Exercise, Energy, and Awareness

[Sunya]

I was pondering earlier what the effects of exercise on subtle energy, both jing and qi, and awareness (awakeness, alertness). I know yoga and qi gong are great but I am referring specifically to weight resistance and cardio. For those who are in-tune with themselves and have done regular exercise, have you noticed changes in your energy and awareness? Were these changes beneficial? Harmful?

[Marblehead]

Were these changes beneficial?

 

Absolutely "YES!".

 

So many positive things to say about this. All three build on and support each other. Do one, say exercise, you will naturally build the other two. (That is, of course, if your exercise is practiced properly.)

 

Peace & Love!

[markern]

It apears to me that when I get the endorphin rush after jogging it is connected to the heart energy. At elast my heart feels much better afterwards.

 

I have also found that lifting weights, although making me feel good in many ways, give me a sense og subtle injuries being made to my body that obstruct chi flow and make it less harmonious. I found clubbels gave me strength in a much more harmopnious way that did not give these smal subtle injruies. I guess maybe my technique in lifting weaights just isen`t good enough but I think it is quite comon that it creates tiny rifts in muscle and facia that are not good. Even if not enough for actual injury I think these are unhealthy for chi flow so be extremely precise in weight lifting and build up to heavier weights very slowly.

Edited September 1, 2010 by markern

[Marblehead]

... so be extremely precise in weight lifting and build up to heavier weights very slowly.

 

Very, very important!!! Thanks for including that.

 

Peace & Love!

[Vajrahridaya]

I was pondering earlier what the effects of exercise on subtle energy, both jing and qi, and awareness (awakeness, alertness). I know yoga and qi gong are great but I am referring specifically to weight resistance and cardio. For those who are in-tune with themselves and have done regular exercise, have you noticed changes in your energy and awareness? Were these changes beneficial? Harmful?

 

Yes, not only the obvious heightened muscle/body awareness, but my dopamine and endorphin levels are higher, thereby overcoming any possibility of depression.

[Gerard]

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Edited September 21, 2010 by durkhrod chogori

[buscon]

I was pondering earlier what the effects of exercise on subtle energy, both jing and qi, and awareness (awakeness, alertness). I know yoga and qi gong are great but I am referring specifically to weight resistance and cardio. For those who are in-tune with themselves and have done regular exercise, have you noticed changes in your energy and awareness? Were these changes beneficial? Harmful?

 

I find weight training really meditative, as you do it slowly and concetrating on the muscle your working.

My body awareness is increased, and so my meditation are more "rooted". You understand how the body react to a transformation and it can be a good example for other meditation: it's similar to the way of the fakir of Gurdjieff

 

As markern already said, just be precise with the movements and increase the weights slowly: your muscles grow faster than your bones and tendons.

 

About durkhrod chogori statement: weights training can create tension, if it's your only (or mainly) physical activity; I do it 2-3 a week but I also practice kung fu and/or qigong every day, this way you keep a balance: your body grows stronger but still flexible.

So remember about doing qigong or stretching, every time after weights training and do other activities the other days.

[Marblehead]

Besides weight training blocks Qi flow as makes your body too Yang; too much tension.

 

I would agree with this if that is all one does. However, if one balances the weight lifting with walking, aerobics or Tai Chi the polarities of Chi energies will become balanced.

 

Peace & Love!

[Maddie]

I guess I'll as the other side of this question. Can one by doing ONLY Qigong achieve and maintain a great degree of physical fitness?

[buscon]

I guess I'll as the other side of this question. Can one by doing ONLY Qigong achieve and maintain a great degree of physical fitness?

 

It depends on your goal and your current situation.

 

I'm doing weights training because I want to increase my muscle mass, in order to balance my body where it's weak. My kung fu teacher suggested it to me and he's following me step by step in this extra training: here's the importance of having a master, he knows the goals, your weakness and your strength, so that he can balance you in the right direction.

 

So there are no ONLY, but just some singular situation.

 

Anyway as a general answer I'd say no, if you really want to keep a great degree of physical fitness, qigong is not enough.

