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.

 

Mind-Body Workout #6: Outdoor Edition

Summer is here and the sunshine is out! That means it's time to get outside and get some fresh air while you exercise. So here we go!

Mind-Body Workout #6: Outdoor Edition

Diving for Pearls: Let's start with getting some of that fresh air into our lungs. You've never appreciated how nice that summer air is until you hold your breath for a while.

Get the Kids Outside: TV and Video Games are just as entertaining in the summer when your kids aren't in school and actually have time to play them. But balance is everything, so make sure your kids come out to play and exercise (and meditate!) with you for a few minutes. This will build hand-eye coordination and concentration.

Upper Body Movement: "White Ape Picks Up the Peach" is a great motion for increasing flexibility and range of motion in the upper body. Do this movement to stretch your arms, chest, back, and shoulders.

Finish with a Walk: A Tai Chi walk, of course! Make sure you are keeping your mind centered and letting the thoughts drift by like clouds. This is a meditation that also builds leg strength and range of motion.

That's it! Go outside in this beautiful weather and get healthy.

Happy stretching!

The Energy Centers Meditation Routine

Some time last year we began a series of posts about meditating while visualizing your lower and upper energy centers, your energetic baton, and the energetic bubble. This will be the capstone post for the series, where we put everything together, finish up the energetic bubble,  and give you a routine for practicing that you can do in less than half an hour.

The Energy Centers Meditation Routine

1. The Lower Energy Center: Sit down comfortably on the edge of a chair. Touch your tongue to the roof of your mouth and begin to visualize a glowing ball, a little smaller than your fist, sitting two inches below your naval, and two inches back from the skin, toward your spine. If it helps, picture this energy center like a calm pool of clear water. Do this for about 5 minutes and then move on.

2. The Upper Energy Center: While still visualizing the lower energy center, begin to visualize the upper energy center as well. This center is located in the middle of the brain, halfway in between the base of the skull and the nose. Don't focus on your forehead, because that is a different visualization. Instead, try being aware of the sensation of your soft palate. That should get you a lot closer. The upper center can also be visualized like a pool of water. Make sure you picture this pool on higher ground than the lower energy center. Continue these two visualizations for 5 minutes.

3: The Energetic Baton: Now it is time to connect the two visualizations into one, and cool the baton. Picture the upper energy center flowing down into the lower energy center, like a waterfall, or a stream down a hill. Focus on the sensation of moving energy from your head and shoulder girdle down to your lower abdomen. You should feel a cooling sensation as your energy settles and your brain quiets down a little. Spend another 5 minutes here.

4: The Energetic Bubble: Lastly, begin expanding your focus to just beyond the surface of your skin, about two inches, into a bubble. This bubble is your filter to pull in good energy from the world around you, and also is a shield, to protect you from negative energies. Remember that the energetic bubble reacts to the temperature around you: the colder it is, the more the bubble shrinks toward your core, the warmer it is, the more the bubble grows outward into the air. Your goal here is to visualize the bubble, identify what parts of it are weaker than others, and then visualize yourself patching those weak areas. After another 5 minutes here, you have completed your energy centers meditation routine!

And there you have it! Do this routine every other day and you will begin feeling more balanced, calm, and your energy bubble might even keep those pesky mosquitoes away! (Just kidding, but one can wish!)

Happy stretching!

Mind-Body Workout #5: Stop Stiffness in your Upper Body

It's been a while since we released a Mind-Body workout, so here's one for all you folks who are defrosting after this long winter and preparing to go out and do some yard work soon.

Mind-Body Workout #5: Stop Stiffness in your Upper Body

Relax your Neck and Shoulders: We start with a stretch for releasing tension in your neck. Relax your muscles and your mind while doing this stretch, so that you can prepare to make the rest of the workout a real mind-body experience.

Short, Basic Motions: Now we will work our way into the joints. By doing these simple, repetitive motions in a gentle manner, you not only focus the stretch on the muscles around the joints, but also bring your mind into the stiff areas.

Turn and Twist: This motion is for your shoulders, neck, and even your spine. It's also a great mind-body exercise. Make it slow and steady and meditative!

Sweeping Tai Chi Motion: This exercise is at the end because it requires the most mobility of all the exercises. Only do this one if your joints are feeling a lot better (hopefully they are!). This motion gets all the joints in your arms and shoulders, even the the joint between your two forearms bones!

Happy stretching!

Mind-Body Workout #4: Super Bowl Edition!

It's time for another custom mind-body workout folks, and this month, we're giving you a workout you can do while watching the Super Bowl.

Go get your Patriots gear and get ready to sweat!

Mind-Body Workout #4: Super Bowl Edition!

These exercises have all been tailored to the usual Super Bowl viewing experience, and they are divided up into the three major portions of the game: 1st half, Half-time show, and 2nd half.

1st Half

Breathing for Possession: Every down that the Patriots have the ball, pull your abdominal wall in when you breath in, and push it out when you breath out (Taoist Breath). When the Seahawks have the ball (boo!) do the reverse, called Buddhist Breath.

