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Cloud Hands 

 

         Bruce Frantzis ,in his book, Opening the Energy Gates of Your Body, suggests that if you only picked up one Chi Gong exercise, it be Cloud Hands.  There are YouTube videos of Cloud Hands, but link to the Bruce Frantzis version; there are many different exercizes in Chi Gong being called "Cloud Hands". 

 

         Cloud Hands activates, apparently, two lymph pumps in the hip area, increasing lymph in your body and thus strengthening the immune system.  The exercise is taught in the book cited very ably, and I recommend it.  I will give it the way I have been doing it, for those who would like to try it.  I cannot say that I have personally verified all this here lypmp-pumpin', but the theory seems quite plausible. 

 

         When the dance called the Twist is done (see Chubby Checker’s videos on YouTube), the part of the body being twisted is called in the Taoist energy arts “The Qua”.  The assumption is that the lymph pumps are on either side of the qua. 

 

         Stand in Wuji position (feet apart and under the shoulders, knees very slightly bent, hands at your sides, posture fairly upright, belly relaxed, toes pointed straight in front).  There’s lots of instruction in wuji position if you google it. 

 

         The move is entirely with the qua.  Begin twisting the qua, to the left and right.  Allow the arms and hands to be moved by centrifugal force only.  The hands will normally hit your butt as you swing, but do not add to their move volitionally.  If in the course of the exercise they hit the kidney area, go very very easy, lest you hurt the kidneys. 

 

         It is very important that the knees be slightly bent, or you could twist a knee with repetitive stress. 

 

         After about 5 minutes of this, step out sideways just a bit with your right foot (remember to keep your toes pointed to the front), and now, when you twist to the left, go up on the right toes -- when you twist to the right, go up on the left toes.  This enables a more proound twist.  Do about 5 minutes of that one as well.  Twenty minutes will give you a good experience of it. 

 

 

 

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