Adjusting Energy Flow Through Exercise

Everyone knows that they need to exercise more. But what kind of exercise is best? Did you know that vigorous, aerobic-type exercise actually can impair your immune system and that more gentle, meditative-type exercise can actually help your body heal?

Spring Forest Qigong is a series of gentle movements with slow, deep breathing and visualization, which has been found to have significant healing effects on the body. It is easy to do, and can be carried out by children, the elderly, and those who have physical and health challenges. The movements can be done from a standing, sitting or lying position, so practically anyone in any situation can benefit from them.

We know that one of the benefits of exercise is that it causes movement of fluid in the lymphatic system. The Lymphatic system is a clear liquid delivery system, not only delivering the immune system's disease-fighting cells to the sites that need them, but also delivering toxins to sites that can eliminate them from the body. It is important that the lymphatic system be in good working order and that we remove obstacles to it's effective functioning.

There are two factors that stimulate the lymphatic system to action. One is deep breathing, and the other is movement. Both these things are increased during certain kinds of exercise.

All exercise is good for the body, but some exercises are better than others. When most people think of exercise, they think of aerobic exercise like running, swimming, aerobic dancing, or playing tennis. These exercises are good, but studies have found that exercises which require high levels of adrenaline can cancel out some of the beneficial effects of the immune system's disease-fighting cells.

The kind of exercise that has been found to be most beneficial is exercise with slow, sustained movement and deep breathing.

Anytime the body needs healing, conserving energy is very important. Exercise creates energy for healing, but Vigorous exercise uses up so much energy in it's execution that it can actually use up the healing energy that has been created. So milder, less vigorous forms of exercise actually conserve enough of the healing energy that it is still available for the immune system to use.

This makes forms of exercise such as Qigong, Yoga and T'ai Chi perfect for healing the body. The deep breathing and gentle movements stimulate the flow of lymphatic fluids, as well as enercouraging the removing of energy blockages and balancing energy within the body.

Another important aspect of Qigong exercise is that it initiates something called the "relaxation response" which puts the body into a state of gentle regeneration and repair, something vigorous exercise does not do. After vigorous exercise in which high levels of adrenaline are produced, this gentle regeneration is necessary to allow the body to recover from the stress placed on it during the vigorous exercise. The relaxation response helps the body repair the damages from any kind of stress, physical or mental.

In 1974, building on the work of Swiss Nobel Laureate Dr. Walter R. Hess and himself, Dr. Herbert Benson described a physiological response that is the opposite of the fight-or flight response. It results in decreased metabolism, decreased heart rate, decreased blood pressure, and decreased rate of breathing, as well as slower brain waves. Dr. Benson labeled this as the "relaxation response."

The fight-or-flight response occurs automatically when one experiences stress, without requiring the use of a technique. In contrast, two steps are usually required to elicit the relaxation response. They are: (1) the repetition of a word, sound, prayer, phrase or muscular activity and (2) when other, everyday thoughts intrude, there is a passive return to the repetition. Many different methods can be used to bring forth the relaxation response including: progressive muscle relaxation, meditation, autogenic training, yoga, and repetitive physical exercise. In addition, many forms of prayer can also be used.

So what is a good definition of the Relaxation Response? The relaxation response is defined as your personal ability to make your body release chemicals and brain signals that make your muscles and organs slow down and increases blood flow to the brain. Drugs can do some of this for you, however they often have unwanted side effects. You can get your body to relax just as well without the drugs.

Spring Forest Qigong has been evaluated medically, and has been found to be effective in helping to treat:

Headaches and migranes Depression Stress and Anxiety Fibromyalgia Weight problems Allergies Cancer Arthritis Immune disorders Asthma Digestive upsets Reinforces the immune system Diabetes Stroke Hearing and Sight Gallstones and kidney stones Post Traumatic Stress disorder Thyroid and glandular dysfunction Circulation problems Panic attacks

A study conducted during the summer of 2002 found that Spring Forest Qigong "is a highly effective complementary and alternative treatment modality for depression and should be considered as an adjunct to psychotherapy treatment."

The study was conducted over a period of two months by Frances V. Gaik, a doctoral candidate at the Adler School of Psychology in Chicago, Illinois. The study findings were included in Ms. Gaik's dissertation. She subsequently was awarded her doctorate in January of 2003.

