“Dragon and Tiger Medical Qigong is a 1,500-year-old self-healing movement system based on acupuncture. It is sometimes called “meridian-line qigong” because it helps free you of energetic (chi) blockages by balancing the chi flow that runs through the acupuncture meridians or energy channels of your body.” – More information can be found on http://www.energyarts.com/dragon-tiger-medical-qigong

Some of the health benefits Master Frantzis mentioned in the training was that it was used in China to help patients with terminal cancer extend their lives 5-10 years when they practiced the set approximately 5 hours a day. Each of the seven movements in Dragon and Tiger help activate and heal specific parts of the body. Techniques for developing chi sensitivity, connection, and flow were pretty much wired into most of us for the 2 week retreat, with daily practice averaging 5+ hours per day.

So I’m composing this to provide information to myself and others why eating later in the day is not as healthy. My partner and his best friend are trying out an intermittent fasting program where they are allowing themselves to eat during an 8 hour time period, no more, no less. They begin to eat at around 1:30pm generally, and sometimes earlier and end their eating hours at around 9:30pm. I want to find out if eating earlier is healthier.

Here are some theories on my own why I think eating earlier is healthier:

1) You digest food better during the day, than when you are sleeping at night.

2) You are more active during the day, thus you are able to exercise off and burn off the calories that you eat than when you are sleeping (unless if you maybe sleep- stroll or run)

3) It’s better for your liver

4) Follows your natural rhythm better

5) I think I heard it helps prevent migraines.

ALright, theories on the ready, lets research!!!

How it can alleviate Migraines:

http://www.nyheadache.com/index.php?Itemid=81&id=44&option=com_content&task=view

“The importance of eating regularly cannot be overstated, since skipping meals can trigger headaches.  Skipped meals and fasting were reported migraine triggers in more than half of patients surveyed in several studies.  Low blood sugar can trigger headaches so it is important to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday.  Many people skip breakfast, which puts them at risk for having headaches in the morning.  Snacks in the mid-morning and mid-afternoon might also be helpful for people who find that their headaches are often triggered by hunger.

Also, spikes and falls in your blood sugar can trigger headaches.  Eating protein and fiber with each meal can help to stabilize the way the food is broken down by your body, thus preventing large fluctuations in blood sugar.  For example, having cereal with milk (which has protein) is a better breakfast choice than a big muffin, which is generally high in sugar and low in protein.  Protein-rich foods include: meat, fish, poultry, eggs, dairy, beans, and nuts.  High-fiber foods include wholegrain breads, whole wheat pastas, bran, fruit (especially dried fruit), green leafy vegetables, and nuts and seeds.

Staying well-hydrated throughout the day is also important, since dehydration can trigger headaches.  We recommend drinking 8-10 glasses of water daily to prevent headaches. Caffeinated drinks (coffee, tea, soda) can actually have a dehydrating effect by causing increased urination so these should be limited as much as possible.  This is especially important since caffeine also has a role in increasing headaches (see Caffeine section under Identifying Your Triggers).”

Hey All,

Ok, so I’m going to Maui this Summer from June 14-July 3 to train in Dragon and Tiger Medical Qigong with Master Bruce Frantzis. From now until then my intention is train mucho so I can excel as much as I can while I am there so I can share what I learned there with people in SF.

I’m going to be offering classes in SF on chi gung and maybe beginning tai chi. The reason why I am reluctant to teach people tai chi immediately is because it it essential to get the basic foundations for body alignments, familiarity of basic movements of the body that are subtle, and proper breathing before moving on.

Also, I want to make my classes more accessible and central to people in SF, so I’m thinking about teaching at Noisebridge and in front of the Civic Center building in SF. Who Knows? We’ll find out.

Peace, Love, and the Ease of Your Spirit.

Amber

Hi all,

I’m going to be offering a free introductory chi gung class this Sunday, April 8st at 1529 Pershing Dr at 10am until 11am. My plan is to make this a weekly event. This class will focus on basic body alignments, chi gung movements to improve blood flow, and joint pulsing to alleviate joint pain. Chi gung is the precursor to tai chi.

I’m offering this class because a number of people I know are unfamiliar to the benefits of chi gung and I want to make available this useful knowledge that will help maintain the health of your mind, body and spirit to the community. As we all know, health care costs are not fun to deal with, and we need a way to rely less on medication/health treatments and prevent injuries and body breakdown with preventative care.

Email me at kindle.breath@gmail.com if you have any questions or have any schedule preferences.

Bless,

Amber

A video of this will be posted within the next week.

The second method of reducing knee pain/pressure is by having a standing position with your feet parallel, hip width to shoulder width apart (whatever is most comfortable for you) and have your knees slightly bent. Have your partner place their hands above the knee, around the circumference of your thigh (or part of it) and gently turn the thigh inwards, making sure that they are not turning the knee/kneecap along with the thigh. You can have this done on the upper part of the thigh, making sure that the hip is nowhere near being thrown out of place, on the middle of the thigh, and 3 inches above the knee. Do this 1-2 times only.

Then have your partner place their hands around your calf, turning the flesh/partial mass of the lower leg gently outwards. Make sure that this is done at least 3 inches below the knee and about an inch above the ankle. Do this 1-2 times.

It is also beneficial for your partner to have one hand turning one half of the leg and the other hand on the other half, stationary and countering the turn.

Once you have done one of each, you can then alternate between the upper and lower part a few times, making sure to be very conscious of alignment and the standing partner’s comfort.

Knee problems are an issue that many individuals over the age of 50 struggle with today. Individuals in in San Francisco have particularly busy lives that involves a great deal of walking and biking which over time can take its toll on the knees of an individual.

Some techniques that can help alleviate knee pain without pharmaceutical drugs are:

1) Creating space behind the back of the knee.

2) Adjusting Knee Alignment (Tricky and should be done under trained supervision).

3) Energetically Pulsing the Joint of the Knee.

How can the first process can be done with a partner:

What I mean by creating space behind the back of the knee is to first, counter the pressure of weight on your knee by lifting your upper body. This should first be practiced by standing with proper body alignment (shoulders above your hips, back straight but not stiff, chest relaxed, feet shoulder width apart*) and from the crown of your head, begin to feel a lifting sensation that travels all the way down your body so you feel as though gravity has become lessened. Have a partner with you to check your alignments. Begin to notice what areas of the body feel contracted and stiff and try to dissipate that by softening those areas. If you can’t begin to soften those areas, it’s okay to move on for those skills will come in time with practice and instruction.

Now, to further this process, have your partner help create more space in the area. This is done by the partner’s hand being in a closed position, with all five fingers touching (as though making a duck hand puppet) touching behind the knee, and then slowly opening the hand vertically while the fingers remain in contact behind the knee until the hand is finally spread out. You should feel more space being created with this process. Try this a couple of times with your partner. What differences do you feel in your knee now from before?

Processes 2 & 3: To be continued.