How to Use Chi to Develop Physical Potential

Tai chi is a form of chi cultivation as well as a martial art.

Chinese philosophy holds the belief that the human body contains a flow of subtle, universal energy known as chi. Without chi, we couldn't live. Clear chi flow is conducive to health, and blocked chi flow causes sickness. The martial arts, such as tai chi chuan, teach that practicing meditation and breathing exercises regularly will cultivate your chi flow and increase your physical health and potential.

Things You'll Need

• Loose clothing

Instructions

Focusing on the Dan Tian

1. Place your feet shoulder-width apart, facing directly forward, and place your weight on the balls of your feet. Bend your knees slightly and straighten your back, neck and head. You should feel like you're suspended from a string attached to the top of your head and your feet are just touching the floor. This stance is known as wuji.

2. Place your tongue against the roof of your mouth just behind your front teeth. Inhale through your nose, allowing the air to fill your lungs from the bottom up. Most of us in everyday life breathe shallowly into the throat, which drastically reduces the amount of oxygen and by extension chi that the body receives. Fill the diaphragm with air, then allow it to expand your chest. As you inhale, concentrate on a location approximately three inches below your navel and two inches in. According to Acufinder, this is the center of your body, the source of chi known as the dan tian.

3. After inhaling fully and focusing on the dan tian by envisioning a sphere of light, hold your breath for two slow counts, or four seconds. Slowly exhale from the throat down. Push all the air out of your lungs to make way for more. Repeat the process and meditate twice a day in this manner for ten minutes.

Moving Chi

1. Stand with your feet two shoulder-widths apart. Bend your knees as though you're sitting on a chair. The deeper you go into this horse stance, the stronger your leg muscles will become and the more rooted to the earth your body will be. Ensure that your upper body is completely relaxed and that your back is straight.

2. Begin deep abdominal breathing. Instead of placing your hands by your sides, place them at the level of your dan tian, and interlace your fingers to form a circle with your thumbs. Your thumbs should face up.

3. As you breathe, bring your arms above your head, maintaining the relative position of your hands. At the highest point, the circle made by your hands should have the thumbs pointed downward. Simultaneously, visualize your chi flowing up the body and through the arms. Hold your breath for two slow counts and bring your arms back down slowly on the exhale. Visualize your chi flowing back down the body and into your dan tian. According to the Inner Self qigong website, visualization causes your mind to direct the flow of chi through the body.

4. Practice developing and moving your chi by imagining where you want it to go in your body. You may feel sensations of warmth, tingling, pressing or itching. This is a sign that chi is flowing. Remember to breathe with proper technique and send chi back into the dan tian when you're finished.

References

• Acufinder: Dan Tian Breathing: Connecting to the Center
• InnerSelf.com: Basic Principles of Qigong