Rami's Blog

Like the Yin-Yang, Eastern Martial Arts and Western medicine are two halves of a whole. My mission is to preserve the ancient mind-body tools and pass them on to you.

 

Fa Jin - Manifestation of Power

Fa Jin (a.k.a. Fa Jing), or "manifestation of power," is great practice for controlling and moving your energy, stretching and releasing the bows, and improving your martial arts. The force of movement in Fa Jin is a good way to begin visualizing the movement of energy during your Tai Chi practice.

Good luck! And make sure you don't move too fast or too hard, and accidentally hurt yourself. Fa Jin is about control, not strength!

Na - Sensitivity Training - Listening with the Skin

When doing Na, or sensitivity training, you want to go slow and try not to compete but to be a good partner. Close your eyes and learn to sense with the skin on your hands. Go slow and start with one hand at a time and over time move to two hands simultaneously. Once you are comfortable with the physical movements then try visualizing your lower energy center while practicing Na. After that, work on the visualization of the 4 gates breathing while practicing Na; you can start with two gates, the upper ones, and over time add the lower ones as well. When you advance even further, you can do Na training on two wooden blocks (still visualizing the lower energy center, of course!).

Tiger Stance from Side to Side

This exercise is a great piece of martial arts training that can be used by anyone to increase strength, muscle mass, bone density, flexibility, and range of motion in the quads, hamstrings, groin, hips, and calves.

Remember, that you don't just want to be strong, you also want to be flexible, because when you are strong and flexible, you are powerful. That is the best you can be, because it means you move your body effectively and efficiently, accomplishing the most work with the least effort.

Do this exercise like you do the others, 15 repetitions to each side is beginners, up to 30 is intermediate, and up to 50 on each side is advanced. This is a good exercise to do if you want to change your usual Up and Down routine once in a while.

I hope you enjoy Tiger Stance from Side to Side! If you do, consider signing up for one of my courses on Udemy. There are long form and short form Tai Chi courses, which can fit any lifestyle, whether you are busy all the time, or already commit an hour a day to exercise.

If you are in the Boston area, don't forget that you can always schedule a private lesson with me, either at my clinic, or at your home. Check out my sign-up page to get the details or submit any questions you might have.

Happy Stretching!

Stimulate the Nerves in Your Feet

Many people believe that strength training is a two-step process. First, you lift weights and do other exercises, and then you build muscle and get stronger. But the reality is that building strength has another step: training your nervous system.

The body naturally uses the least amount of muscle possible to complete an exercise or movement. This saves our body's energy for any unexpected or emergency situations that may occur. If you suddenly have to run to catch the bus, you better not have spent all your energy walking to the bus stop.

But we don't build muscle by just walking around, or doing laundry, or taking out the trash. The difference between regular movements and exercise is how much of your muscle is activated by your nervous system. It's when you focus your mind on the muscles you are working, and push them to the point of exhaustion, that your body will learn to build those muscles bigger and stronger.

What does this have to do with feet? Well, you can't really make the muscles of your feet any bigger, but you can make them stronger, which will help prevent falls, sprained ankles, and other common injuries. Foot strength isn't about how much weight you can move with your feet, but rather how force your feet can take and still keep you stable.

So the first step to building strength in our feet, as we've just learned, is stimulating the nerves. The best way to begin doing this is simply to walk barefoot on all different kinds of surfaces. Wooden floors, sandy beaches, warm asphalt, thick grass, rocky beaches, shag carpets, you get the idea. Walk slow, walk fast, wiggle your toes, go up on your tip-toes if you can. Try to feel the world out with your feet (after all, they do have some of the highest concentration of nerves in your whole body).

Walk barefoot on a different surface everyday, and you will be ready for any of the foot exercises we throw at you.


Happy Stretching!