Chinese Healing Exercises (11 page)

Method

Sitting on the floor, bend both knees so that both feet are flat on the floor in front of you, with your knees drawn toward your chest. Interlock the fingers of both hands at the lower thigh, below the bend at the back of the knees. Keep your fingers interlocked through the entire practice. With a forward bend in your back, rock backward so that your shoulders come close to touching the floor. As you do so, unbend your knees, extending your legs, and let your toes approach the floor behind your head
(
Fig 2.14
on previous page
).
This provides an extra stretch to your hamstrings, and extra stimulation to your UB meridian. Then, bend your knees and use that momentum to roll yourself back up to the upright seated position in which you began. Then continue to rock backward and roll forward, in a fairly quick rhythm. Let yourself have fun with this one! If you do this exercise on a regular basis, repeat between ten to fifteen times for its general health benefits. If you want to do more though, you can do as many as you'd like.

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Three

Leg, Standing

1. Quadriceps Stretch

Purpose

Physical:
Stretches the quadriceps muscles. This will reduce pain and increase flexibility in the legs and hips. This is an important counterpoint to stretching the hamstrings, done in the previous set of exercises. The hamstrings and quads perform opposite functions in the legs and hips, and ideally they should be balanced for optimal functioning.

Energetic:
Opens and stimulated the upper leg portion of the Spleen and Stomach meridians. This will improve digestive functions, blood flow/circulation, muscle tone, and energy production. Because of its location, this will also improve the strength and stability of the legs and hips. In the first variation, you will also be activating your Liver and helping to smooth the flow of Liver qi.

Techniques used

Stretching, guided breathing. In the second variation, daoyin is also used.

Method

Stand near a wall, facing to your right, with your left shoulder facing the wall. Place your left hand on the wall for balance. Shift all your weight to your left leg, and bend your right knee, lifting your right heel toward your butt. With your right hand, grasp the front of your right foot where your foot joins your leg. If your knee is angled forward so that it's pointing even slightly to the front of your body, draw it backward, so that your knee points directly to the floor. If you can comfortably point your knee slightly rearward, that's okay, and will increase the quad stretch
(
Fig 3.1
).
Now, take a full, slow, deep breath in. Direct your breath to your quadriceps, and on the exhale relax the quads and gently pull your right heel closer to your butt, keeping your knee pointed toward the ground or slightly to the rear. Repeat this a few more times, until your heel reaches your butt or until you can bring it no closer. Take a few more slow, deep, breaths, relax more into the stretch with each exhalation, and then let go of your foot and lower it to the ground once more.

Be careful that you are not putting undue pressure within your knee. If you feel any pain within your knee or feel like there's pressure building within it, you will need to stop and try this simpler version. Before beginning, get a long towel, soft belt, or rope. Stand by the wall as directed above, left hand to the wall for balance. Hold the ends of the towel (or belt or rope) so that it forms a loose loop at the side of your right foot. With your right foot, step backward through the loop, so the towel crosses the front of your ankle where your foot joins your leg, and the sole of your foot is pointed rearward. Now you can pull up on the towel and it will draw your foot higher, behind you. If you can, point your knee to the ground as above. If you can't, it's okay to let your knee point forward some. That will reduce the quad stretch, but that's preferable to hurting your knee. Note that pulling your leg higher
while continuing to bend your knee in front of you
will not increase your quad stretch at all and so serves no purpose (
Fig 3.2
,
shown here without the towel, in the primary version of the exercise)
.
Keep your knee pointed downward as much as possible, without pain to your knee, while using the towel to pull your heel closer to your butt. Follow all the other directions above.

Variation

This variation will additionally benefit the liver energetically, and may help to relieve tension in the nervous system. Once you are in your full quad stretch, heel to butt or as close as you can get it, fix your eyes on a spot in the room in front of you. Your eyes are the sense organ associated with the liver, and by keeping your eyes open and fixing them in one location, it will help keep your liver qi smooth and stable. Now, remove your left hand from the wall, and balance on your left leg only. If you have trouble with this, put your hand on the wall once more, then do this. Flatten your low back by relaxing it rather than by tensing your abdomen to pull it flat. Don't let your butt stick out. That indicates low back tension, meaning your low back is
not
relaxed. Feel your tailbone pointing toward the ground. With your back flat, your butt not sticking out behind you, and your tailbone down, you will have a better chance of allowing your qi to penetrate through your left leg, rooting you to the ground energetically. Breathe comfortably, fully, and slowly. With your eyes fixed on a point directly across from you, remove your left hand from the wall (you can allow it to fall to your side) and just balance on your left leg. Is it easier for you this time? Good, that's progress!

