All About Chi Blog

For many people who suffer from pain, massage provides an alternative to costly pain prescriptions or even surgery. Evading costly trips to the hospital has become a surprising new trend:  An article written by Tammy Worth in The Los Angeles Times claims that visits to health practitioners have decreased by 50% since 1997. People are becoming either more informed about their health or more negligent.

Worth goes on to say that “almost 40% of adults use some form of complementary and alternative medicine to treat a variety of conditions.” The many names of medicine outside of the mainstream—naturopathy, complementary, alternative and integrative medicine—frequently pop up in articles, blogs, and conversations. The public is becoming more in tune with the language of health.

All the chatter about taking care of yourself the natural way, through things like massage and homeopathic remedies, suggests that the public is becoming more aware of their health. Worth notes that Americans spent $4 billion on yoga, tai chi and qigong classes, and $2.9 billion on homeopathic medicine. Fewer visits to health practitioners, exercising more, meditating, avoiding surgery—all these contribute to an economically sustainable lifestyle.

When I look around my power yoga class, filled to maximum capacity with university students, I know the buzz is big. Yoga, vegetarianism, and health foods are things that every hip college coed has at her disposal. Yet, the wealth of information about alternative medicine requires a conscientious reader. Health is a profitable industry, so an eye-catching advertisement for a new remedy may only be a marketing scheme.

While getting caught up in the excitement, don’t glaze over the fact that you should receive health advice from a reliable source. Health practitioners lend a hand when deciding what’s best for you, your body, and your lifestyle. You can use alternative medicine to your benefit, just be smart about it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to go ground some flaxseed meal…

Tags: alternative medicine, complementary medicine, homeopathy, integrative medicine, naturopathy

Let me ask you a question: What do you think about iodine? You’re probably thinking ‘Isn’t that an element?’ or ‘I don’t think about iodine.’ If I were to change the question to more common types of food or nutrients like protein or fiber, you’d probably perk up. Protein keeps your muscles strong and wards away hunger pains while fiber helps with digestion and keeps you feeling fuller, longer. While I write this blog eating a breakfast of cereal and soymilk, the backs of the containers boast the benefits of meals high in protein and fiber. Mass media covers these aspects of your health, but often neglects iodine as a surprisingly essential and helpful weight management tool.   

I recently learned that most people are deficient in iodine, mainly because iodine appears less and less in the foods you eat. The soil isn\’t as iodine-rich as it used to be. Iodine deficiency not only prevents weight loss, but leads to depression, and thyroid enlargement. While you may be eating what you consider to be a well-balanced diet, any diet without iodine runs these health risks.

Iodine may be found naturally in foods that come from the ocean, like shellfish, fish, seaweed, and kelp. Eating these foods enables proper thyroid function, improves your mood, increases your energy, and helps you lose weight. Not everyone has these foods readily available or includes them in their diet. If you’re on a special diet or are worried about being iodine deficient, consider taking a supplement like iosol.

Consuming enough iodine allows you to manage your weight as well as stay happy and healthy. Keep up the good work, health-nut, and keep up the iodine, too.

Tags: balanced diet, health advice, iodine deficiency, nutrients, supplement, weight loss

When I was younger, I didn’t believe that tai chi could do my body any good. Unlike soccer games or track meets, I couldn’t feel my body gaining muscle or endurance during a tai chi class. It just seemed like nothing was happening. But my teacher told me to just stay with it. I’m glad I did. At some point much later,  I started to feel energy and focus by the end of the class. No, I did not undergo a magical transformation, but for a low-intensity fitness class, I came out with some surprising benefits. I learned how to increase my energy level without a lot of work. And I found a peace of mind that comes in handy in my stress filled world. I also gained a sense of balance and flexibility.

Tai chi, chi masters, chi running, chi walking, chi machines—they all have the term chi in them. But what does “chi” actually refer to? In order to use chi products and engage in chi activities, I did some research to find out what chi is all about. Chi is universal energy. Chinese philosophy suggests that every living thing possesses chi. Their belief is that chi takes shape in everything that surrounds us, both living and non-living.

The idea of chi grounds many other familiar ideas about energy, like feng shui. In China, many people refer to a living space as ‘feng shui.’ Feng shui, an ancient Chinese art and science, basically refers to methods of balancing the energies within any given space. By using the principles of feng shui the people within the space have good health and good fortune.

There is also the term Sha Chi, which literraly means negative energy. It’s mostly man made, and has to do with noise, clutter, etc.

Strong chi leads to good health. Everyone has some energy, strength, and balance. As a result of directing their chi, chi masters or chi practitioners are exceptional at directing their chi and have exceedingly good health. You can practice different physical and mental exercises that include chakra exercises. Kundalini yoga is another possibility. Chi visualization , and chi relaxation.