[markern]

I am not very experienced in these matters but my clubbels experience was sooooo much more harmonious, gave me a feeling of being much more functionally strong and strong all over and of increasing my health much and of developing by controll over my body more and increasing my range of motion. So for most people I can see VERY little reason to do weights when one can do clubbels instead. Conventional weights are probably somewhat better for building muscle size than clubbels, it might be better for maximum strength in one exertion and a few other things most people don`t really need. Probably better for sculpting muscle as well. THat said I am going of to the gym to do some lifting now because my clubbels teacher left for China after only one lesson but eventually I`ll make the shift.

[Sunya]

clubbels? whats that?

 

Thanks for the responses guys.. I was just wondering because there was a promotion at a local gym if my whole family signed up and we got 15$ a month each. A really great deal, hard to pass up. I know this will prove very useful during the winter when I can no longer go on my long walks at night.

 

I did a yoga class today.. my girlfriend kept telling me to go with her but I was scared because it's a very intense class. Wow does my body hurt. Now that's a workout!

 

I used to care about body mass and would lift regularly.. but I could care less now. Only reason I want to go to the gym is because I need to get into shape for the Navy, if I get into my desired doctorate program. To pass physical entrance, I need to do 50+ push ups, 60+ sit ups, and run a 12 minute 1.5 mile run. Not too crazy but something to train for.

 

Cardio seems to be helpful, but for what most of you guys have said, lifting weights isn't beneficial, at least not for our interests. I'll probably stick with cardio at the gym and maybe do abdominal exercises as well. Would you guys say that for doing a high number of push ups, I should just focus on body weight and not even bother with lifting weights? I'm not sure about the connection between high-repetition training and high-resistance low-repetition training.

 

Well... now that I think about it, I might do some occasional lifting. I really miss doing deadlifts. Those are fun

Edited September 2, 2010 by Sunya

[Marblehead]

Well... now that I think about it, I might do some occasional lifting. I really miss doing deadlifts. Those are fun

 

Hehehe. Yeah, I love week three of my workout sessions with dead weights. The first two weeks are bummers because all the fat is being burned and muscles are being used that are not used often in everyday life. But week three I feel the building of muscle mass and the beginning of the firmness of the muscles.

 

I don't work out constantly - just when I need to build my strength and endurance back up as well as drop a little excess fat.

 

Best wishes toward you prep for the Navy.

 

Peace & Love!

[forestofclarity]

I'm going to say it: I've experienced more health benefits from old fashioned Western exercise than qi gong. Not only that, but seeing people grow old who exercise regularly, they appear to be quite healthy physically --- much more so than the average qi gong person.

 

The best way I've found to be in good shape for running, sit ups, and push ups (and if you're thinking Navy, swimming) is running, sit ups, and push ups, and other body weight exercises for diversity.

[Sunya]

I'm going to say it: I've experienced more health benefits from old fashioned Western exercise than qi gong.

 

Could you be more specific about what you mean by old fashioned Western exercise?

[NeiChuan]

I guess I'll as the other side of this question. Can one by doing ONLY Qigong achieve and maintain a great degree of physical fitness?

 

Theres a lot of qi gong that'll do that. Especially the asanas and martial qi gong.

[LBDaoist]

Anyway as a general answer I'd say no, if you really want to keep a great degree of physical fitness, qigong is not enough.

 

My experience meshes with this assertion. I have found that qigong helps maintain the more strenuous activities like kung fu training for longer periods of time. By longer I mean both in any given session, and also in terms of the number of consecutive days. The hard and the soft really do compliment each other. The hard kung fu training builds muscle tone and "energy strength" for lack of a better word. Perhaps jin is the term I am looking for?

[forestofclarity]

Sit ups, push ups, running, squats, leg lifts, bicycle kicks, and their many variations: spider man push ups, diamond push ups, camp fires, etc. All classic PT stuff.

 

And also Intu-flow.

 

Could you be more specific about what you mean by old fashioned Western exercise?

[Maddie]

My experience meshes with this assertion. I have found that qigong helps maintain the more strenuous activities like kung fu training for longer periods of time. By longer I mean both in any given session, and also in terms of the number of consecutive days. The hard and the soft really do compliment each other. The hard kung fu training builds muscle tone and "energy strength" for lack of a better word. Perhaps jin is the term I am looking for?

 

I know that a lot of kung fu people do qigong as part of their training, but what I do not understand is how exactely the two are related. How does qigong benefit kung fu or other hard exercises?

