Anatomy and Physiology of Qigong
I was recently corresponding with one of my teachers, Jess Reynolds, about the best way to inform people about Qigong. I wrote something like this:
Qigong isn’t just about moving mindfully, it’s also a time-proven practice dealing with acute conditions. Qigong is more than an esoteric, ancient practice imitating Paleolithic dragons, celestial white tigers and trees growing in the Spring (even though I LOVE the metaphors and the archetypes). But I know some people are saying, “neat, but make my wrist pain go away.”
I’ll try not to get too heady and wordy (ha, have we met?) but I’d like to provide some information about how Qigong actually works in the body.
Let’s start with defining some terms used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (henceforth referred to as TCM). First off:
There are five branches of TCM:
Acupuncture
Massage
Qigong
Herbology
Nutrition
I’ll be touching on the branches of Acupuncture, Massage and Qigong.
Let’s review “Qi”. I’ll even use Western terms. Qi in our body is bioelectricity. We live in a biomagnetic world. So Qi is affected by our mind (psychology), our activities, our food, the air we breathe and all of that natural energy circulating in our environment. Crazy talk now, before I perform bodywork with a client, I cultivate the biomagnetic field (Qi) in my hands. When I need to feel better, I purge unneeded Qi and bathe in my own bioelectricity.
Meridians: Jess Reynolds defines meridians as “pathways through the body that are consistent and predictable from one person to another, that transmit force and energy.”
During a Qigong practice we stretch the meridians, wring out tissues around the meridians, and tap along the meridians. We flush, purge and free muscle and soft tissue by flexing, extending and rotating. One goal is to create fluidity of movement keeping focus on the meridians, tissues and joints.
Points are found along meridians that treat specific conditions. An acupuncturist will use needles on these points. A massage therapist may apply Acupressure techniques to these points. In Qigong we may tap these points while moving, or simply standing. Sinus problems? We tap certain points on the face, on the back, and the hands. Low back pain? We tap points on the legs, the rib cage, and yes even the back. You’ll read a bit about distal points in a bit.
Okay, that’s all very East, make it West.
A researcher named Thomas Meyers dissected cadavers to understand the inner workings of muscle fascia. He found lines of muscle fascia interwoven throughout the body and called them Myofascial Meridians. He initially didn’t know about the Chinese Meridian system. Someone tapped him on the shoulder (probably Gall Bladder 21) and he saw an uncanny parallel. He published his findings in a book “Anatomy Trains.”
Just like TCM Meridians, Myofascial Meridians run throughout the body responding and distributing force and energy along pathways, not just locally. (Reread Jess’s definition above).
I picture both Myofascial and TCM Meridians as subways running from downtown to uptown. There is a Grand Central Station but that’s for another post. But, if you’re having a problem in Greenwich Village it could be because of a blockage at the Columbus Circle stop. Which is another way of explaining why you may say you’re experiencing wrist pain, but we may focus on opening lines through the neck or the armpit. Focusing on distal points is a very efficient way of treating an acute sensation (i.e. pain).
There is much more information about fascia and Anatomy Trains, but I promised to not get too wordy.
These are TCM Meridians
These are Myofascial Meridians
Uncanny, right?
Qigong isn’t just about moving mindfully, it’s also a time-proven practice dealing with acute conditions. Qigong is more than an esoteric, ancient practice imitating Paleolithic dragons, celestial white tigers and trees growing in the Spring (even though I LOVE the metaphors and the archetypes). But I know some people are saying, “neat, but make my wrist pain go away.”
I’ll try not to get too heady and wordy (ha, have we met?) but I’d like to provide some information about how Qigong actually works in the body.
Let’s start with defining some terms used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (henceforth referred to as TCM). First off:
There are five branches of TCM:
Acupuncture
Massage
Qigong
Herbology
Nutrition
I’ll be touching on the branches of Acupuncture, Massage and Qigong.
Let’s review “Qi”. I’ll even use Western terms. Qi in our body is bioelectricity. We live in a biomagnetic world. So Qi is affected by our mind (psychology), our activities, our food, the air we breathe and all of that natural energy circulating in our environment. Crazy talk now, before I perform bodywork with a client, I cultivate the biomagnetic field (Qi) in my hands. When I need to feel better, I purge unneeded Qi and bathe in my own bioelectricity.
Meridians: Jess Reynolds defines meridians as “pathways through the body that are consistent and predictable from one person to another, that transmit force and energy.”
During a Qigong practice we stretch the meridians, wring out tissues around the meridians, and tap along the meridians. We flush, purge and free muscle and soft tissue by flexing, extending and rotating. One goal is to create fluidity of movement keeping focus on the meridians, tissues and joints.
Points are found along meridians that treat specific conditions. An acupuncturist will use needles on these points. A massage therapist may apply Acupressure techniques to these points. In Qigong we may tap these points while moving, or simply standing. Sinus problems? We tap certain points on the face, on the back, and the hands. Low back pain? We tap points on the legs, the rib cage, and yes even the back. You’ll read a bit about distal points in a bit.
Okay, that’s all very East, make it West.
A researcher named Thomas Meyers dissected cadavers to understand the inner workings of muscle fascia. He found lines of muscle fascia interwoven throughout the body and called them Myofascial Meridians. He initially didn’t know about the Chinese Meridian system. Someone tapped him on the shoulder (probably Gall Bladder 21) and he saw an uncanny parallel. He published his findings in a book “Anatomy Trains.”
Just like TCM Meridians, Myofascial Meridians run throughout the body responding and distributing force and energy along pathways, not just locally. (Reread Jess’s definition above).
I picture both Myofascial and TCM Meridians as subways running from downtown to uptown. There is a Grand Central Station but that’s for another post. But, if you’re having a problem in Greenwich Village it could be because of a blockage at the Columbus Circle stop. Which is another way of explaining why you may say you’re experiencing wrist pain, but we may focus on opening lines through the neck or the armpit. Focusing on distal points is a very efficient way of treating an acute sensation (i.e. pain).
There is much more information about fascia and Anatomy Trains, but I promised to not get too wordy.
These are TCM Meridians
These are Myofascial Meridians
Uncanny, right?
But, hold up boss. What is fascia?
Sorry vegetarians, but have you ever seen silver skin on a raw piece of tenderloin? That’s fascia. Fascia is a sheet of connective tissue, beneath the skin that attaches to, stabilizes, encloses, and separates muscles and other internal organs.
Okay, let’s go to the East again. Connective tissues including fascia, tendons (that caught your attention musicians and massage therapists) and ligaments are referred to as Huang. Qi fills Huang, creating movement and fluidity of energy. By creating fluidity we move with ease by in part softening adhesions in the fascia and connective tissues. And opening joints. Letting that bioelectricity flow.
Oh boy, joints. Another big topic. I’m going to tickle your funny bone with only a couple tidbits. See where I went there?
Most, but not all of the joints in a bodies are called Synovial Joints. These joints contain synovial fluid that lubricate, helping the articulating bones move smoothly against each other without harm.
Neat, why bring that up? In Qigong we lubricate joints by moving. As my teacher Nick Loffree says; "the hinges of an active door never rust." While we do hold some stretches briefly, our stretches are not generally static. We de-stagnate by moving Qi, blood, lymph, synovial fluids, oxygen, your focus and thoughts, your digestion, your dreams… Nick, a wise man, also says:
“ Moving water never stagnates.”
I’m old. I need to make sure my muscles, fascia, joints, digestion, and dreams move freely therefor encouraging movement through the meridians and the world. Deep thoughts.
Sources: Dr. Jess Reynolds https://www.aimonline.com/
Nick Loffree: https://www.nickloffree.com/
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