Here is a quote from Ms. Gaik's dissertation:

A pilot study with 39 subjects suffering from DSM-IV diagnosis of Major Depression, Dysthymia or Bipolar Disorder were treated with the Eastern Traditional Chinese Medicine technique of qigong. Treatment included qi emission treatment by qualified practitioners, and subjects were required to practice qigong exercise for a two-month period. Significant improvement was observed, especially in the first month on the measurements of Beck's Depression Index-Revised (BDI-R) (.0000) and Symptom Checklist -90 R (SCL-90-R) Depression Index (.00003), Interpersonal Sensitivity (.00003). SCL-90 Somaticism indexes as well as three criteria from DSM-IV guidelines are also reported on indicating an overall trend of improvement over time. All subjects improved over the treatment period and it is determined that the qigong exercise is a highly effective complementary and alternative treatment modality for depression and should be considered as an adjunct to psychotherapy treatment. No significant difference was seen in those subjects treated with qi emission.

And here's a study which showed that exercise accelerates wound healing among healthy older adults. This study was done at the Ohio State University at Columbus, and was conducted by Charles F. Emery and colleagues, and was published in the The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences 60:1432-1436 (2005).

This study evaluated the effectof a 3-month exercise program on wound healing, neuroendocrine function, and perceived stress among healthy older adults.Wound healing occurredat a significantly faster rate in the exercise group, 7.4 days as opposed to 9 days for the control group.

Some of the benefits of self-healing with Qigong are:

Cardiovascular
lower resting heart rate; normalized EKG, blood pressure, and cholesterol levels

Respiratory
slower respiratory rate, improves gaseous exchange, significant benefits for asthma & bronchitis

Immune System
better targeting of antigens, significant anti-cancer effect

Circulation
improves microcirculation, prevents vascular spasms, very helpful for angina, migraine, and Reynaud's Syndrome (cold hands & feet)

Brain
improves cerebral blood flow, less incidence of stroke; reduction in frequency and intensity of seizure disorders; slow, high amplitude brainwaves suggest relaxed and integrated state of consciousness

Musculoskeletal
improves posture, balance, strength, stamina, flexibility

Chronic Pain
significant pain reduction from all causes, including injury, surgery, arthritis, fibromyalgia

Mental Health
decreases: stress response, Type A, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive, depression. Improves memory and interpersonal sensitivity

Longevity
improves: blood pressure, vital capacity, cholesterol and hormone levels, kidney function, mental acuity, vision and hearing, skin elasticity, bone density, immune function, digestion, balance, flexibility, strength, libido. Destroys free radicals (major cause of tissue degeneration) by stimulating activity of superoxide dismutase

It just goes to show that you can maintain good cardiovascular health, improve the functioning of your immune system, and speed healing, WITHOUT having to wear yourself out doing vigorous, aerobic-type exercise. Qigong is a very enjoyable, pleasant, meditative type experience that most people find no problem with continuing on a regular basis.

Spring Forest Qigong was developed by Dr. Chunyi Lin. He is a certified international Qigong Master and founder of Spring Forest Qigong. His fluency in numerous Chinese dialects provided him the rare opportunity to study with many of the most respected Qigong Masters in his native China. He has been teaching Qigong and using Qigong techniques to help others for more than twenty-five years. Master Lin is also highly skilled in Tai Chi, Chinese herbal medicine and acupuncture.

Master Lin found that, after spending years thoroughly studying the many Qigong practices indigenous to China, that many of the practices were unnecessarily difficult and hard to learn. He designed Spring Forest Qigong to be simple and easy to learn, and yet it is very powerful.

Spring Forest Qigong fits right in with the idea of Unhindered Living because it is a simple and effective way that you can remove obstacles and increase your health and wellness. Here at the Center for Unhindered Living, we offer a FREE Spring Forest Qigong Level One class, which meets every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 6:00pm. The class lasts about 40 minutes.

My own experience with Spring Forest Qigong is that the concentration it requires calms my mind, while the physical movements strengthen my muscles. The movements that are required are done over and over in a repetitious manner, and this is what creates the relaxation response. The Level One course has six sets of repetitive movements, which open the energy channels and release blockages. As you progress through the movements, you will be able to feel your energy flow increasing, and most people report that they feel, in particular, their hands and arms tingling and pulsating with energy.

Some people are surprised at the fact that the movements can both energize you and relax you at the same time. After you have been doing the routines for some time, you will find that, even if you came to class feeling harried, stressed and tired, the contemplative nature of the exercises releases their stress, and the opening of the energy channels and increasing the chi flow gives them move energy to enjoy the rest of their day.

We would love for you to join us for classes each week, but if you do not live near the Southwest Oklahoma area, you can purchase Master Lin's course on DVD or cassette on our website, through Amazon.com