When trying out a gluten elimination diet, a 60 day trial is usually what is recommended. Well, it’s been 60 days. I’ve found avoiding gluten to be not as difficult as I would have imagined. The only time I really freaked out was at the wedding last weekend. I was cranky and hungry when we got to the reception and consciously made the choice to dig into the bread basket. That night I had a roll and a half and about a cup of spaghetti. Not exactly a “breaking my diet” binge. I didn’t feel any sort of urge to go all out or overindulge since I’d already given myself permission to “eat what I wanted”. And although there was lovely wedding cake, donuts, and other dessert-goodness, I was simply too full by that point to be interested. This all just reinforced to me that avoiding gluten was a choice I was making to see if it would improve how I felt, not a diet. I had none of the diet-breaking symptoms. This was fantastic news. One thing I did notice was that I craved a bagel the next morning when I smelled Cute Man toasting one. I decided to not go for it, then, so it definitely wasn’t an all-encompassing undeniable urge. I’ve remained gluten free since and it’s been fine.
My question, though, is: what is the purpose? Am I achieving what I sought out to do? I reviewed my first post about going GF from back in April and realized that I haven’t seen any improvement in the physical symptoms I described. The biggest is the heartburn and that is still raging, I must say. TUMS remains my friend and I’m living with it. The other things I mentioned all remain the same, too. With the gluten free trial period completed, I would expect to see some sort of difference. I realize that these things don’t happen right away, but after two months, I’d think I’d see something. So, it’s really an opportunity cost thing. For the inconvenience of avoiding this food, what I am getting? Nothing really that I can see.
I also need to balance these health concerns with my dieting history and make sure I’m not doing it in order to somehow continue to restrict my eating. I must admit that I hoped that avoiding wheat would have a “happy side-effect” of not exactly weight loss, but maybe leave me less bloated and more comfortable in my clothes… Well, the bridesmaid dress was definitely tighter last week than it was before the GF experiment. I’m not beating myself up about that or anything, it’s just a fact. So that hope (whether it was a healthy one or not) went out the window, too. As a result, I feel like I need to return to Intuitive Eating basics and stop the GF restriction at this time. It’s not helping me and may actually be triggering a bit of my ‘fantasy of finding the answer to my weight related woes’ issue. I can say that I’m fine with being fat all I want, but it’s a hard road to follow within our culture. I recognize that dieting has never had a lasting positive impact on my life but making peace with my body is an ongoing process.
Moving forward, I’m continuing to focus on treating my body well. I’ve been upping my yoga practice and enjoying it at home more often as well as my classes at work. I want to add more walking in my daily life but I’m otherwise pleased with my ability and inclination toward activity (it’s no longer something I should do, rather it’s something I want to do because it feels good). This is a huge shift for me! I also know that keeping processed foods to a minimum helps me feel better, too, so that will continue. As for the continuing heartburn, it is what it is. For now, I think medicating with TUMS isn’t the end of the world. I’ll mention it to my doctor the next time I’m there and see if she has any ideas. It’s time to give myself a break and just trust I know how to feed myself: Eat when hungry, stop when full. I can do that!
Jumat, 11 Juni 2010
Kamis, 10 Juni 2010
Why Incentive and Penalty Programs to Encourage Health are a Bad Idea
Over at Budgets are Sexy, J. Money brought up the subject of Employer and/or health insurance incentive/penalty programs. It really got me fired up! My comment got so long, I decided to bring the discussion over here.
The problem comes up with who decides what’s healthy and how to incentivize “healthy” behaviors. When you bring up something like smoking, it’s seems easy and kind of clear cut. Smoking is indeed 100% a choice. It’s good to not smoke. However, something like obesity is much more nuanced. How are we going to police that and do we really want to?
Being overweight is not a behavior, it’s a descriptor or you could say, a symptom. Same with high blood pressure, etc. Things like the kind of food you eat and exercise you do are behaviors. As an aside, we all know thin people who can eat “whatever” they want and never seem to gain weight (maybe like my friend J. Money?) We also know fat people who have dieted their whole lives who nonetheless, remain fat (me). Somehow, the former “makes sense” and we can assimilate that info but the latter somehow means that the person must be lying about their habits or “not trying hard enough”. And on the flipside, what about all the people training for marathons well into middle age and “draining” the health system with all their joint replacements and doctors visits? Somehow, pushing your body to the max is OK and dealing with all the injuries is a small price to pay for so-called “good” health. Not to really knock marathoners – I’ve completed 2 myself – shocking for a fat girl, but true. Was I being irresponsible to risk such an endeavor at my weight? Did anyone suggest that I might be a burden on the medical system? No, I got congratulated for my efforts. I’m making a point that it’s all about CHOICE – and who gets to decide which ones are good and bad. We do not want third parties deciding this stuff for us because in the end, it’s more about moral judgments than budgets and certainly more than actual real concern about health.
