TCM & the Kidneys

[mantis]

from a TCM perspective is there any natural way to build up your kidneys? also, is there anything specifically that weakens or drains them?

[joeblast]

Yep, there's 'natural' ways: the right foods/herbs/supplements, the right qigongs, the right acupuncture/press/moxa treatments.

 

too much sex, fear, or stress can weaken them...hit up a google search and you should find some articles

[Aetherous]

Don't drink or eat cold things.

[gendao]

from a TCM perspective is there any natural way to build up your kidneys? also, is there anything specifically that weakens or drains them?

A lot of things can drain them. Basically, your kidneys are the energetic water coolant of your system. So, when you create too much fire/heat in any other area, your kidneys will get energetically drained of "water" to cool it down.

 

So (I believe) basically a yin deficiency/"false yang" state results as the yin gets depleted to reduce the excess yang heat to normal levels:

And physically, our kidneys also get easily strained filtering out the toxic soup we live in from our blood (as our primary blood filters).

 

But, I'm still wondering how to build them up myself?

 

KD-3 & UB-23 may help restore kidney yin:

Edited February 3, 2009 by vortex

[Fire Dragon]

Hi

 

From a book by Fan Xiulan

 

 

Eat at specifik time and regularly

 

Find a good place to live

 

Find a work that you like

 

Cultivate good feelings

 

 

Keep your feet and lover back warm. You can heat your hands by rubbing them together and then massaging your lower back kidney area with your palms. Heat up the kidneys.

 

 

Don't owerworke or have not to much sex or ejaculations

 

 

Keep a peacful mind especially during the cold period in the winter

 

Eat:

 

Millet

Black soya bean

yellow soya bean

chinese chives

fungus: shiitace

peanut

walnut

 

 

Exercises like yogging, but not to hard, should not feel collapse afterwards but full of energy

 

 

 

I read some of this advises the other day and you remind me to look in the book again. I will try to do this in my own life, with to litle kidney yang.

 

 

F D

[gendao]

Exercises like yogging, but not to hard, should not feel collapse afterwards but full of energy

Someone else also told me that regular active, bouncy exercising could help "work out" and energetically rebuild the kidneys (and everything else), even if just done a few minutes a day...

 

Is this generally accepted in TCM, though? "High-impact" physical activity working out not just the muscles, but also organs and meridians energetically as well? If so, how exactly so?

 

I thought you "had" to do "slow" forms of qigong for energetic replenishment, not just simply jump around? If not, then what's "qigong" for?

Edited February 3, 2009 by vortex

[Sloppy Zhang]

Someone else also told me that regular active, bouncy exercising could help "work out" and energetically rebuild the kidneys (and everything else), even if just done a few minutes a day...

 

Is this generally accepted in TCM, though? "High-impact" physical activity working out not just the muscles, but also organs and meridians energetically as well? If so, how exactly so?

 

I thought you "had" to do "slow" forms of qigong for energetic replenishment, not just simply jump around? If not, then what's "qigong" for?

 

Don't know if this is directly related, but B.K. Frantzis in "Opening the Energy Gates of Your Body" talks about how when you relax your body, you allow your organs to relax and move a little bit within your body. If you move while in this relaxed state, your organs get jostled around and it gives sort of a mini-massage, which actually strengthens the organs over time. He says that a lot of times most people keep pretty tense in their body, and their organs don't move, so they don't get a lot of contact, so they don't really get that therapeutic effect. He also points out how animals, like dogs and horses if you watch as they walk, have their bellies sway a little bit from side to side because it's relaxed, which gives the organs that massage.

 

Dunno about that last part, since I don't have a dog or a horse right now.... but it may go a bit into explaining the whole jogging/bouncing exercise stuff.

[thaddeus]

from a TCM perspective is there any natural way to build up your kidneys? also, is there anything specifically that weakens or drains them?

The book scholar warrior has some recipes to build kidneys. Chinese believe, dark foods like black sesame and black beans will build up kidneys. Eating kidneys like pork kidney is supposed to be good as well.

Lamb is reputed to be a jing builder.

You can take herbal recipes like 'sho wu ji'.

Rubbing and gently tapping the kidney area is supposed to help (don't over do).

One explanation of why taiji builds kidney and liver strength is because the movement from the waist and legs stimulate those meridians with the twisting.

Sleep alot but not too much.

T

[Trunk]

But, I'm still wondering how to build them up myself?

 

KD-3 & UB-23 may help restore kidney yin:

Nice post.

 

Re: self-acupressure, a start is to learn the channels for the water element (kidneys & u.bladder) and wood element (liver and g.bladder). "Water element" is probably what you mean when you say "kidneys" anyway. The wood element is intimately related with water, and wood is the first step after water in the creation cycle to get water circulating.

 

Occasionally it astounds me how little we know. We've been talking about sexual practices for ever, yet how many of us know enough to massage our kidney and u.b. channels?

 

Trunk

[WhiteTiger]

Occasionally it astounds me how little we know. We've been talking about sexual practices for ever, yet how many of us know enough to massage our kidney and u.b. channels?

 

Trunk

 

Nice point...

[joeblast]

KD3 is definitely one of those points that helps...and also one of those that you dont even feel a needle going into

 

5 Element theory is a good application here, you can stimulate other channels to affect the desired one.

[Ya Mu]

Someone else also told me that regular active, bouncy exercising could help "work out" and energetically rebuild the kidneys (and everything else), even if just done a few minutes a day...

 

Is this generally accepted in TCM, though? "High-impact" physical activity working out not just the muscles, but also organs and meridians energetically as well? If so, how exactly so?

 

I thought you "had" to do "slow" forms of qigong for energetic replenishment, not just simply jump around? If not, then what's "qigong" for?

 

I do rebounding qigong and find it very helpful (the miniature trampolines, rebounders). Not high impact at all. Very energizing and I think it could help in many situations.

[mantis]

wow, thanks for all the information on here! i agree trunk, it's taken me a longgggggggg time to finally realize you are right in the end and trying to retain may not be so good in the end after all.

 

massage KD-3 & UB-23

 

take it easy on the cold foods/drinks

 

eat lamb, black sesame seeds

 

[seadog]

Can I ask why specifically you want to build up your kidney energy?

[mantis]

Can I ask why specifically you want to build up your kidney energy?

 

well, i feel that we drain on them the most through our western-lifestyles.

[Fire Dragon]

Hello

 

 

I add to my list above

 

 

Urinate imidiately when feeling need to

 

Don't be up late at night

[seadog]

well, i feel that we drain on them the most through our western-lifestyles.

How so?

[Aetherous]

How does Western lifestyle wear on the kidneys?

 

One thing is sitting in chairs with a back rest. It's said that leaning back drains the energy from mingmen.

 

Altogether we treat our bodies like people who don't care about their cars, treat their cars. Westerners tend to stuff whatever food (as long as it's protein and carb balanced) down their throats at specific times of the day, not paying any attention to the moaning of their intestines or the cries of their stomach. They stay up very late...most don't get a full night's rest. They do exercise intensely, many to the point of wearing down their joints or to the point of nearly blacking out or seeing stars, because it's apparently healthy to do it that way. Too much computer use, too much sitting around not moving.

 

There could probably be many more reasons, but these are some ideas.

[mantis]

How so?

 

poor diet, poor sex lives, we either exercise too much or don't exercise at all.

[seadog]

poor diet, poor sex lives, we either exercise too much or don't exercise at all.

 

Do you do those things?

What is apoor sex life?

[mantis]

Do you do those things?

What is apoor sex life?

 

what are you getting at?