Health and other Martial Arts – Qigong

Qi Gong (Chi Kung) has been used by the Chinese for thousands of years as a way to promote self-healing, rejuvenation, and longevity. Easier to learn than Tai Chi, Qi Gong can be practiced by almost any age or fitness level. Practitioners generally experience increased stamina, better digestion, improved circulation, more restful sleep, balanced internal energy and reduced stress and anxiety. With regular practice you will learn to feel and increase your life-force energy while dissolving energy blockages. One of the benefits of Qi Gong is enhanced resistance to disease:

"Research carried out in China recently using Western scientific apparatus has verified this. For example, a series of experiments carried out at Tientsin Chinese Medical Research Center on 68 patients, showed that the proportion of white blood cells, which are responsible for the body's self defense, increased from an average of 57.7 percent to 78.1 percent after practicing Chi Kung for three months. Experiments carried out at Jiangsu Chinese Medical Research Center showed that the amount of antibody IgA, which is important for humoral immunity, increased from 767.5 mg/ml to 1193.4 mg/ml after three months of Chi Kung practice. The proportion of T-cells, which are important for cell-mediated immunity, was found to be 74.9 per cent among Chi Kung practitioners, compared to 65.5 percent in other people.

  So practicing Qi Gong greatly enhances our immune system. When we can successfully prevent outbreaks of contagious diseases, we not only add to the quality of our lives now, but also give ourselves the opportunity to live more fully our natural life span."

  — Wong Kiew Kit, The Art of Chi Kung

Some of the information and pictures have been extracted from the following sites:
http://www.c-c-c.org, http://www.holidaycn.com/, http://www.ramsjb.com/, http://www.china.org.cn

“The CACBC did an absolutely fabulous job! They gave each and every one of the 100+ people on the tour a wonderful experience that we will never forget. I danced with Chinese people, and said, "hello" to kids in uniforms, and bought books from a local bookstore. It was such a fun experience. I am in awe at their ability to organize such a wonderful trip.”

Laura Usiskin,  Student Participant