In any case, if we can agree that determining health can’t be as simple as looking at someone’s weight or BMI (which I hope we can!) do you really want to be turning in food diaries and tally sheets of your exercise to your employer or insurance company? As an individual, do you really want to give over that much info and control so that you can get a fair price for medical coverage? Should we really be penalizing those that need the most help? An example of a corporate wellness program I’m aware of is one rolled out by Whole Foods where they give an extra discount to employees who meet certain criteria (BMI, blood pressure, and cholesterol must be in the “normal” range) and are willing to share it with the company. Sounds great, right? But when you think about it, why wouldn’t you want to impede access to healthy food to the employees who are overweight, etc? Aren’t they the ones who (supposedly) need it the most? Who’s to say they won’t use that info to quietly weed out these “undesirable” employees?
As always, the devil’s in the details and I don’t think anything good can come from these types of programs when they’re tied to incentives or penalties. How about our private lives remain our private lives? How about we funnel public resources into making sure every family in America has food to eat? Grocery stores nearby that carry fresh produce? Bike paths and parks to encourage exercise for fun and socializing (moving your body isn't a punishment, it's fun, remember)? Money to fund quality school lunches, physical education, and ball parks for ALL students? How about we take worrying about “obesity” out of it? Don’t we all deserve to have access to healthy food and activities? Isn’t it good for EVERY body? We do not need to stigmatize people to get us (as a whole) to collectively do a better job of providing healthy options.
From a personal perspective, I work for an organization that offers an array of healthy workforce initiatives – yoga, pilates, and Zumba classes, seated upper body massages, and two fitness facilities – all onsite at reduced cost (the gyms are free). I don’t have to prove to anyone that I’m making progress or give them ANY personal info to take advantage of these things. Do they make me enjoy working where I do? Do they add to my quality of life? You bet. Do I feel pressured to use them under threat of losing privileges? Nope. I think it’s a fallacy and insulting to suggest that people just don’t know what’s good for them and we need to give out gold stars and detentions to get it into their heads. Taking good care of yourself takes time and it takes money. Providing that as a society to people will do far more to improve our overall health as opposed to creating invasive programs to police our personal lives.
The problem comes up with who decides what’s healthy and how to incentivize “healthy” behaviors. When you bring up something like smoking, it’s seems easy and kind of clear cut. Smoking is indeed 100% a choice. It’s good to not smoke. However, something like obesity is much more nuanced. How are we going to police that and do we really want to?
Being overweight is not a behavior, it’s a descriptor or you could say, a symptom. Same with high blood pressure, etc. Things like the kind of food you eat and exercise you do are behaviors. As an aside, we all know thin people who can eat “whatever” they want and never seem to gain weight (maybe like my friend J. Money?) We also know fat people who have dieted their whole lives who nonetheless, remain fat (me). Somehow, the former “makes sense” and we can assimilate that info but the latter somehow means that the person must be lying about their habits or “not trying hard enough”. And on the flipside, what about all the people training for marathons well into middle age and “draining” the health system with all their joint replacements and doctors visits? Somehow, pushing your body to the max is OK and dealing with all the injuries is a small price to pay for so-called “good” health. Not to really knock marathoners – I’ve completed 2 myself – shocking for a fat girl, but true. Was I being irresponsible to risk such an endeavor at my weight? Did anyone suggest that I might be a burden on the medical system? No, I got congratulated for my efforts. I’m making a point that it’s all about CHOICE – and who gets to decide which ones are good and bad. We do not want third parties deciding this stuff for us because in the end, it’s more about moral judgments than budgets and certainly more than actual real concern about health.
