Qi Gong & Tai Chi Chaun Exercises

Tai Chi Chaun and Qi Gong are two related, internal martial arts. Internal martial arts focus on building internal power or chi. Chi, or qi, is the Chinese word for "life force" or "energy." Qi Gong focuses on techniques to raise and move chi throughout the body. Tai Chi includes Qi Gong exercises in its system as well as forms and combat drills just like any other martial art, though today Tai Chi often focuses on health benefits more than fighting applications.

Elvis Impersonator Exercise

The Elvis Impersonator Qi Gong exercise is considered a tissue-cleansing exercise that relaxes your muscles and joints and lets go of toxins through shaking your entire body. To perform this exercise, stand up tall with your feet shoulder-width apart and your arms relaxed at your sides. Close your eyes and bend your knees slightly to loosen the knee joints. Hold your arms a few inches from your sides. Then, gently shake your arms. Let the shaking move to the rest of your joints to let your whole body from head to toe shake. Breathe deeply through your nose and imagine releasing any negative emotions and toxins out of your body either by expelling them out your mouth with breath or shake them out your fingertips.

Carry the Moon

Carry the Moon is a Qi Gong exercise to stretch your spine and improve kidney function. It is a simple exercise that you might do to warm up before doing a Tai Chi form in class or by yourself. To perform the Carry the Moon exercise, stand with your feet hip to shoulder-width apart. Bend forward from the waist and let your arms and head hang toward the ground. Then, turn your palms to face upward and turn your fingertips to point toward each other. The palms round slightly as if holding a bowl of water. Next, slowly roll up one vertebra at a time and raise your hands up the center of your body until they extend over your head. Look up as your hands go above your head and turn your palms completely over to face upwards. Arch your back slightly in a mini back bend and pull your arms back slightly. Pause for a few seconds and then reverse the movement to hang comfortably toward the floor again.

Walking the Tai Chi Step

Tai Chi walking is an important introductory exercise to Tai Chi. This exercise combines the Tai Chi principles of heel stepping, weight shifting and using the Bow stance, which is a basic Tai Chi stance that is also used in most martial arts. To begin, stand up tall with your feet together and your hands on your hips. Then, turn your left foot out to 45 degrees and bend your left knee. Shift your weight onto the left leg. Pick your right foot off the floor slowly and step forward with your right foot. Touch the floor with your heel first and then gently touch the ball of your foot to the floor with the toes pointing straight forward. Shift your weight onto your right leg and bend your knee, but not over your toes. Straighten your left leg most of the way but keep a slight bend in the knee. The back stays upright throughout the movement. Turn your right toes out and shift your weight onto your right leg so you can step forward with your left foot.