Monday, April 18, 7pm: MIT Qigong "Stand-a-Thon" for Boston Children's Hospital

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Core Noi Gong: A total internal exercise for the Mind, Body and Breath.

Notes from MIT Qigong Club Emails by Coach Jim Roselando, Jr. 

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What you experience at MIT Qigong sessions is Core Noi Gong (internal work/exercise) from the art of Yiquan.  Since the human body can only move in so many ways, this exercise is regarded as the King of the internal arts. Why is it so effective?  Natural conditioning, dynamics and energy all come from this which is equal to training Yoga, Taiji & Meditation.  Three forms of exercise all in one!

The progression of Yiquan is important to understand.  A, B & C = Standing, Moving & Walking!!!  {zhan zhaung/shili/ma chor}  AND, the reality is there is actually No Difference between Standing, Moving and Walking!  Each are essentially the same mechanics with the only difference being the amount of momentum that is utilized.  So, Moving and Walking = Standing with a bit more momentum but, there is no doubt that the Core of Yiquan Qigong is Zhan Zhuang Gong (Pile Standing Exercise).

One of the benefits of this art is the cultivation of Awareness.  The three keys to transport awareness are Posture, Relaxation and Breathing!  Each of these aspects is in the Natural State!


Yiquan is regarded as Yang Sheng (life nourishing) exercise, this training effects the entire human organism.  Different from external exercise, when you are training Yiquan, you are not bringing the mind and body into a chaotic state, which depletes the body as you exercise.  The heart rate and pulse will lower, the mind will quiet, the soft expanding and contracting massages the internal organs, the body opens up versus closes off and everything from the vascular system to every cell in the body gets nourished and activated!  So, when you are done your mind is calm but alert, the body is open but relaxed and other great benefits!  Over all, a total internal exercise for the Mind, Body and Breath.  You can see why Yiquan founder Wang XiangZhai wrote:

"Internally Alert, Externally Relaxed!  This is the foundation of Stillness!"

So, the reality is simple, but the training is physically demanding!  Why?  The internal health exercises are something that most have never done, and our bodies are so far from being in the Natural State that the most simple things are extremely arduous.  Remember, all we are focusing on in the beginning is the Core: Posture, Relaxation and Dan Tien Breathing.  With these three pieces of awareness to guide us the rest is about the time you invest outside the classroom!   

Zhan Zhuang is truly an investment in the Self and requires only a small amount of time per day to gain results.  Take our Two Week Challenge and see why this is pound for pound the most effective training known to humanity and the ultimate Cross Training exercise to fit with any other sport or fitness method.  

The Key to Health Preservation

Translated from an interview with YiQuan founder, Wang XiangZhai:

"The keys to health preservation are simple. Our deep human nature pushes us to simpleness, free of any restriction. Every day, in the fresh air of the morning, without any fixed method, simply bend all your body joints, consider the emptiness around you, move simply and freely. Feel the energy of the blood circulation in your body and in a meanwhile, be aware of the natural forces that are exerted on the outer part of your body. The spirit (shen) is as if swimming. The body and the spirit are natural and comfortable. Not only free and without any limit, they will progressively extend to finally be one with the universe."

Daily Practice Schedule:

Month 1 & 2: Crane (3L & 3R), Universal Post (20), Gathering (3)  

Month 3 & 4: Cow (6), Low Post (20), Gathering (3)

Month 4 & 5: Small Vibrations (6), Universal Post (20), Gathering (3)

Natural Qigong: The Art of Nourishing Life

Natural Qigong: “The Art of Nourishing Life”

By Jim Roselando, Jr.  

There are many ways to cultivate health (exercise). In the Chinese arts they are grouped into two categories of development – Natural (soft) & Un-Natural (hard). Yiquan (mind boxing) is a natural form of Yang Sheng (life nourishment) Qigong that cultivates, integrates and activates your whole body in stillness.  All Yiquan Qigong methods of cultivation are trained with softness, making the art suitable for practitioners of any age.

  

Natural & Un-Natural

       It is important to know the difference between Natural methods, and Un-Natural methods of exercise.  Master Wang Xiang Zhai, founder of Yiquan Qigong, clearly describes the core difference between natural (life nourishing) cultivation and other forms of exercise.      

"Appropriate exercises can positively affect every cell and every organ in the human body, improving the functioning of respiratory and vascular systems, as well as metabolism. In typical forms of exercise, before the body is tired, there are already problems with breathing and the heart is overburdened. So the exercise must be halted prematurely in order to let one's heart rest, to catch one's breath and return to a normal state. 

