8 Pieces of Brocade Medical Qigong

Focus: Qi Circulation

TCM Time Course

Saturdays 10:30-11:30AM (EDT) | 5-week course | Aug 1st-29th | 2020

• Learn a simple yet effective set of Medical Qigong exercises
• Keep your body healthy and Qi (energy) circulating in just 10 to 20 minutes a day
• A "brocade" is a shining and beautiful cloth—practicing these exercises regularly and correctly is as if you add a shining and beautiful life force to protect your body
• Accredited to Marshal Yue Fei for improving the health of his soldiers
• Theory and exercises of the standing set will be taught in-depth with a focus on Qi circulation (Grand Circulation Qigong)

• Introduction to Grand Circulation Qigong
• 1st Piece: Double Hands Hold up the Heavens
• 2nd Piece: Left Right Open Bow (Shoot the Hawk)
• 3rd Piece: Separate Heaven and Earth
• 4th Piece: Turn and Look Behind (5 Weaknesses and Seven Injuries)
• 5th Piece: Sway the Head and Swing the Tail
• 6th Piece: Two Hands Hold the Feet
• 7th Piece: Punching with Angry Eyes
• 8th Piece: Seven Bounces of the Heels and Hundred Illnesses Disappear

5 Animal Sports Medical Qigong

Focus: Bear (Spleen Health)

TCM Time Course

Saturdays 12:00-1:00PM (EDT) | 5-week course | Aug 1st-29th | 2020

• Learn one of the most fun and popular sets of Medical Qigong exercises
• Imitate natural movements of 5 animals to benefit your health and reduce stress
• Accredited to the legendary doctor Hua Tou—aka the father of Chinese Medicine
• The Bear set will benefit your Spleen health—especially in the late summer and all year round
• Each movement of the Bear set will be taught in-depth

Bear Set (Spleen Health)

• 1. Bear Swaying
• 2. Bear Pushing
• 3. Bear Bumping
• 4. Bear Walking
• 5. Bear Hanging

5 Elements Correspondences

• Element: Earth
• Yin Organ: Spleen
• Yang Organ: Stomach
• Sense Organ: Mouth
• Color: Yellow
• Season: Late Summer (or All Seasons)
• Tissue: Muscles
• Emotion: Worry
• Healing Sound: 呼 HU sounds like "huh" or "whooo"

Tai Chi Sequence—1st Part

Focus: Taiji Breathing (Reverse Abdominal Breathing)

TCM Time Course

Sundays 12:00-1:00PM (EDT) | 5-week course | Aug 2nd-30th | 2020

• Learn to calm your mind and relax your body with Tai Chi
• Practice gentle breathing, stretching and strengthening movements
• Improve your flexibility and balance as well as your mood and sleep
• The Yang Style Tai Chi Sequence (Traditional Long Form—108 movements) is commonly practiced for relaxation and numerous health benefits
• The first part of the form will be taught—Taiji breathing (Reverse Abdominal Breathing) will be emphasized in-depth*

August 2020

Tai Chi Sequence—1st Part (10-22 of 22 movements)

• Introduction to Taiji Qigong (Primary Set) & Reverse Abdominal Breathing
• 9. Lift Hands to the Up Posture
• 10. The Crane Spreads Its Wings

• 11. Brush Knee and Step Forward: Left
• 12. Play the Guitar

• 13. Twist Body, Brush Knee and Step Forward: Left
• 14. Twist Body, Brush Knee and Step Forward: Right
• 15. Twist Body, Brush Knee and Step Forward: Left
• 16. Play the Guitar
• 17. Twist Body, Brush Knee and Step Forward: Left

• 18. Twist Body and Circle the Fist
• 19. Step Forward, Deflect Downward, Parry and Punch
• 20. Seal Tightly

• 21. Embrace the Tiger and Return to the Mountain
• 22. Close Taiji
• Review and Conclusion

Four Seasons Qigong & Food as Medicine

YMAA Boston Special Class

Focus: Summer (Heart Health)

8-week course
July 7th-Aug 25th
Tuesdays
6:00-7:00 PM
Boston Time (EDT)

Summer-Fall Qigong Set:

1. Forward and Backward Swing Arms (Qián Hòu Shuǎi Bì) 前後甩臂
2. Left and Right Turn Windlass (Zuǒ Yòu Lu Lu) 左右轆轤
3. Feudal Lord Pulls the Bow (Bà Wáng Lā Gōng) 霸王拉弓
4. Immortal Pushes the Stone Tablet (Xiān Rén Tuī Bēi) 仙人推碑