In any case, if we can agree that determining health can’t be as simple as looking at someone’s weight or BMI (which I hope we can!) do you really want to be turning in food diaries and tally sheets of your exercise to your employer or insurance company? As an individual, do you really want to give over that much info and control so that you can get a fair price for medical coverage? Should we really be penalizing those that need the most help? An example of a corporate wellness program I’m aware of is one rolled out by Whole Foods where they give an extra discount to employees who meet certain criteria (BMI, blood pressure, and cholesterol must be in the “normal” range) and are willing to share it with the company. Sounds great, right? But when you think about it, why wouldn’t you want to impede access to healthy food to the employees who are overweight, etc? Aren’t they the ones who (supposedly) need it the most? Who’s to say they won’t use that info to quietly weed out these “undesirable” employees?
As always, the devil’s in the details and I don’t think anything good can come from these types of programs when they’re tied to incentives or penalties. How about our private lives remain our private lives? How about we funnel public resources into making sure every family in America has food to eat? Grocery stores nearby that carry fresh produce? Bike paths and parks to encourage exercise for fun and socializing (moving your body isn't a punishment, it's fun, remember)? Money to fund quality school lunches, physical education, and ball parks for ALL students? How about we take worrying about “obesity” out of it? Don’t we all deserve to have access to healthy food and activities? Isn’t it good for EVERY body? We do not need to stigmatize people to get us (as a whole) to collectively do a better job of providing healthy options.
From a personal perspective, I work for an organization that offers an array of healthy workforce initiatives – yoga, pilates, and Zumba classes, seated upper body massages, and two fitness facilities – all onsite at reduced cost (the gyms are free). I don’t have to prove to anyone that I’m making progress or give them ANY personal info to take advantage of these things. Do they make me enjoy working where I do? Do they add to my quality of life? You bet. Do I feel pressured to use them under threat of losing privileges? Nope. I think it’s a fallacy and insulting to suggest that people just don’t know what’s good for them and we need to give out gold stars and detentions to get it into their heads. Taking good care of yourself takes time and it takes money. Providing that as a society to people will do far more to improve our overall health as opposed to creating invasive programs to police our personal lives.
Kamis, 27 Mei 2010
Wedding Preparations
Nothing combines personal finance and body image issues better than being in a wedding. The bride-to-be is one of my dearest friends and I am very excited to be there with her next week. Even though I’m not the one getting married, there’s still a ton to do just to get myself into wedding-worthy shape.
I’m not talking starvation dieting to look my “best” for the big day (I didn’t even pull that crap for my OWN wedding, thank goodness). I’m more talking about all those little things that add up to feeling and looking great while standing up there beaming with joy for your friend. Those things take time, money, and add up to a healthy dose of body confidence when you know you’ll be seeing lots of old friends, acquaintances, and possibly former nemeses.
The first step to feeling like a million bucks involves a trip to the spa. I was thrilled to find a daily deal on Living Social for $200 worth of services for $100. This is a God-send. I will be maxing out this deal on Saturday getting my fingers and toes done, my brows waxed, and a massage. Although no one will see that last one, there’s nothing like a good rub-down to help work out the kinks and leave me feeling ready to face it all.
The next part of the equation involves foundational garments – I will be rocking my Spanx and some kick-ass toeless hose under my bridesmaid and rehearsal dinner attire. I generally don’t have much patience for those types of things on the daily but for an event, they are a big part of feeling sleek and smooth while standing up straight in front of people.
And most importantly, there are the dresses. The bride graciously let us pick the styles of our various dresses dictating only the color choices, which are lovely and flattering on everybody (lapis with wisteria trim aka dark and light purple). I’m pretty sure we all picked the long strapless one with some sort of shrug. I was afraid that it wouldn’t fit given the fact that I bought it back in October or November of last year and I’ve been making my peace with food with some serious gusto. But all is well and it will be fine. I got some lovely silvery-gray shoes to go along with it and we’re good to go. I also snagged myself a deal on a smokin’ rehearsal dinner dress from Kiyonna. There’s nothing like a new dress! It arrived yesterday but I have yet to try it on. I’m hoping it’s as fabulous and it looks online.
So, I pretty much have everything in place to feel terrific going into this affair. I managed to do much of this on a relatively tight budget ($100 for the spa, $85 for the rehearsal dress – gotta love coupon codes, and $150 for the shoes – well, a girl’s got to splurge somewhere and I’m serious about comfort when it comes to my feet! I can’t remember the cost of the bridesmaid dress, but it was extremely reasonable. I think I’ll try to find a cute little silver bag to go with the shoes and maybe some earrings or some other inexpensive jewelry to complement the dress. All in all, not bad at all considering I will feel completely prepped and great going into the weekend of wedding fun. That will free me up to bask in happiness for my friend and her groom without worrying too much about myself. And that is the best deal of all.