Chinese health science uses the opposite method. The principle is to exercise the muscular and vascular systems, stimulating every organ at the same time. Even if during exercise your muscles become tired, your pulse stays in the normal range, and breathing is natural. After the exercise, you feel that your breath is freer and more comfortable than before. Because there are no complex sets of movements, the nervous system is not greatly stressed; you eliminate internal tension, achieving mental calm. This is one of the elements that makes health science different from typical forms of exercise."  

  

Mind, Body & Breath

       The heart of Yiquan Qigong is known as Zhan Zhaung or “Pile Standing.”  Pile Standing is the most direct way to exercise the mind, body and breath in stillness.  The process is designed to return the body to the natural state. The classics state: Internally train the Breath and Qi; Externally train the Muscles, Tendons and Bones. In Yiquan Qigong, nothing is forced and all aspects of training are designed to open and unite the body.  A body that is open and elastic will have good circulation and be less prone to injury.  In Zhan Zhuang the spine naturally decompresses and realigns!  This process is best understood by this simple example:  If you wanted to untangle a telephone cord, would you stretch it out or would you hang it upside down and let “gravity” unlock it? This is the difference between Hard Qigong/Yoga and Life Nourishing Natural Qigong.

Final Thoughts

      Yiquan Qigong is a modern system that has no set patterns or techniques! The root training gradually and smoothly transforms you from the inside out. Development of Gok (awareness) is key, as it is awareness of posture, relaxation and breathing that will bring out the Zheng Qi (true chi) energy realm. Yiquan Qigong is a principle based training platform, which nourishes the three treasures Jing (essence), Qi (energy) and Shen (spirit), while simultaneously integrating and activating your whole body! Conditioning, Energy and Meditation are all results of the simple practice of Pile Standing!  In training, you will experience the rewards of three forms of exercise in one simple posture and this is why Pile Standing is regarded as the King of Exercise in China!

Minimal Effort/Maximum Results!

Personal daily routines are all under THIRTY MINUTES.  Yes, the Yiquan training is so core and effective that it requires but a fraction of the time to gain exceptional rewards.  Hence the maxim: Minimal Effort/Maximum Results!  The time it takes us to exercise our mind/body/breath is equal to what most people spend stuck in traffic on the way to the gym or fitness club.  Life Nourishing Qigong is a special platform for developing extreme fitness.  There is nothing more simple or more effective.  For those who have just started training I recommend Ten to Twenty Minutes of Zhan Zhuang per day for two weeks as a fair test of this arts effectiveness! 

Some notes from Master Wang on the body:

"Posture-wise, we must avoid looking up and tilting the head back, because that breaks the straightness of the neck.  Also, do not arch the back.  The elbows and the knees should be neither straight nor overly bent.  The best way is to have them half bent and half straight, that is to say UNLOCKED; then the ligaments will be stretched.  Keep the head straight and also the lower back.  Then the Qi will be able to sink, and the mind will be quiet and at ease.  The tips of your fingers and toes should be slightly extended and every pore of the body should be slightly open. Practice this way, and your internal energy flow will expand outward easily of its own accord.  Your weaknesses will become strengths and you will easily come to self-realization." 

The Yellow Emperor's Classic of Internal Medicine (2nd Century BC)

"When the mind is calm and stable, the vitality of life circulates harmoniously throughout the body.  If the body is nourished and protected by this circulation of vitality, how can it possibly become ill?"

Jim Roselando on Exercise and Breathing

Exercise & Breathing

Regular daily exercise of the slow, soft, rhythmic variety keeps the joints limber, tones tendons and muscles, and promotes circulation of essence and energy throughout the system.  Deep breathing acts as a 'second heart' to circulate blood, switches the nervous system over to the rejuvenating, immunity-boosting parasympathetic circuit, enhances nourishment and cleansing of tissues by blood, and stimulates positive biofeedback between the endocrine and nervous systems. Together, soft exercise and deep breathing form a basis of Qigong, which remains one of the most important of all disciplines for promoting health and promoting life! 

Wang XiangZhai Pile Skills

Some notes from Master Wang Xiang Zhai:

"In daily life, the exerciser should, at any place or time, pay attention to body postures in walking, sitting, standing or lying, and regard them as part of proper training.  This is done based on Zhuangfa or "Pile Skills" - the skill of keeping steadfast like a pile under all circumstances.  One sets all parts of the body to an appropriate state, keeps the body erect, with a mind free from any distractions, regulating the mind and the breath, conserving the muscles, so that the natural energy of the cells can be directed from the inside to outside through the whole body.  In doing so, the practitioner trains muscles, bones, and nervous system without knowing it.  What is crucial here is that one should concentrate the mind on perceiving the delicate motion and stillness inside the body.  When such a realm is reached, one will certainly understand the magical effect of Pile Skills.  So Zhuangfa is the first thing one should learn to practice."