment, this will nullify the forces exerted on the body.

Therefore, the forces transfer safely through the bones and are routed into the ground.

If the alignments are accurate and precise, the practitioner will start to become aware of pressure building slowly under the feet, and then around the waist. Shortly afterwards an awareness of the muscles (stretching) in the lower body will become clearly felt.

Correct Alignment of the lower body

?

• Knees are in line with feet (fig a), with a slight Knees in line with feet

Knees do not extend over the toes

(slight outward intention with knees)

outward intent with the knees.

?

• Feet are flat on the ground.

?

• Knees never go beyond the toes (fig b).

However, the knees are correct as long as the Feet flat

knees do not lock. Therefore, if there is a little on the

ground

a

Feet flat

bend in the knees this is allowable when

b

on the ground

practitioner is on level two (Intermediate).

USEFUL TIP: When doing a movement such as swing arms, Touching the rainbow etc – Image that your feet above to the knees is set in concrete. Therefore the knees do not move. HOWEVER .. The knees can move slightly, do not lock the knees.

Incorrect Alignment of the lower body

?

• Knees are incorrect when aligned inwards

Incorrect (at Level One)

Incorrect (at Level One)

(Knees bending inwards too much)

(Feet slanted outwards)

(either on one side or both in the upright

posture) (fig c)

?

?

• Feet are incorrect when slanted outwards (fig d), the feet are also incorrect when slanted too far inwards.

?

c

d

?

• The feet are incorrect if the practitioner puts Knees are locked straight

weight on uneven parts of the foot, for example, Knees extend too far over the toes

on the side of the foot, or on the heel.

?

?

• Knees are incorrect when they go beyond the toes (fig e), the knees are also incorrect when they are lock and the legs are straight (fig f).

e

f

- - - It is wise to practice daily - - -

14

The three stages of floating & releasing within the Tai Chi (Beginners Stage)

These are the fundamental instructions for developing the internal forces within the body. We can call these the 1 - 2 - 3 stages (There are 5 stages in total, but to avoid confusion it is better initially to get a concrete understanding of the first three stages).

The three stages are:

Stage 1: Body floats - The lower body pushes into the upper body, the upper body floats. Inhalation of the breath initiates the beginning of stage one.

Stage 2: Releasing of the lower body. The lower body separates from the upper body.

Let gravity allow the lower body to drop. Exhalation of breath accompanies stage 2.

(Remember N