This month’s Stretch of the Month is a Qigong exercise, demonstrated by Touch Tuina co-founder Mariana.
This Qigong exercise can help the whole spine and its surrounding muscles, simultaneously helping to massage our internal organs.
According to Mariana, it’s a great exercise to do (daily) first thing in the morning to wake up the body and energise our internal organs. She recommends doing the movement for about three to five minutes.
How to do the Qigong exercise
This is how to do this Qigong exercise:
- Place your feet shoulder distance apart, knees soft and slightly bent
- Begin to gently swing side to side, closing and opening your arms as you twist your hips
- Keep rotating, keeping the arms loose and soft so they just naturally swing around you – the more you loosen up and warm up your body, you can begin to gradually rotate a little faster and you’ll find your arms will naturally lift
- Aim for loose, soft hands so that one hits the shoulder, and the back arm hits the lumbar area
- When you’ve been doing it for three to five minutes, you can start to slow down and return to your starting position
By allowing the arms to hit each point as we swing, we are aiming to stimulate both our kidneys and our lungs. In Chinese medicine, our lung (fèi) governs our qi and our respiration. Our kidney, our vital energy source, grasps our qi and brings it down into the body to transform the energy.
What is Qigong?
Qigong (pronounced ‘chee-gong’) is an ancient Chinese practice that originated thousands of years ago within the framework of Traditional Chinese Medicine. It combines movement, breathing techniques, and focused awareness to cultivate and balance the body’s internal energy. The purpose of Qigong is to support overall health by harmonising the body, mind, and spirit.
Would you like to see more stretches like the Qigong exercise?
If you’d like to see more stretches and exercises from our experienced practitioners, follow us on Instagram and TikTok, and don’t forget to save them for later! You can also check out our previous Qigong exercise here.
