Questions about exercise

[Ragnor]

Hello! I have been suffering from tendonitis in my right foot for a month or so, but it is has gotten better recently and I am thinking of easing back into my running and bodyweight routines. Sometime in the past two weeks I discovered Zhan Zhuang and the Eight Pieces of Brocade, and have been doing them too.

 

I was recently reading about Tai Chi and internal arts, and some of the things I read seemed to imply that strenuous physical exercise may harm the body, and that it may negatively impact one's longetivity.

 

I am new to Qigong, so I was wondering whether or not this is true, and how general exercise affects my physical health from a Qigong perspective.

 

Are there any alternatives to normal exercise if it is true? I am nearly at my ideal weight, I would like to tone my body, build more muscle, and generally be healthier and have more energy.

 

http://www.youtube.c...t?feature=watch

 

In the above set of videos, Master Lam claims that the poses help burn fat and tone muscles. I love doing these exercises, I can feel a benefit both mentally and physically, but I am a bit skeptical about these claims, are the fat burning and muscle toning really comparable with normal cardio and strength routines?

[RiverSnake]

Every exercise has a certain amount of wear and tear on the body. Some exercises has more tear than others...for example lifting weights can be very hard on ones joints and many men end up tearing there rotator cuff.....running and other hard exercises such as karate also can be deteriating to the body in the long run......when were youn we don't really notice and we can afford to beat up are body in all kinds of ways.

 

If your looking for exercises that have very low impact on the body I would suggest Tai Chi (or any other Soft martial art), swimming, Qi Gong, and Hatha Yoga. Tai Chi, Qi Gong, and Hatha Yoga rejuvenate the body and result in longevity....not sure about swimming.....also I don' see anything wrong with basic push-ups and chin-ups....body-weight exercises IME have significantly less wearing effect on the body because no weight it added.

 

-My 2 cents, Peace

[Ya Mu]

Hello! I have been suffering from tendonitis in my right foot for a month or so, but it is has gotten better recently and I am thinking of easing back into my running and bodyweight routines. Sometime in the past two weeks I discovered Zhan Zhuang and the Eight Pieces of Brocade, and have been doing them too.

 

I was recently reading about Tai Chi and internal arts, and some of the things I read seemed to imply that strenuous physical exercise may harm the body, and that it may negatively impact one's longetivity.

 

I am new to Qigong, so I was wondering whether or not this is true, and how general exercise affects my physical health from a Qigong perspective.

 

Are there any alternatives to normal exercise if it is true? I am nearly at my ideal weight, I would like to tone my body, build more muscle, and generally be healthier and have more energy.

 

http://www.youtube.c...t?feature=watch

 

In the above set of videos, Master Lam claims that the poses help burn fat and tone muscles. I love doing these exercises, I can feel a benefit both mentally and physically, but I am a bit skeptical about these claims, are the fat burning and muscle toning really comparable with normal cardio and strength routines?

http://qigongamerica...cs-program.html

[GrandmasterP]

QiGong is very user friendly.

Aim to expend no more than 70% of your maximum effort and switch to standing form 8 Strands if moving set is causing discomfort.

MCO is very good for any 'itis', send the inflammation around to disperse and dissolve it and then lose any nasties via exhalation.

HTH

Best wishes to you for fruitful cultivation.

Edited January 4, 2013 by GrandmasterP

[skydog]

http://qigongamerica...cs-program.html

 

Nice blog

[hydrogen]

 

http://www.youtube.c...t?feature=watch

 

In the above set of videos, Master Lam claims that the poses help burn fat and tone muscles. I love doing these exercises, I can feel a benefit both mentally and physically, but I am a bit skeptical about these claims, are the fat burning and muscle toning really comparable with normal cardio and strength routines?

 

What he claimed might be very true. And it might be better for your health than normal cardio.

 

However, Zhan Zhuang is an advanced Qi Gong practice. It's very hard to do it right for beginners. The same with Tai Chi.

[mike 134]

some of the things I read seemed to imply that strenuous physical exercise may harm the body, and that it may negatively impact one's longetivity.