I’m not talking starvation dieting to look my “best” for the big day (I didn’t even pull that crap for my OWN wedding, thank goodness). I’m more talking about all those little things that add up to feeling and looking great while standing up there beaming with joy for your friend. Those things take time, money, and add up to a healthy dose of body confidence when you know you’ll be seeing lots of old friends, acquaintances, and possibly former nemeses.
The first step to feeling like a million bucks involves a trip to the spa. I was thrilled to find a daily deal on Living Social for $200 worth of services for $100. This is a God-send. I will be maxing out this deal on Saturday getting my fingers and toes done, my brows waxed, and a massage. Although no one will see that last one, there’s nothing like a good rub-down to help work out the kinks and leave me feeling ready to face it all.
The next part of the equation involves foundational garments – I will be rocking my Spanx and some kick-ass toeless hose under my bridesmaid and rehearsal dinner attire. I generally don’t have much patience for those types of things on the daily but for an event, they are a big part of feeling sleek and smooth while standing up straight in front of people.
And most importantly, there are the dresses. The bride graciously let us pick the styles of our various dresses dictating only the color choices, which are lovely and flattering on everybody (lapis with wisteria trim aka dark and light purple). I’m pretty sure we all picked the long strapless one with some sort of shrug. I was afraid that it wouldn’t fit given the fact that I bought it back in October or November of last year and I’ve been making my peace with food with some serious gusto. But all is well and it will be fine. I got some lovely silvery-gray shoes to go along with it and we’re good to go. I also snagged myself a deal on a smokin’ rehearsal dinner dress from Kiyonna. There’s nothing like a new dress! It arrived yesterday but I have yet to try it on. I’m hoping it’s as fabulous and it looks online.
So, I pretty much have everything in place to feel terrific going into this affair. I managed to do much of this on a relatively tight budget ($100 for the spa, $85 for the rehearsal dress – gotta love coupon codes, and $150 for the shoes – well, a girl’s got to splurge somewhere and I’m serious about comfort when it comes to my feet! I can’t remember the cost of the bridesmaid dress, but it was extremely reasonable. I think I’ll try to find a cute little silver bag to go with the shoes and maybe some earrings or some other inexpensive jewelry to complement the dress. All in all, not bad at all considering I will feel completely prepped and great going into the weekend of wedding fun. That will free me up to bask in happiness for my friend and her groom without worrying too much about myself. And that is the best deal of all.
Senin, 17 Mei 2010
The Future Of Exercise
Powerful strategies for optimzing your body and mind
I believe that practicing martial arts or going through your life without practicing Qigong is like driving a car and never topping up the air in the tyres. The air is our Qi, it gets us places. Take the air out of the tyre and the car will go nowhere, take the air out of our bodies and we die. It is as simple as that. On a basic level Qi is breath, it flows where the blood flows, but on a deeper level it is the energy matrix of the body and when we do Shaolin Training we optimize it on daily basis to get the most out of ourselves.
This is what the Shaolin Temple mean when they emphasise the importance of internal and external. The external is the kung fu, the things we can see, the internal is what is going on inside of us, and to optimize our energy we mix internal and external together.
Shaolin Steel Jacket
A good example of this is Shaolin Steel Jacket. In order for me to be able to do this, I have to have good stamina but I also I need to practice Qigong. It is the Qi that protects my body. I direct my Qi to my ribs or my back and I deflect the pain away so it acts like a mirror, when a person kicks me, their power is deflected and turned back on themselves so it hurts them instead of me. That is the amazing power of Qi.
The Competitive Edge
The majority of people use Qi to unblock the channels and optimize the efficiency of the body. In China, top-level businessmen and women practice Qigong so that they can focus and have full energy for the day ahead. They believe it gives them a competitive edge. Martial artists use it to make their bodies into weapons or simply to give them a stronger and longer martial art's life.
The balance of yin and yang
When I first went to the Shaolin Temple to begin my training, I was fourteen years old and 90% of my training was kung fu – external - training and only 10% was Qigong – internal - training. To be honest, I used to find internal training boring and I wasn’t convinced that there was such a thing as Qi. But I wanted to learn Shaolin Steel Jacket and in order to do this I had no choice. It was only when I saw the effectiveness of the Qigong movements that I became interested in Qi.