[Maddie]

I'm going to say it: I've experienced more health benefits from old fashioned Western exercise than qi gong. Not only that, but seeing people grow old who exercise regularly, they appear to be quite healthy physically --- much more so than the average qi gong person.

 

The best way I've found to be in good shape for running, sit ups, and push ups (and if you're thinking Navy, swimming) is running, sit ups, and push ups, and other body weight exercises for diversity.

 

This is a big question I have been pondering for some time now (like ever since I started doing qigong lol). Never one to just take someone else's word for it, I have sort of used myself as a human lab rat.

When I was in the Army we did of course a lot of PT, running, push ups, sit ups, ect... Granted I was in excellent physical condition, yet my emotions were really problematic. After I got out of the army I continued to do the same sort of PT stuff because I did not want to become a fat civilian slob lol, yet my emotions continued to be my main problem in life.

 

So I began qigong with the primary goal of balancing my emotions as that was my biggest problem in life as opposed to being physcially out of shape. Granted I still do some PT type stuff, primarily in my Karate work outs, but as a percentage it is much less now as in relation to the amount of qigong I do.

I definately do not feel like I am in the same level of physical conditioning as I was when I was in the army, yet my emotional state now as compared to the time I was in the army is improved (and hopefully continues to improve). Also I was in the army before the Iraq/Afganistan thing began so my emotion problems were not related to PTSD, but just life itself.

So with all that being said I suppose that perhaps its simply a matter of priorities. What is your goal? what do you want to get out of it? If the answer is to be physically fit, then perhaps PT stuff is the most direct route. If inner issues are your primary goal then perhaps Qigong is the most direct route?

[johndoe2012]

If inner issues are your primary goal then perhaps Qigong is the most direct route?

 

Isn't Qigong primarily for cultivation of energy?

 

I would recommend ordinary meditation (just follow the breath) or vipassana for dealing with emotional issues.

[Maddie]

Right now I'm reading the book "Beyond Band of Brothers, the war memoirs of Major Dick Winters". I found something he said in the book very interesting in regards to the relation of physical and mental health.

 

"Physical exhaustion leads to mental exhaustion, which in turn, causes men to lose discipline. Loss of self-discipline keeps a soldier doing his job. Without it, he loses his pride and he loses the importantce of self-respect in the eyes of his fellow soldiers. It is pride that keeps a soldeir going and keeps him in the fight..... I often wondered why I didn't break under the strain of combat.... another factor was undoubtedly my physical conditioning."

 

pp 173-174, "Beyond Band of Brothers, the war memoirs of Major Dick Winters", Maj. Dick Winters, with Col. Cole C. Kingseed.

 

I found this observation from a World War II combat soldier facinating. He observed how a healthy physical body help to keep one mentally healthy under severe stress and strain. Sometimes it seems that the line between where qigong ends and where western exercises begin is hard to determine.

[markern]

markern, clubbels practices I've watched on youtube look verrrry interesting. Can't find but kettlebells instructors locally. Is your chinaman coming back?

 

Sunya, here's a clubbels routine. See how the practice incorporates joint movement/flexibility.

 

 

My chinaman isen`t actually a chinaman he`s just in china and he comes back in three weeks so I get to continue.

 

THe joint movement stuff felt very good and usefull. You feel more open and able to move afterwards as opposed to the feeling of being tightened and rigid that can come from ordinary weights. You also get the benefit that many of the moves also incorporate movements of the legs and whole body so they get simultanious workouts as your arms do. So that way its also very effectivfe.

 

Intuflow is also very nice. I do it almost every day.

 

Ya Mu and Bill Bodri both say jumping on a rebounder is TEH best form of physical workout.

[johndoe2012]

Intuflow is also very nice. I do it almost every day.

 

Have you done the Advanced and Master levels from the DVD's or just the beginner and intermediate levels from youtube?

 

I am wondering if it is necessary to buy the complete program or just practise the basic stuff.

[markern]

Have you done the Advanced and Master levels from the DVD's or just the beginner and intermediate levels from youtube?

 

I am wondering if it is necessary to buy the complete program or just practise the basic stuff.

 

I have only done the beginners stuff. HAven`t felt any need to get to the more advanded levels yet. I don`t think I will for quite some time. The beginner level, practiced over a long time, achieves A LOT of good things for your body. So doing more advanced levels is not necessary, but I think at some point it becomes natural to advance and little use only doing the basics when you could get more from the advanced.