Stretch for the Kicker:  Anytime the Patriots go for a field goal in the first half of the game, get up and stretch those hips on the wall. In your mind, focus on sending all of that hip strength and flexibility to Gostkowski. We need all 3 of those extra points!

Half-time Show

Let Out Some Heat and Stretch: It's probably getting pretty hot in your house now, with all the cooking and cheering and breathing and stretching going on. The half-time show is the perfect time to open your front door and let the house cool off. While you are there, do these stretches to open up those chest and shoulder muscles to prepare for the second half.

Make Room for More Food: You've still got another two hours to go, but you probably overdid it on the chicken wings and chips in the first half. No problem! Grab a chair, and loosen up your digestive tract with this twisting stretch and be ready to chow down during the finale.

2nd Half

Cheer for the Pats/Yell at the Refs: The second half is when every pass and penalty really starts to matter. Show your team spirit by getting up off the couch for each one and cheering or yelling as you see fit. "Come on, Ref! You call that a penalty?"

Lost Your Seat: Most people at these Super Bowl parties wander around during the middle quarters, but everyone suddenly fills in around the sofa when the game clock reaches 5 minutes or so. Chances are, you just came back from the bathroom and now you don't have a seat. No worries! Stretch those quads and strengthen those knees by sitting on the ground.

There you go! Your one-stop guide to making this the healthiest Super Bowl you've ever had.

Go Patriots!

Mind-Body Workout #3: Stability and Independence

Hello everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Today's blog is a workout routine that will improve your stability and balance, which is especially important for the elderly. If you can stand up on your own, walk around on your own, etc., not only do you feel more in control, but it will also motivate you to keep moving and stay healthy.

Routine #3

This routine isn't just for the elderly, however. Athletes need stability more than anyone, because their dynamic body movements can become very dangerous if their muscles are imbalanced, or their sense of balance is weak. So, with that in mind, here is the workout routine for Stability and Independence

Mind-Body Workout #3: Stability and Independence

Do the first three exercises three days a week. Depending on your level of balance, you may not be able to do the most difficult exercises I show in the last video. Instead, do the exercise that challenges you, but is not dangerous.

Tai Chi Walk
2-3 minutes around an area with a low wall or couch that you can stabilize yourself with. You can also do a certain number of steps, instead of timing yourself. Just make sure you go as slow as possible. This isn't a speed workout, it is a balance exercise.

Push the Tablets
10-20 repetitions on each side. Move through your core, which will strengthen your obliques and build your core strength. Your core is incredibly important for balance. As a bonus, it also stretches your chest and shoulders and back. What a great exercise!

Stretch your Neck
Hold this stretch for 30 seconds to 1 minute on both sides of your neck. This exercise will help your head feel balanced, which goes a long way toward helping your actual balance.

Choose one Stability Exercise from this Video
Either the legs from Cloud Hands, Hold the Knee with a wall, Hold the Knee freestanding, or the advanced stability exercise at the end. Do what is challenging, but also safe!

And that's it! Good luck with increasing your stability!

Mind-Body Workout #2: Stretch and Strengthen your Core

It's time for another mind-body vlog workout routine! This month, we're going to focus on the core, which we'll narrow down to our abdominals, lower back, and inner pelvic girdle muscles.

The core of our body is the true seat of our health and strength. In martial arts, all power is transferred through the core into our punches and kicks. The core structures also protect our vulnerable internal organs from damage.

Routine #2

This workout routine will not only work your core muscles and increase strength, it will also stabilize your lower back and massage your internal organs. Here your go!

Mind-Body Workout #2: Stretch and Strengthen your Core

Do these exercises five days a week (weekends off).

Chair Twists x 1 set
Hold each side for 2-3 minutes. Keep your shoulders even and relaxed. Don't turn your hips!

Groin Stretch x 1 set
Hold this stretch for a good 4-6 minutes. There are a lot of tense muscles in the pelvic floor.

Sit-ups x 3 sets
Go slowly, with 2 minutes of rest in between each set.
1-15 reps is beginner. 16-30 reps is intermediate. 31-50 reps is advanced.

Buddhist and Taoist Breath x 4 sets with 30 seconds of rest in between
First two sets: Buddhist breathing for 1 minute.
Second two sets: Taoist breathing for 1 minute.

These last two exercises should be done while you continue to do the Empty and Full Moon motions. If you can't coordinate that much mind-body motion yet, just focus on your breathing in and out.

Grind x 6 sets of slow, controlled motion. 
Alternate: one set rotate left, one set rotate right.
First two sets: smaller circles. 
Second two sets: medium circles.
Last two sets: big circles.

Push the Tablets x 3 sets, 30 seconds each
This is a great rotational exercise. Use a chair is you want. Put your mind in your core!

Few! That's a pretty intense workout. A lot of these moves come from Tai Chi. If you want to explore more Tai Chi movement and theory on your own, check out my DVD, Sunrise Tai Ch.

Good luck!