As I get older I don't need to practice 90% kung fu, and if I did I would quickly burn myself out. The reason boxers and footballers usually retire in their thirties is not only because their stamina is not as strong but also because their body feels weaker, and this is one of the ways in which martial arts differs from sport. As martial artists, our thirties are the time when we have the maturity and experience to go deeper into the internal techniques. We change the yin and yang of our training so that we may do 60% kung fu and 40% Qi Gong but as I get older this may become as much as 90% Qi Gong and 10% kung fu.
The key to staying young isn't to work out until our endorphins make us happy but to be clever and learn how to balance our external training with our internal training.
How far can you go?
If we have a car, every now and again we check the air pressure, especially if we are about to go on a long journey. We need to do the same thing with our body. What is it telling you? How much can you do today? How much can you push yourself?
This is something, which is difficult for a martial artist to judge because we know we have to push ourselves to improve. Martial arts are about taking us beyond our limits. The training challenges us and this is one of the reasons why we love martial arts so much. It takes us away from the smallness of our self and connects us with a tradition that is thousands of years old and it also gives us unity with our fellow martial artists. There is something exhilarating about our body being able to do something that we never thought possible.
But no matter what martial arts you do, or even if you don’t do martial arts, if you want to sustain your martial art's life then you need to do internal training. If it's not part of your tradition then take it from another tradition.
Right Now
The history of the Shaolin Temple was built on monks going out to different provinces and taking the good things then bringing them back and finely tuning them. It's important that we don't stay stuck but we keep evolving. Remember the lesson of impermanence. Nothing is fixed and solid. Just as our bodies are impermanent and constantly changing so should our training change and adapt to where our bodies are right now in the present moment.
Less is more
My advice is at the end of your martial art's or workout session, finish with some Qigong. In the beginning, you may – like I did – feel bored. But if this happens remind yourself that Qigong has been around for thousands of years. If it were rubbish then it wouldn't be practiced anymore. It is a time-tested technique of putting energy back into your body but it yields nothing to an impatient bored mind. The practice needs to have quality so it's best to start off with doing less, just five minutes a day.
The Eight Treasures Qigong
The Eight Treasures Qigong is possibly the most popular Qi Gong form in China. I teach it in my book Instant Health and also my DVD The Way Of Qigong. It consists of eight sections so it's easy to break them down. Take one section from The Eight Treasures Qi Gong and practice this movement, and then build up a little bit more each day until you are working through a whole form. Try to get into a daily routine. We don't think about brushing our teeth because it's a habit. Try to make a habit of doing Qigong.
It's important to have patience. Our minds are like puppies, we know when we bring a puppy into the house it's naughty and we have to train it. This is the same with our mind. We have to give it direction and leadership and soon our body will start to enjoy the increase in energy and we will want to do Qigong.
Beginner's mind
Shaolin Qigong comes from a Ch'an or Zen tradition so we don't think about where the energy is going. The important aspect of this is to have a no thinking beginner's type mind. Practice with a heart and mind placed firmly on the practice and from this your own experience will grow. You will become aware of energy naturally; your body will direct you. Don't complicate things. The secret to a successful Qigong practice is to make sure your breathing is one with your movement. Don’t add anything more. Keep it simple.
The Shaolin Energy Massage
Just as top-level Olympic athletes have regular massages, we also finish our Qigong practice with a self-massage. And we use The Instant Health Massage Brush to do this. I use a metal one because I practice Shaolin Steel Jacket but The Instant Health Massage Brush that my students use is made from bamboo and consists of 108 bamboo rods. It is designed for a person seeking health, and for martial artists it is also the first step to body conditioning.
Not only does it relieve tight muscles but it also assists in unblocking the acupuncture channels, and helps the body to detox through the stimulation of the lymphatic system. This is a natural battery charger for the body. We do this massage when we have finished our Qi Gong training and it takes about five or ten minutes.
The future of exercise
The future of exercise is changing, just as yoga has become more mainstream, I believe Qigong will follow. New research is proving its effectiveness and I hope to see not only martial artists use it but boxers and athletes and runners and footballers.
Life is about energy. When we love something or feel passionate about something then we have a lot of energy. Our love for martial arts gives us the mental energy to keep training. The Qi in our bodies gives us the physical energy to keep training.
I like to think that even when I'm in my sixties I'll still be kicking and punching bags and running up mountains. I'll still be discovering more and more about martial arts because martial arts is like the ocean, it's never ending and I am a beginner who is always learning. It is only through the Qi that I can continue to do this.
Go for it!
