My Aching Back…

For years I suffered from Chronic Low Back Pain. The pain varied from slightly annoying to down right debilitating. I found relief from the Yoga Practice I did as a daily ritual for many years, however there were times that I would need to pull myself up by the drip rail on the car to get out of the seat, or have help getting out of bed in the morning, sometimes rolling out onto the floor and crawling to the wall or doorway to climb to a standing position. Yoga did help and for years I was better a lot more than I was worse.

Then the gift of Qi Gong 18 Style was given to me and I began to practice this daily ritual. After about a year, I realized that my low back had not hurt for some time! Wow, what was it about the Qi Gong 18 Style that did what many years of Yoga could not do. Ah Ha! The Qi Gong 18 Style practice had strengthened my back support muscles that were not being engaged when practicing Yoga. The slow and simple movements of Qi Gong 18 Style were allowing all of my muscles to do some work. They were performing the task they were intended to and yet had not done for years. Another Ah Ha! When I stood, it was my “habit” to hyper-extend my knees. Yikes, this shifts all the work to the posterior spinal muscles and allows the anterior muscles to do almost nothing. Over work the exterior muscles, under work the interior muscles and yes you have a sore back. I started becoming aware of when I was hyper-extending my knees, when I realized what I was doing, I would slightly flex my knees and everything would shift and I would stand straighter and taller with support on both sides of my spine.

Some time after making this realization I came across an article that stated in part, “80% of the low back pain is caused by standing with hyper-extended knees.” I am a believer and if you suffer from low back pain, check your stance to notice if you hyper-extend your knees. If you do, flex them and feel the difference. Do your daily Qi Gong 18 Style ritual and strengthen your back.

When we were infants we learned by observing. We learned to move by watching those around us, studying, trying, trying, ah– success. Through this process we patterned after someone and learned how to use certain muscles to achieve the desired movement. The muscles we used for movement became stronger and our abilities improved.

The muscles we trained ourselves to use are what I call “Big” muscles; they are the ones that do most of the work as we use our bodies. For most of us this is about 20-30% of the muscles in the body. We have “Helper” muscles which assist the “Big” muscles and we have a lot of muscles that simply are there and don’t do much except take up space.

As an infant, all of the muscles work together as intended. As we grow and continue to pattern after others, we allow the ‘Big’ muscles to take over more than their fair share of the work. The smallest ‘helper’ muscles become weaker with less demand on them. The ‘Big’ muscles are overused and the smallest are underused putting stress on the bigger muscles resulting in strained muscles, sore backs, etc.

Our use of the “Big” muscles may not be what some of these were designed for, however we made it work, and this is why we all have different postures, gaits, etc.

When you have a routine Qi Gong 18 Style practice, you begin to shift some of the effort from the “Big” muscles to the support muscles, the ones intended to be part of the action. This shift helps you to move easier, quicker, and with greater agility. Qi Gong 18 Style moves every muscle each time you practice. You awaken muscles that have not been active and help them to become viable, flexible, healthy, and strong. Some of theses muscles have not moved for years and tend to adhere to other tissues surrounding them. The ritual practice will release the adhesions which also adds strength and flexibility to your body. A bonus benefit to the work is our general health improves as our skeletal structure is affected by the awakening and strengthening of semi dormant muscles. We begin to bring our skeleton into alignment which then allows our organs and glands to be in the correct positions allowing them to function better, thus improving our general health.

Simple movements, Huge Results, Greater Health, Greater Strength yours for an investment of only 20 minutes a day.

Energy is referred to as ‘Qi’, ‘Chi’, or ‘Ki’, the variation depending on which culture it is from and the translation system used.  In early writings, what we call Qi Gong was referred to as Dao Yin. The term ‘Qi Gong’ has been used for only the last 70 years or so.  ‘Qi Gong’ is translated as ‘Moving (Gong) Energy (Qi).’

Qi Gong is one of the most powerful Internal Exercises of which there are many. There are also many forms or styles of Qi Gong. One of the oldest is 18 Style which was depicted on bamboo artifacts discovered in China predating the use of parchment or paper.

Qi Gong, which is the foundation for all of the Martial Arts, has no self defense. It is an individual practice for creating health and longevity. Self defense developed with Tai Chi, and from there, into all of the other Martial Arts.  Many practitioners of the Martial Arts maintain a Qi Gong ritual to build and sustain  their energy.

A daily ritual practice of Qi Gong 18 Style circulates the energy (Qi) in the body, moving it through each of the Qi meridians (channels or pathways). By doing this ritual, the Qi energy in the body is balanced and replenished. Through the process of doing this ritual you use every muscle, move every joint and massage all of the internal organs and glands. When coordinating the movements  with Rhythmic breathing, the effects of the circulating Qi are further enhanced. As with Yoga, which is known for balance, centering, calming, and strength building, Qi Gong also builds muscular strength and helps with coordination and is often referred to as “Chinese Yoga”.

