Lydia's Qi Kung Sequence

I must emphasize that if you really want to learn any form of Qi Kung, you should learn it from an experienced person, not from a website. However, if you'd just like to give this sequence a try, go for it. To aid you, I have taught the sequence to a little stick man who will demonstrate it for you as best he can.

All the movements should be done in a smooth, flowing manner, without pause between the steps. Many people find it beneficial to do the movements very deliberately and precisely (much more precisely than I am describing here) because the increased mindfulness of their body helps move the Qi. Folks who are skilled at manipulating their energy may find that looser free-form movements are more effective for stimulating Qi. However, the deliberate, precise movements may still be preferred when the goal is to establish a firm link between the physical body and the energy body.

	Start by standing with legs shoulder width apart, knees slightly bent. Spine straight, but tucked under, shoulders back. Put your hands, palms together, at your chest. Circle your hands down, out to the sides, and up over your head. Press your palms together above your head and then back down to your chest. This gathering and clearing movement begins and ends each repetition of the sequence.
	Bring your hands down towards the ground, while bending forward and bending your knees. Draw energy up from the ground, the molten core of the earth, while bringing your hands to your belly, gathering the energy there at your dan tien. Then bring your arms up over your head, drawing energy from the sky and the vastness of space, and again bring your hands to your belly. Drawing this hot and cold energy together creates a very alchemical process within you.
	Next reach out in front of you with your fingers pointing upward. Grasp the energy and draw it back to your belly. Reach both hands back behind you and pull the energy forward, back to your belly. It is as if you are grabbing elastic cords and fastening them to your belly. Feel the dynamic tension in the movements, and the tension between the movements. (Unfortunately, the little stick man is not very good at this movement, or the next one.)
	Now reach both arms straight out to the sides, again grasping the energy and pulling it in to your belly. Feel how the movement anchors you in place with elastic cords.
	You've just done movements in three directions, down-up, front-back, and to the sides. Now you will do movements that split these three directions. Reach one hand up over your head as the other reaches down. Really stretch. This creates a heaven/earth connection, and you should feel the tension between these forces. Bring your hands back to center, feeling these forces mix as your hands pass each other, and do the movement with the opposite hands.
	Twist to one side, with your arms outstretched, and look back over your shoulder. One arm is reaching in front of you, and the other behind. Your wrists should be flexed, with fingers pointing upward or in the direction you are twisting. Repeat to the other side, and bring your hands back to your belly. This side twisting movement was not part of the sequence as Lydia taught it, but I saw it in a martial arts magazine article which described this sequence, and I like to include it.
	Next, reach your arms straight out to the sides, with palms facing forward. Rotate your arms so your palms face down, then behind you, as you bend your upper back and neck forward. Keep your lower back straight. This opens the energy channel which runs up along the spine. Now rotate your arms the other way, so they face forward and then up, as you bend your neck slightly to look upward. Raise the chest as if something was pulling up on your breastbone. This opens the energy channel running down the front of your body.
	Reach down to the earth and up to the sky again, as you did in the beginning of the sequence.
	End the sequence with the same movement which began it, bringing palms together, circling your arms out and up overhead, and bringing the palms back together at the chest.

This sequence is done three times in a row. The first time through, the whole sequence is done at a moderate pace. With each movement, be aware that you are gathering energy from all directions to your center. This engages the energy and the body together.

The second time the sequence is done with a good deal of muscular resistance, as if you were lifting and pushing very heavy things. Press the palms together with force on the starting and ending movements. Engage the leg muscles by turning the thighs slightly outward and the lower legs slightly inward. Clench the abdominal muscles when you exhale.

The third time is done very loose and flowing, as if you were moving through water or running your fingers through someone's hair. This smoothes everything out and removes any residual tension.

Different patterns of breathing during the sequence have somewhat different effects. You can try breathing in while your arms move away from your center and breathing out when you bring your hands back in, or the reverse. Be mindful of your body and your energy, and see how it feels.