If I explain to you the taste of an apple, it's not the same as you actually taking a bite from an apple. It's the same with Qigong. I believe it will help you to run faster or punch quicker and it will give you more energy not only for your martial art's training but your day-to-day life. But I ask you not to take my word for it but go and try it out for yourself.
Jumat, 14 Mei 2010
Me? A Yoga Teacher?
Yoga is everywhere for me this week. It comes up in conversation, in the blogs I read, and of course, in yoga class (well, duh!) The biggest yoga-related event was an invitation from one of my teachers to join her yoga teacher training class. Immediately, the walls came up: I don’t have time, I don’t have the money... The main reason, though, was really: I’m not good enough.
I mean, yoga teachers are like all bendy and skinny and perfect, right? What do I really have to offer? I wondered what my teacher saw in me to lead her to invite me to join her class (it wasn’t a general invite to the class – she only teaches 4-6 people at a time). But from her point of view, I am just the sort of student she was looking for: someone who loves yoga and wants to share the benefits of it with others. Really, it’s that simple. Most people aren’t the “perfect” yoga-type. I know from my own experience that yoga has something to offer no matter what your physical abilities are. Maybe having a teacher who is not the perfect “yoga type” would help others see that in a very physical, no-we’re-not-just-saying-that way.
I have been lucky in my experience with yoga – the various teachers, studios, and classes at work have all been very inclusive. Any discomfort I’ve ever felt (which was extremely rare and fleeting) was in my own head, having to do with my own insecurities. But there’s nothing like trying to learn how to stand on your head to make you forget all that shit real fast!!! You’re too busy! But it’s not all flashy headstands (which I’m not currently doing as part of my practice) or fancy backbends. Yoga is more about being truly present in my body and enjoying it for what it CAN do in the moment, rather than what it can’t.
The class doesn’t start until September, so I have plenty of time to decide and save up the money, if it’s what I really want to do. Right now, it seems like I do. The opportunity is pretty incredible in that my teacher has offered me a partial scholarship to help make this possible. I can envision myself teaching a few classes at a studio or private sessions to individuals or small groups or maybe donating my time at a shelter. I’m not looking to this as a big money maker or anything. It’s more avocation than vocation. We’ll see if I’m still this pumped as decision time looms. I can be quite fickle sometimes!
In the meantime, I will work on my at-home practice. Carving out the time and choosing the mat over the couch is always a challenge. I very much look forward to the little “room of my own” awaiting me in our new house. The plan is to leave it almost completely bare, with just my mat, props, and laptop for music and/or yoga videos. There is just something incredibly appealing in having wide open space (as wide open as a tiny 3rd bedroom can be!) to just turn inward away from the myriad distractions of daily life and be with myself doing something that makes me feel good. I can’t wait!
I mean, yoga teachers are like all bendy and skinny and perfect, right? What do I really have to offer? I wondered what my teacher saw in me to lead her to invite me to join her class (it wasn’t a general invite to the class – she only teaches 4-6 people at a time). But from her point of view, I am just the sort of student she was looking for: someone who loves yoga and wants to share the benefits of it with others. Really, it’s that simple. Most people aren’t the “perfect” yoga-type. I know from my own experience that yoga has something to offer no matter what your physical abilities are. Maybe having a teacher who is not the perfect “yoga type” would help others see that in a very physical, no-we’re-not-just-saying-that way.
I have been lucky in my experience with yoga – the various teachers, studios, and classes at work have all been very inclusive. Any discomfort I’ve ever felt (which was extremely rare and fleeting) was in my own head, having to do with my own insecurities. But there’s nothing like trying to learn how to stand on your head to make you forget all that shit real fast!!! You’re too busy! But it’s not all flashy headstands (which I’m not currently doing as part of my practice) or fancy backbends. Yoga is more about being truly present in my body and enjoying it for what it CAN do in the moment, rather than what it can’t.
The class doesn’t start until September, so I have plenty of time to decide and save up the money, if it’s what I really want to do. Right now, it seems like I do. The opportunity is pretty incredible in that my teacher has offered me a partial scholarship to help make this possible. I can envision myself teaching a few classes at a studio or private sessions to individuals or small groups or maybe donating my time at a shelter. I’m not looking to this as a big money maker or anything. It’s more avocation than vocation. We’ll see if I’m still this pumped as decision time looms. I can be quite fickle sometimes!