Chi proves stronger and more enduring than muscles. (Mind over body ring a bell?) Located just below your belly button and in toward your spine is the point at which chi resides. Your life energy comes from this central core that’s also referred to as your dantian or hara. Your dantian or hara is the ideal location for centering your chi so that you remain balanced.

Not a material you can buy, sell, or trade, chi represents an invisible force within yourself that you can use to promote your health. While my surge of energy from tai chi classes didn’t come until the term was over, there are faster ways to achieve the same results. The easiest and quickest way to experience chi is to try a chi machine. After five minutes on the machine, you’ll experience an amazing surge of energy. It feels like a tingle that goes up your legs into your body. Depending on your health and flexibility, it can go all the way up to the top of your head.

Whenever we surf the internet or the TV channels for health advice, we’re showered with advertisements for miracle breakthroughs that claim to deliver instant cures. Juices, supplements, oils, creams, lubricants, laxatives, sprays, patches—all claiming to solve your health problems and perfect your body. So, how to we decipher between pseudoscience and true medicine?

Given the “magic” of television and movies, believing what we see requires a careful, analytical eye. With alternative medicine or miracles of health, we may reject a true and natural practice in favor of a pill since pills are familiar.

The power of chi gong masters, like John Chang, seems surreal. But the demonstrations of chi masters lack special effects, stunt doubles, and slow play-by-plays. They’re the real result of naturally learning to control the powers of our personal energy. When we stretch farther or learn to balance, our body remembers what we’ve accomplished so that next time we attempt to perform that stretch or balance, we can. We improve our athletic performance through memory.

Consider that chi is not something you add to or take away from the body. Concentrating chi requires no props or special diets, just practice. Similarly, following a healthy diet and exercising regularly requires practice.

So, seeing the chi machine featured on a popular TV show, I had to ask myself ‘is this real?’ The Doctors delivers health advice and inside knowledge about medical breakthroughs. During a recent segment they showed a few people demoing the chi machine. They showed no before and after shots. They weren’t trying to push some new product. And, Doctor Michael Yang, who discussed the surprising benefits to the lymph system, would answer questions directly and fully. He explained the way that the gentle rocking of the chi machine, designed after the movement of goldfish, works to relieve pain and reduce swelling.

The show lacked bright lights, loud obnoxious hosts, and special one-time-only deals for which I am thankful. As the chi machine gains exposure in popular media, more and more people will start using the machines and receiving benefits.

Tags: alternative medicine, chi machine, chi master, health advice, pain, swelling, the doctors

If you suffer from arthritis, then words like ‘physical activity,’ ‘exercise,’ and ’strength building’ may seem intimidating or disheartening. You may even believe that you cannot participate in these activities as the arthritis prevents you from doing so. I encourage you to reverse that mindset. Consider the activities you can do and that will provide relief from arthritis pressure.

Jeanie Lerche Davis’ article, Tai Chi for Arthritis Relief, explains the ways that tai chi movements provide pain relief. Replacing pain killers with tai chi also proves cost effective. Tai chi, a low-impact, weight-bearing, aerobic activity, can be viewed as a type of moving meditation. You remain relaxed, but build your body’s endurance. The more time you dedicate to tai chi, the less time you’ll need to spend at the doctors office. In fact, Davis notes that people find tension relief after 15, 10, even five minutes of tai chi.

The energy restored to your body after tai chi and the flexibility you gain will help you to complete daily commitments that would otherwise go untended due to your arthritis pressure. Consciously breathing and going through the motions allows you to relax and, like chi machines, feel energized. Consider that getting involved in tai chi and using your chi machines prove to be preventative health measures: fewer falls, less pain. Not only are you building cardiovascular, muscular, and personal strength, but you’re providing yourself with natural, effective, long-term relief without the crutch of pills and prescriptions.

Through your altered perspective consider ‘physical activity,’ ‘exercise,’ and ’strength building’ positively and arthritis as something you can control and ease. Over time, arthritis lessens rather than worsens. What’s more, your attitude toward arthritis improves as you begin to perceive the pain as temporary instead of burdening. Embrace the control you have over your health to tell arthritis exactly what you want it to do. Not the other way around.

If you’re a runner like me, you’re doing whatever you can to improve your performance.

I just learned about Chi Running. It’s a philosophy that allows all your body parts (head, legs, knees, chest, lungs, head) to work together to improve your running form and reduce the chance of injuries. Here’s an article about it!

I’ve been experimenting with some of the principles and have noticed a big difference in the way I run. I bet you can too!