5. Large Roc Arcs Its Wings (Dà Péng Gǒng Chì) 大鵬拱翅
6. Large Roc Spreads Its Wings (Dà Péng Zhǎn Chì) 大鵬展翅
7. Sway the Head and Swing the Tail (Yáo Tóu Bǎi Wěi) 搖頭擺尾
8. Baby Bird Receives the Food (Yòu Niǎo Shōu Shí) 幼鳥收食
9. Crane Shakes Its Wings (Bái Hè Dǒu Chì) 白鶴抖翅

This 8-week course will be half theory and half exercise focusing on the summer season Qigong exercises (heart health) as well as a discussion of eating properly to treat illnesses and prevent disease in the late summer & autumn.

Four Seasons Qigong is a well-known traditional medical Qigong practice in which one learns how to regulate the body from one season to the next to avoid common illnesses. This Qigong specializes in training the five internal Yin organs; heart, lungs, liver, kidneys, and spleen, which correspond to the four seasons of the year.

It is believed that when we get sick, it is often due to the body’s difficulty in adapting to the changes from one season to another. For example, when Fall arrives, it is easier to catch a cold, and when Summer comes, the heart can be too excited. By practicing Four Seasons Qigong, you are able to adjust your body’s Qi during the change of seasons so your health can be maintained.

Food as Medicine: Healing begins with an optimal diet and balanced overall nutrition. Chinese food therapy is a practice of healing that uses natural foods instead of medications to correct imbalances and disharmonies in the body’s Qi (vital energy). Eating properly according to the seasons can treat and prevent illnesses and disease.

To register for special classes hosted by YMAA Boston click here.

Tai Chi Sequence—2nd Part

YMAA Boston Special Class

Focus: Body Structure

8-week course
July 7th-Aug 25th
Tuesdays
7:30-8:30 PM
Boston Time (EDT)

This 8-week course will examine the fundamental body structures of Tai Chi and the postures and movements of the 2nd part of the Yang style form.

• Learn to calm your mind and relax your body with Tai Chi
• Practice gentle breathing, stretching and strengthening movements
• Improve your flexibility and balance as well as your mood and sleep
• The Yang Style Tai Chi Sequence (Traditional Long Form—108 movements) is commonly practiced for relaxation and numerous health benefits
• The Tai Chi Sequence—2nd Part will be covered in this 8-week course (20 of 41 movements) and the focus will be on regulating the body structure
• This course is open to all levels—especially for beginners—and it is not necessary to know the 1st Part of the Tai Chi Sequence to begin the 2nd Part

Tai Chi Sequence—2nd Part

• Transition Form
• 23. Wardoff, Rollback, Press, and Push Forward (Peng Lu Ji An)
• 24. Single Whip
• 25. Punch Under the Elbow
• 26. Step Back and Repulse the Monkey: Left
• 27. Step Back and Repulse the Monkey: Right
• 28. Step Back and Repulse the Monkey: Left
• 29. Diagonal Flying
• 30. Lift Hands to the Up Posture
• 31. The Crane Spreads Its Wings
• 32. Brush Knee and Step Forward: Left
• 33. Pick Up the Needle from the Sea Bottom
• 34. Fan Back
• 35. Turn, Twist Body, and Circle the Fist
• 36. Step Forward, Deflect Downward, Parry and Punch
• 37. Step Forward, Wardoff, Rollback, Press and Push Forward (Peng Lu Ji An)
• 38. Single Whip
• 39. Wave Hand in the Clouds: Right
• 40. Wave Hand in the Clouds: Left
• 41. Wave Hand in the Clouds: Right
• 42. Single Whip

To register for special classes hosted by YMAA Boston click here.

Qigong for Women

KZ Qigong

Rise Up, Girls!

Kathy Yang and Zuzanna Grzywacz (Zuza) are sisters at heart and Qigong instructors, united by their passion to support women’s health and healing. They started the KZ Qigong project with the mission to empower all women in need of personal healing with therapeutic Qigong exercises. Kathy and Zuza are dedicated to help every woman transform her pain, trauma and tragedy into stories of hope, strength and courage.

• Last Meetup: April 26, 2020 Self-Care for Your Body, Mind and Soul
• Last Workshop: March 8, 2020 International Women's Day
• Quarterly workshops / meetups / conversations for women
• Free of charge—join our sisterhood and Rise Up, Girl!
• For the latest news & announcements, visit KZ Qigong