In the meantime, I will work on my at-home practice. Carving out the time and choosing the mat over the couch is always a challenge. I very much look forward to the little “room of my own” awaiting me in our new house. The plan is to leave it almost completely bare, with just my mat, props, and laptop for music and/or yoga videos. There is just something incredibly appealing in having wide open space (as wide open as a tiny 3rd bedroom can be!) to just turn inward away from the myriad distractions of daily life and be with myself doing something that makes me feel good. I can’t wait!
Kamis, 06 Mei 2010
Shaolin Xi Sui Gong
“Bodhidharma travelled to the East to teach these two Yi Jin and Xi Sui classics. A bird like the crane is able to live long, an animal like the fox can be immortal, a human who cannot learn from these classics is worse than the birds and animals.”
Ee Jin Jing makes your muscles and tendons strong, flexible, fast and powerful while building up the health of your internal organs. Xi means wash and Sui means bone marrow. Xi Sui means clean your bone marrow. The aim of Xi Sui Gong is to detoxify the body and cleanse the unhealthy aspects of the mind. The highest aim is to help us reach enlightenment and give us the mind and body of a Buddha. But even if we can’t gain enlightenment in this lifetime, the least this Qi Gong can do is give us a long, healthy, and peaceful life.
Connecting With Our True Nature
It is vitally important that we use our heart to train, not just our body. We can train as regularly and as hard as we like but if our heart isn’t present then we will never improve our skill or get the benefit from Qi Gong or Kung Fu. Whether it’s Shaolin, Karate or Taekwondo, the aim of any martial arts is to awaken us to our true nature. Our true nature can only be found in the here and now. Our martial art helps to plant us in the present moment. This can sometimes be uncomfortable because it confronts us with who we truly are. But once we’ve broken through our smaller self, Qigong helps us to go beyond our small individual selves and find a connection with the very fabric of the Universe. It does not give us anything new; it simply connects us with the body’s internal power and automatic wisdom that already exists within us.
If we train mindlessly then we may as will join a gym and watch TV while listening to music and running on the treadmill. There’s nothing wrong with that kind of training if all you want from your workout is to get fit but it’s certainly not the type of training which will increase our martial arts skill and power.
The Power of Concentration
The more we can concentrate, the more benefit we can gain from Qi Gong. Every movement of Xi Sui Jing is done from a sitting position, this sitting position helps us to develop patience.
When you begin to run through the movements, your mind will be busy at first. This is natural. But as you focus on the breath and the movement together this will calm the mind and you will begin to feel peaceful. This calming of the mind cleanses the mind. With a clean mind, the mind and body can then begin to work in harmony. Once the mind and body are working in harmony, the body can start to self-regulate
itself, unblocking the channels and preventing disease from building up in the body.
Our Body Is Our Own Doctor
This is why we say that our body is our own doctor, the Qi Gong gives us access to the medicine. But this all happens unconsciously. Our body will start to feel better of its own accord without us having to intervene in any way.
This has led many people to shun conventional medicine in favor of Qi Gong or other alternative medicines but I believe we should use the best of both worlds. If a person is suffering from an illness I recommend that they combine Western medicine with Qi Gong so that it’s not an alternative approach but more of a complimentary approach.
The Challenge
There is a famous story in China about a Ch’an master who was famous for his meditation and a Shaolin martial artist who was famous for his martial arts. One day the Shaolin master challenged the Ch’an master as he belived his skill was much better than that of the Ch’an master. The Ch’an master chose a narrow ledge at the edge of a high mountain, one wrong step and the person would fall to their death. Because they were both unskilled in archery they decided it would be fair if they challenged themselves in this way. The Shaolin master went first, he stood at the edge of the mountain but when he placed the arrow into the bow he couldn’t stop himself from looking down and he became scared at the thought of plunging to his death. This fear meant that he failed to hit the target. The Ch’an master took the bow and arrow, stood at the edge of the mountain, and hit the target perfectly. The Shaolin master was amazed and asked him what his secret was so that he could improve his skill. The Ch’an master said, “No thinking. No reason. Just do.”
No thinking. No reason. Just do.
This is exactly what we must apply to our practice. EE Jin Jing makes our body like stone. Xi Sui Jing turns our body into a Buddha. But we need to practice and find this out for ourselves.