 

The ppl who wrote the things you read have no clue what they are talking about. Numerous studies highlight the wide variety of benefits of physical exercise. This study, for instance, finds that

 

All-cause mortality is decreased by about 30% to 35% in physically active as compared to inactive subjects.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3395188/

 

You only harm yourself when you do it too much. Like marathon runners, for instance, they appear haggard and old for their age. It's because of all the cortisol (stress hormone) that they release when they over do it. But several hours per week of strenuous activity is perfectly safe.

[GrandmasterP]

"All-cause mortality is decreased by about 30% to 35% in physically active as compared to inactive subjects".

 

Now I really don't want to appear to be wazzing on anyone's bonfire here chums but might we just pause for a moment to consider the flaw in that sentence above?

 

[ChiDragon]

I was recently reading about Tai Chi and internal arts, and some of the things I read seemed to imply that strenuous physical exercise may harm the body, and that it may negatively impact one's longetivity.

 

I am new to Qigong, so I was wondering whether or not this is true, and how general exercise affects my physical health from a Qigong perspective.

 

Are there any alternatives to normal exercise if it is true? I am nearly at my ideal weight, I would like to tone my body, build more muscle, and generally be healthier and have more energy.

 

External arts are energy consuming during the practice such as running and weight lifting. Both were considered strenuous physical exercises. It may cause body harm. I don't what caused your tendonitis in your right foot. Was it from your running or body weight....???

 

From a Qigong perspective, Tai Chi is an internal arts which only has minimal stress on the muscles by your own body weight. The best part of it is that the stress of your own body weight was slowly applied to the muscles. As a result, you are slowly building up your muscle tone without excess of stress applied to your muscles which might cause body harm. The unique factor about Qigong is the exercise in breathing which helps to increase the oxygen intake to circulate in the body. In addition, the slow movements will cause your muscles to contract slightly which help to squeeze the blood in the veins; it will speed up the blood in returning to the heart. In a way, this is aiding the circulatory system and have the heart to do less work than normal.

 

Qigong cultivates three things; it regulates breathing, mind and body. Tai Chi is a form of Qigong and body exercise which regulate the muscles. Spontaneously, it will train the mind to control the finest movements of the muscles. Tai Chi will tone your body while helps you to improve your breathing habit. Just keep this simple concept in mind: you breathe you'll live. If you don't, you'll die. Thus if you breathe more, then you'll live longer.

Edited January 4, 2013 by ChiDragon

[i am]

Just look at it this way, and don't worry about the rest:

 

Strenuous physical exercise. This means, to me, pushing yourself to the point of exaustion. Huge difference between your typical trail runner or street runner and your marathon runner. You know? Exercise is GOOD. Necessary, even. Pushing yourself to the limit? Well...depends on who you ask, but I think it's bad. Moderation.

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Now there are studies out saying that pushing yourself hard is the only way to prevent heart disease. Or at least the unless you get a couple hours of somewhat aerobic exercise every day, you're not doing the good that just pushing yourself to the limit for 5 minutes every day would do. I don't know how they did these studies, and really...I don't care.

 

I take the dog on two 30-45 minutes walks, on the trails every day. Mountain foothill trails, so lots of nice hills to climb. I also some staff training and light sit-ups and pull-ups. I very, very rarely work myself to exaustion. It doesn't feel healthy to me. I'm not going to change what I think is a very healthy exercise regimen that works well for me and makes me feel good, just because some study said otherwise.

 

I think it's common sense that overworking yourself is a recipe for injury, and possibly for shortening your life. But exercise is very much necessary. Running & bike riding, even. Aerobic exercise.

 

Marathon running is a whole different thing.

Edited January 4, 2013 by i am

[Birch]

"All-cause mortality is decreased by about 30% to 35% in physically active as compared to inactive subjects".

 

Now I really don't want to appear to be wazzing on anyone's bonfire here chums but might we just pause for a moment to consider the flaw in that sentence above?

 

Good idea.

[mike 134]

"All-cause mortality is decreased by about 30% to 35% in physically active as compared to inactive subjects".

 

Now I really don't want to appear to be wazzing on anyone's bonfire here chums but might we just pause for a moment to consider the flaw in that sentence above?

 

??????

[Ragnor]

The tendonitis was technically due to the running, but mostly due to my own stupidity. Started doing too much too soon, and my feet couldn't adapt to it.

Thank you for your responses. I think I will look into Tai Chi, but keep a basic running and bodyweight routine on the side to be safe.