Benefits of qigong

[rheash92]

I bought Lee Holden’s 30 days of 7 mins of magic. Im looking forward to doing it. I have done some qigong in the past but never been consistent. What are the benefits of qigong? Does it help with mobility and flexibility? Thanks!

[lorajc]

Hi - I'm also looking forward to this answer. I'm intriqued by it and want to do my few dvd's.....but not quite sure how to fit them in.

I know they will help with my chronic pain but other than that....how do they work on your organs, circulatory system, body, etc? And do you count them like a yoga practice in your routine?

thanks...lora

[Karen Beckwith]

Go to Lee Holden's original website, Exercisetoheal.com. There is a whole area devoted to what Qi Gong is and what it does for you. I think relaxation is a big part of it but there's more to it than that. I personally love it.

[JackieB]

I love 7 Minutes of Magic. Pm extended is my most used dvd. I just did it today.

I most recently bought his anxiety dvd. I feel strangely calm when I do this workout.

Love Lee!

[suzannaerin]

Are these easy to learn and gentle?

[Karen Beckwith]

Originally Posted by suzannaerin

Are these easy to learn and gentle?

Yes on both! Lee Holden is very good at cueing and they are very gentle and relaxing. I did them almost exclusively when I was recovering from a double mastectomy.

[lreidgreen]

I have been doing qi gong off and on for about a year. I use it to relax and it enhances my martial arts practice. I do kung fu and Tai Chi. I have some Lee Holden DVDs but I rarely use them. I have been doing YouTube videos from several different teachers. I suggest the following:

Long White Cloud Qi Gong- John Munro out of New Zealand. He has a bunch of different courses on his website but a few months ago he put up a paywall for them. The follow along videos are still free though. He runs the courses periodically where you follow the weekly instructional videos and communicate with him via email. Then you send in videos at the end with a final exam and get a certificate. I did "Enter the Flow" in the spring and liked it. I think he still runs these on a give what you want basis. He has books that cover most of his courses. They are available on Amazon. You can get samples of them on your Kindle. I have "Enter the Flow" "Qigong Foundation Practices" and "Waking the Qi." On You Tube I like his Between Heaven and Earth follow along practice video. For some reason his QFP videos bother my back (I have pre-existing back issues)
Here is the YTchannel:
https://www.youtube.com/user/longwhitecloudqigong
I see if you go to playlists he still has the videos up for some of the courses he runs. Enter the Flow, Between Heaven and Earth and Qigong Foundation Practices (QFP) The first few videos of QFP describes what Qigong is and how it is beneficial.

Andrew Plitt- He is a Tai Chi teacher but also does quite a bit of QiGong. He has a series of videos on the Eight Brocades and a follow along video of the practice where each exercise is done 5x. He does additional variations on some of the poses so the practice takes about 25-35 minutes IIRC. The other qigong practice instructional and follow along practices are Pan Gen and Zhan Zhang (standing post) which is standing meditation.
https://www.youtube.com/user/andrewn2healthplitt
Go to playlists and scroll to bottom and you will find a few Qigong playlists broken down by practices. Instructional and follow along for all the practices.

Mimi Quo Deemer. Her YouTube channel has the Eight Brocades, 5 elements and Bone Marrow Cleansing practices. She just came out with DVDs but you can preview them if you do a free 1 week trial of Amazon Yoga and Fitness TV. Otherwise the channel is useless.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBt...YXzu0bIlfvUJ9A

Perth Tai Chi Academy. Just found this on YT. Some good follow along qi gong practices with excellent instruction in addition to Tai Chi. Eight Brocades, 18 form(Shibashi) 5 elements and a few others I can't remember. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjC...MIp0pJ_SGDAljQ


I am on my tablet now. Will come back and post links.

[lreidgreen]

Originally Posted by lorajc

Hi - I'm also looking forward to this answer. I'm intriqued by it and want to do my few dvd's.....but not quite sure how to fit them in.

I know they will help with my chronic pain but other than that....how do they work on your organs, circulatory system, body, etc? And do you count them like a yoga practice in your routine?

thanks...lora

They help your organ systems by working on energy flow in your body. It is based on Chinese Medicine principles. I don't completely understand how it works but there is plenty of information out on the internet about it. See my post above about some videos that might provide more info.

Also Ken Cohen's book "The Way of Qi Gong -The Art and Science of Chinese Energy Healing" is good. I took a workshop with him in October.

ETA: In terms of fitting it in your day...You just have to do it. Many of the practices online are only 5 minutes. What I have been doing is:
1) First thing in the AM I do a 5-15 minute meditation from the Insight Timer app. Sometimes guided sometimes just using the timer with one of the background audio tracks.
2) After meditating I try to fit in a 15-30 minute Qi Gong Practice. I don't think of Qigong as part of my exercise routine bur rather something I do for relaxation and to support my martial arts practice.
3) On non work days I do my usual workout either strength, walking or metabolic conditioning.
If I have time I practice Tai Chi. Today I did Tai Chi and didn't get to my regular workout. I need to do that now.....

[lreidgreen]

I have subscribed to this You Tube Channel but honestly have never done the practices. Lots of material though:

https://www.youtube.com/user/ThinkVitality

One of the playlists has video presentations on Fundamentals of Traditional Chinese medicine.

[lreidgreen]

Zen Wellness was running an online Medical Qigong certification course months ago that I was considering but it was expensive and I had no time.

Now it looks like they have some kind of streaming subscription. There is a 14 day trial for $1 but there is no info about what it costs long term. I am going to try the 14 day trial which is good only until Jan 30.
Here is the link:
https://www.zenwellness.tv/p/qi-fit-...94d2ab66a822f8

I have no idea how good this is just putting it out there.


ETA: It is $37/month after the trial.