In this episode of Qigong Radio, Energy Arts Senior Instructor Paul Cavel explains the 3 different layers of neigong practice: Beginner or Foundational Practices – Dragon and Tiger, Opening the Energy Gates, and Heaven and Earth Intermediate or Power-Production Practices – Spiraling Energy Body and Bend the Bow Advanced or Integration Practices – Gods Playing in the Clouds

Paul explains what to focus on at each level and how your learning spiral takes you back through them over time.

Are you looking for a warm-up exercise that invigorates the blood and loosens up the body? Are you a beginner to physical fitness and looking for an exercise that won’t leave you painfully discouraged? Try this popular form of qigong: Chinese arm swinging exercises are an easy and gentle choice suitable for beginners and professional athletes. The exercise comes from various traditions. In India, British troops learned and adopted the practice of club swinging.

When you perform standing qigong, you develop acute physical awareness, get access to internal space, and make subtle physical connections that you would never otherwise make if you only did moving practices. According to my teacher Bruce Frantzis, the Taoists developed over 200 different standing postures, so how do you know which one to practice? Guidelines for Holding Qigong Postures As we’ve discussed in the past, whenever you settle in to standing qigong, you need to follow these three principles:

In this episode of Qigong Radio, I answer some questions about different sensations readers have been experiencing when they practice. In the Dragon and Tiger Medical Qigong Instruction Manual, Bruce Frantzis lays out important guidelines for what kinds of “chi reactions” to expect. I want to show you how to apply these guidelines to your practice. Expect Chi Reactions Dragon and Tiger is a powerful tool for awakening your body on physical, energetic, emotional, mental and spiritual levels.

This summer, Bruce Frantzis will be teaching a Marriage of Heaven and Earth Instructor training. Heaven and Earth was the first instructor training I attended in 2004 and I can still remember what a profound effect learning to “pulse” had on me. Within the Energy Arts system, Heaven and Earth is considered a bridge from the basic to more advanced practices. We discussed how Heaven and Earth works in an early episode of Qigong Radio, but I wanted to share this explanation from Energy Arts Senior Instructor Paul Cavel with you too:

Recently, I received a question about qigong practices for spinal health. I am always looking for ways to keep my body healthy inside and out. I practice yoga, I do my daily cardio and some weight training. I am especially interested in keeping my spine healthy. I am 57 and am concerned about osteoporosis which runs in my family. Anything you could share with me would be greatly appreciated. There are some pretty sophisticated spinal health techniques in Qigong and Tai Chi, but the progression is basically this:

In this episode of Qigong Radio, Energy Arts Senior Instructor Eric Peters describes what it’s like to work with the energy of the spine, using Bend the Bow Spinal Qigong. Bend the Bow is an advanced qigong set that requires precise alignment and refined sensitivity, but it gives you access to a much deeper level of internal connection and coordination than standard ways of moving your body through space. Eric performing Bend the Bow Spinal Qigong:

I remember the first time I really got a sense for “opening and closing” my joints. We were on a qigong retreat and the person who was helping me probably spent 20 minutes “pulsing” my wrist, so that the fluids in the joint were moving in a smooth, even way, alternately creating more and less space between the bones. When you pulse, you’re manipulating the fluid flows inside your body so that the spaces inside your body compress and expand.