Benefits: Opening the chest to expand the lungs to their fullest extent.
Posture: Begin this tai chi exercise by sitting with your back against the back of the chair. Legs should be shoulder width apart, feet flat on the floor. Tuck your hips under slightly and curve your shoulders inward without hunching. The idea here is to keep the chi’s from flowing outward away from the body. Hold your head lightly on your neck as though it were suspended by a string from the ceiling.
Visualization: Imagine that you are swimming through molecules of air. You are both receiving and giving energy to your immediate surroundings. The area around you is not a void but, rather, is filled with densely packed molecules of air and electromagnetic energy.
Pathways: In this exercise, you are not only opening your chest to its limit but also drawing energy from the lower dan tien to the middle dan tien located at the level of your solar plexus. You are clearing away any obstructions that may be present, along the middle meridian that runs from the perineum through the middle of your body to the top of your head. Once the pathway is free of obstacles, the energy you have brought up from the lower dan tien will flow freely.
- Begin with your hands at your waist. Move them forward and slightly upward until they are directly in front of your solar plexus.
- Turn your palms back to back and push forward until your elbows are straight. As you move your arms forward, inhale deeply through your nose, expanding your diaphragm. Continue breathing in until your arms are as far in front of you as possible.
- As you move your arms out to the side an behind you, exhale, tightening your diaphragm, not your shoulders to move the air in and out of your lungs.
Repetitions: Nine