If this was easy for you from the start, or when it becomes consistently easy for you as you advance, the next thing to do is to close your eyes. This removes the “qi anchor” for your liver. It's likely you will find it more difficult to keep your balance on one leg with your eyes closed, but it will become easier if you work on it, indicating your liver is becoming stronger and rejuvenated. Healthy, young people usually have no problem standing on one leg with their eyes closed.

2. Standing Ankle Stretches

These are adjunct exercises and can be used either as an alternative to or as a slight progression beyond the seated ankle stretches. Some of the seated ankle exercises should be done before attempting these, as they have the potential to be too strong a stretch if your ankles are not already opened some. The purposes and techniques used are the same as those in the seated ankle stretches, so will not be repeated here. These are stretches of shorter duration, so focused breathing will not be required, although you may include that if you'd like. There are two methods, each for a different stretch.

Methods

Method One: Outer Ankle (Supination):
Stand with all of your weight on your left leg, your right foot lightly touching the ground. If you have any problems with balance, stand near a wall and use your left hand for support, as in Exercise 1 of this set, the
Quadriceps Stretch
. Maintaining contact with the ground, roll your right foot outward, to the right, so that the outer ankle moves toward the ground and the sole of your foot faces left
(
Fig 3.3
).
If your ankle is very flexible, you may get part of the upper surface of your foot to touch the ground along the little toe side of your foot. If you are able to do that, you're additionally mobilizing, stretching, and opening some of the metatarsal bones (and related joint spaces) in your foot.

Be careful to avoid putting much weight on your right foot. It would be easy to overstretch your ankle that way. If you focus on the outward roll, you can safely increase the stretch as much as is comfortable. Hold it for just a few seconds, and then bring the sole of your foot flat to the ground once more. Rock your foot out, hold a few seconds, and return to starting position, repeating five or six times. Then shift your weigh to your right leg and do the same with your left foot.

Method Two: Front of the Ankle:
This has the additional energetic purpose of strongly opening the acupuncture points Stomach 41 and Liver 4, the Jing River points of the stomach and liver, and Stomach 42, the Yuan or Source point of the qi of the Stomach.

Stand with all your weight on your left leg. Place your left hand on a wall for balance if needed. Move your right foot slightly rearward, placing the back (top) of your toes and the end of your foot on the ground, so that your sole is facing rearward and slightly upward behind you. With your right knee pointing toward the ground as in the Quad Stretch, move your right knee a little closer to the ground, which increases the stretch at the front of the ankle and along the top of the foot. When you have a good stretch, slowly rock your foot side to side so that at one end of the rock you are stretching more along the big toe side of your foot, and the other end you are stretching more along the little toe side
(
Fig 3.4
).
Be sure you feel the stretch equally along the whole front of your ankle and top of your foot through the slow arc of the side-to-side rock. After a few rocks, place your right foot on the ground once more, shift your weight to your left leg, and repeat the exercise with your left ankle and foot.

3. Back of Ankle/Achilles Tendon Stretch

Purpose

Physical:
Opens the back of the ankle, stretches the Achilles tendon, stretches the calf muscles (gastrocnemius and soleus). This is the first ankle exercise to strongly address the back of the ankle. Together with the others, this will reduce all physical restriction and give the ankle the greatest opportunity to remain open (or be pulsed open for people who utilize that neigong practice within qigong and taiji).

Energetic:
Stimulates the kidney Shu Stream point, K3, and the Urinary Bladder Jing River point, UB 60, which are found in the depressions between the Achilles tendon and the inner and outer ankle tips, respectively. Because of the meridian pathways and tissue and organ associations, these points can help with various types of headaches, upper and lower backaches, and urinary, sexual, and menstrual disorders. This exercise also strengthens the low back, knees, and the overall functioning of the Kidneys. K1, the Kidney Jing Well point (the Bubbling Well point), will also be stimulated, providing additional benefit for the kidneys.

Techniques Used

Stretching, focused breathing.

Method

Face a wall, about one and a half to two steps away from it. Keep your right leg in place on the floor, and with your left leg, take a full step toward the wall. With your torso perpendicular to the floor, your legs should form a triangle and be bearing equal weight. Place both palms on the wall. If your torso inclines forward, that's okay. Keeping your right heel completely in contact with the floor, move your pelvis closer to the wall. You will feel the stretch increasing in your Achilles tendon
(
Fig 3.5
).
Do not let your head move closer to the wall, only your pelvis. As you do this, your left knee will bend, and you will shift more weight to your left leg. If you don't feel much of a stretch in your Achilles tendon, it means you are standing too close to the wall. In that case, push yourself back from the wall so that your torso is once again perpendicular to the floor. Take a half step backward with your right leg, and then follow the above instructions. When you feel a good stretch, begin your focused breathing, slow deep inhalations followed by slow deep exhalations, and relax your right Achilles tendon with each exhalation. Hold this stretch for one to two minutes, then switch leg positions, and repeat the exercise on the other leg.