I've been a martial artist practically my entire life. It's always been a way for me to find out what my limits were and work to push past them. I've been able to apply my training to every aspect of my life. I meditated on occasion but admittedly not as much as I should have. My base line stress levels weren't the best but is anyone's really at an optimal level?? Then enter 2020
To say that 2020 was stressful on everyone would be a gross understatement. Prior to that whirlwind of a year I was already constantly stressed out from my day to day life and I was feeling the effects of it on my physical and mental health. Constantly feeling mentally and physically bogged down and having a very short fuse was affecting my relationships with the people around me. Taking some time to get in a serious training session worked to temporarily blow off some steam but once the endorphins wore off it was back to the consistent agitated state. I had to do something because the outside world wasn't going away and I didn't want to damage relationships with those I care about.
I had been dabbling in Ki gong for several years at various clinics and events but never dedicated some serious time to it. The feeling of lightness and calm that I felt after the sessions were done always stayed with me for the majority of the day. This is what I needed to add to my daily routine.
It was time to make a change , and at face value it was such a simple change. Just take time to breathe. Ki gong can literally be translated to “breath work” or “energy work” and in many ancient philosophies breath and energy are interchangeable terms. The movements in Ki gong practice connected my breathing to how I moved my body. The more I researched , the more benefits I found. All through conscious movement and breathing. There is absolutely no reason this shouldn’t be practiced by everyone. It compliments everything you do by balancing out the stressors caused in day to day life. You don't need to be an athlete, in fact if you need to you can do many of these movements while sitting in a chair. It’s also a fantastic way to recover after my rigorous martial arts training. And it doesn't take a large part of your day. Thirty minutes to an hour does the trick. In the grand scheme of things isn't your mental and physical health worth just a fraction of your day?
If you'd like to try out Ki gong for yourself we are holding our first class on Saturday, April 8th at 9 am. Space will be limited so to be part of this special day you'll need to register. Click the link below to reserve your spot.