While perusing a table of books at a flea market, I discovered a great little book about energy and Chinese medical and healing philosophy.  I came across the book again in my library while researching to write a blog about Qi as energy. In reading it, I realized it was saying what I wanted to say probably far better than I could say it. So I quote to you from “The Book of Internal Exercises” by Stephen T. Chang

“The Theory of Energy

The root of the way of life, of birth and change is Qi (energy); the myriad things of heaven and earth all obey this law. Thus Qi in the periphery envelops heaven and earth. Qi in the interior activates them. The Source where-from the sun, moon, and stars derive their light, the thunder, rain, wind and cloud their being, the four seasons and the myriad things their birth, growth, gathering and storing; all this is brought about by Qi. Man’s possession of life is completely dependent upon this Qi.

                                                                                                            Nei Ching

The ancient Chinese tests, expounding on the basic theories that energy supported all life and matter in the cosmos, were written to convey basic scientific principles in a style that attracted the attention of even those who were not inclined toward a serious study of science.  This is not to imply that the barriers between the artistic, scientific and practical ways of life were as distinct and offered such a marked degree of specialization as are those characterizing modern civilization.  The integrated man, as he existed in ancient China, was one who constantly strove to maintain a balance between the various modes of life – the artistic, the scientific and the practical.  It was no great effort for the scientist to record his observations in a style which today would be called “poetic” in form—it came to him naturally.  That scientific principles could be conveyed in such imaginative form attests to the unification of art and science which typifies the Golden Age of Chinese civilization.

It may well be that because the basic principles of Chinese medical science are poetically stated, many modern scientists choose to reject them, avowing them to be “unscientific,” “purely philosophical,” “mystical,” and “primitive.”  But the rejection of traditional principles on these grounds, far from indicating a greater degree of objective awareness on the part of the modern day men of science, suggests instead a growing gap between science and a true “art of living.”  The principles of Chinese medical science and the Internal Exercise system as they have come down through the ages are just as applicable today as they were in the past., but they must be interpreted through a proper understanding of the poetic form that has enshrined and carried them through the ages.

Energy is a dynamic force, in constant flux, which circulates throughout the body.  Many people plausibly substitute the word life for the word energy since the essential difference between the two words is so subtle that it eludes all but the semanticist.  Each term is vital to developing an accurate understanding of the energy theory as it applies to the body.

For all practical purposes, it can be stated that life is an indication of energy within the body. All that comes to mind on hearing the word life – breathing, talking, sleeping, eating, even the ability to read, think, and hear – all these can be achieved only because of the energy within the body.  This invariably applies to those functions or activities that are not conspicuously perceptible; for example, the metabolic processes within each single cell could not be accomplished without energy to sustain those functions.  Energy is the basis for the apparent solid structures of the body and all that pertains to its anatomy as well.  For what is solid structure such as a bone, except a mass of living cells?  All forms and activities of life, both anatomical and physiological, are supported by, and simultaneously deplete, the energy within the body.

Although most people assume that inert matter is completely solid or dense, it is energy which binds the protons, electrons and neutrons within each individual atom.  Inanimate matter, then, is simply energy at a different rate of vibration than that of other forms of life.  Energy therefore is the absolute basis for all forms of life and matter in the universe. 

Developing a comprehension of energy and all that pertains to a scientific mode of its expression – in this case, within and as the human body – enables an adept practitioner of acupuncture to initiate the so called miracles traditionally ascribed to this ancient science.  Being thoroughly acquainted with the precise manner in which energy exists within the body, an experienced practitioner can beneficently manipulate this most subtle, all-pervading force.  Since energy supports all vital functions associated with the body, the ability to adjust that energy enables one to regulate those functions which that energy supports; in an identical manner, dysfunctions or diseases of the body can be eliminated by re-adjusting the energy imbalance that is the unseen cause of the apparent dysfunction.  A person placidly undergoing major surgery while remaining fully conscious under the influence of acupunctural anesthesia is a perfect example of what an understanding of energy, and how it enlivens the body, enables a practitioner to do.

            Food and air are considered to be the primary sources of energy depleted through daily living rather than as fuel to be metabolized by the body.  Energy, though, is not obtained from the gross molecular aspects of food and air, but rather from what can be called its “vibrational” essence, or, its electromagnetism.  For instance:  The nutrients within any particular food can be accurately reproduced in a biochemist’s laboratory, but life cannot be sustained over a prolonged period of time by ingesting those synthetic nutrients alone; it is possible to obtain every single vitamin, mineral, and chemical that comprises an egg, and yet it is impossible to transform them into anything that vaguely resembles a genuine egg.  Neither is a person able to exist over a prolonged period of time on pure oxygen which has been obtained by laboratory methods, or in a room in which the air has been filtered by an electrical air-conditioner.  In all of these instances something is lacking, and that “something” is the particular object’s life essence, its electromagnetism – that invisible energy which enlivens gross molecular aspects of any object.

            Electromagnetism is a force with which most of us are not yet familiar.  It was Western scientists who ingeniously verified the existence of electromagnetism, providing thereby a means for the logical explanation for many of the previously unexplained phenomena resulting from acupuncture therapy, as well as the health enhancing benefits obtained through practice of the Internal Exercises.  In short, electromagnetism is an intensity force that permeates the atomic structures of all objects, including the surrounding atmosphere.  Because it is a natural force, it has a rapport with the energy within the body.  When needles are inserted into the skin during an acupuncture treatment, they act as antennae that conduct the electromagnetic energy from the air into the body. Similarly, the Internal Exercises work to stimulate the body’s natural abilities to replenish the energy depleted through daily living.”