Qi Lifting
Higher level students learn Qi lifting which mixes internal and external together. They practice Qi and at the same time they use Qi. This kind of Qi Gong can only be transmitted master to master. This takes karma and the student needs to be ready. In China powerful businessmen and politicians learn this Qi Gong because they know that the health of their mind and body is the most important thing. But this higher level can never be reached without first learning the authentic Shaolin forms that I teach on my Qigong DVDs. Without learning these forms we can never reach the higher levels.
Shaolin Xi Sui Jing and Ee Jin Gong Qigong
The most famous Qigong forms that come from the Shaolin Temple in China are called Xi Sui Jing and Ee Jin Gong. Ee Jin purifies the muscles and tendons and Xi Sui purifies the bone marrow. Shaolin monks have trained in these two forms for thousands of years and they continue to train in these forms because they know that this Qigong enables them to be their best at kung fu.
Two wings of a bird
I am always emphasising how important it is to train in both Qigong and kung fu. Or internal and external. Even if you are not a martial artist, for good health and longevity you should train in Qigong. It is like the two wings of a bird. Qigong helps you to stretch better, kick better and punch better. Not only does it increase your speed, power, and stamina but it also increases your concentration and balances your mind and body. It gives you the strength and foundation to practice intense physical training without the fear of burn out. Qigong insures our internal organs work properly, only when our internal organs work properly can we be at our most efficient. The Shaolin monks used Qigong to help them gain enlightenment, the Taoists to live the longest life possible. We can use Qigong to stay healthy and maximise the power of our martial art. You don’t need to do Shaolin kung fu to practice Qigong, you can do Karate, Muay Thai, Taekwondo, what ever martial art’s you do, Qigong will take you to the peak of your power.
Shaolin Energy Massage
One important aspect of Xi Sui Jing and EE Jin Gong is the self-massage that we do when we’ve finished the form. At first we use a bamboo brush which has a hundred and eight bamboo rods. Massaging with the Shaolin energy brush create vibrations which relieve stress and tension in the muscles, assist in unblocking the channels, and help the body to detox through the stimulation of the lymphatic system. It cleans the skin and helps the Qi and blood to flow properly. It acts as a natural battery charger for the body. If we are only interested in health then we continue to use this bamboo brush but if we are a martial artist then - when we move to Volume 3 of The Way of Qi Gong - we begin to use the metal brush.
Massage for fighters
When you get to this stage, it means you can use power to hit yourself and the power of vibration goes inside your bone marrow. This is one of the reasons why it cleans your body. If you want to be a fighter then you must use the iron brush to hit yourself. The stronger you are, the harder you can hit yourself and your body will feel happy. If your body can’t take the pain then it means there’s something wrong. You have to be very careful with this training as you don’t want to risk damaging your internal organs. There should never be any feelings of pain. If there are this means that your internal organs are not strong enough and you need to slow down, check your training programme and see where you are going wrong. You should never hit use the metal brush unless you are under the supervision of a qualified master.
Body of stone
The combination of Qigong and self-massage is enough to make our body strong like stone but a stone isn’t a weapon. So how do we go on to use our body of stone and turn it into a weapon? I come back again to the two wings of a bird. We need both internal and external. In this modern world, I feel that some people have lost the true meaning of Shaolin. They believe that all they need to do is focus on their fighting skills to be a good fighter, or they believe that all they need to do is focus on their Qigong and forget all about external. Or they think of Shaolin as something that looks nice but is useless. Shaolin does have performance in it but it should never be reduced to that or it becomes little more than a dance. A dance is not a martial art. A dance can not help us in the ring, it can not help us to defend ourselves, and neither can it help us to live a long and healthy life. But authentic Shaolin can. All we need to do is step onto the path and follow the steps that your master shows you or I demonstrate on my Shaolin Warrior series of DVDs.
House of health
Qigong is not a secret. It just takes practice. Focus on the breathing with the movement together. This is the key to unlocking the door. The Qigong forms are the blueprint for you to build your house with. Day by day, moment by moment your practice is the bricks that build your house of health.
It takes time and patience. When you master Qigong, your Qi begins to circle around your body from your head to your feet and back again. You can then use your internal organs and your Qi to lift weight that wouldn’t be possible with muscle alone. This increases the feeling and power of the Qi just like we need water pressure for water to run through our taps, we practice with weights to increase the power of our Qi.
I believe that the practice of Qigong is as vital as eating and now that I’m thirty-six it’s only through my Qigong practice that I can continue to train in kung fu and keep my power, stamina and fitness level at a high level. If you are skeptical, then don’t take my word for it but discover for yourself and see what Shaolin Qigong can do for you.
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