QiGong - Sweat during workout

Shibashi Qigong is a form of low impact aerobic exercise.  So it is only natural to perspire.  This Qigong works the internal organs giving them a workout and as they gain energy and strength you will find that over time you will sweat less and less.  So bring it on!

Remember not to drink cold water or expose your back to strong wind or cold, or take a shower at least 30 min after practicing Shibashi Qigong.  Same deal with professional athletes  you see them running for a coat or sweater soon after their set or competition.

Food to Improve Qi

Q. Is there any food you recommend to improve qi?

A. Yes, but the recommendation would differ depending on one’s specific body type. However, there is a balanced formula that is suitable for every body type. The formula is dried longan, dried goji berry, chamomile, and dried red-coloured jujube. (You should be able to buy these easily at any Chinese herbal store; fresh ones are OK too). Just mix them with boiling hot water similar to making tea. The taste is very pleasant. I usually prepare 2L of this in the morning and then drink it like water throughout the day.

Reproduced from Sifu Wing Chung - Nameste

How to Breath when doing Qigong - Reverse breathing vs. Abdominal breathing

There are two main type of breathing you can do when practicing Qigong.  Normal Abdominal breathing or Reverse Breathing (Buddhas Breath).

Normal abdominal breathing is inhaling through your nose and expanding the abdomen nice a full then deeply exhale.  Alternately you can try reverse breathing where you inhale through your nose and suck in your belly then exhale deeply.

Exhaling through your nose or mouth?

When practicing Qigong you should always have the tip of your tongue touching the roof of your mouth to complete the microscopic orbit of Chi energy circulating around your governing and conception meridians.  Inhaling via the nose naturally makes you want to put your tongue on the roof of your mouth and exhaling from your mouth forces you to drop your tongue on the exhale which is correct.

Start with just breathing and don't even think about it.  Then start with Abdominal breathing then graduate to reverse abdominal. Re-training your body to naturally reverse breath without thinking takes great discipline and years of practice but is your gateway to reactivating your microscopic orbit and Dian Tien returning you to what the taoist believe to be the 'source'.

When is the best time to practice Qigong?

Early morning is the best time soon after you get up.  And here's why:

After you wake up you mind is still in a low alpha frequency so its much easier to get into the proper mind state for Shibashi.
The air quality is at its best first thing in the morning so practice outside if you can and breath in all the fresh chi air you can.

According to the Bible of TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine), its best hit the hay before 11pm in the spring and summer and at 9 pm in the autumn and winter and wake up around dawn.  Getting enough rest is something we all know we should do, but do please try to make it a habit.
...But having said that I have also found that doing Qigong between11pm and 3 am is incredibly powerful.  If you can sleep in or call in sick the next day try it out for yourself.

Everybody's body type is different.  These are just guidelines.  Most important is to practice every day and make it a habit to obtain maximum benefit.

True Meditation

In true meditation there is no meditator or object of meditation.
In true meditation there is no goal, not even for enlightenment.
In true meditation, the silence, stillness and emptiness will lead to I-am-ness
In true meditation the transcendence of I-am-ness will lead to beingness.
Beingness is the impersonal witnessing of all events.
In true meditation, beingness will finally be dissolved to Cosmic Consciousness.