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Can someone give me a simple explanation of counterforce breathing? I have been doing “belly breathing” since I started my practice, and have also learned Winn’s Ocean Breathing as well as Chia’s internal chi breathing (golden light) from the Tao Yin book. I read the Iron Shirt I book but didn’t really get the breathing part, plus I did not plan to do the packing as I know it is no longer taught and can be unsafe. I skipped ahead to Winn’s QF 4 DVD and he talks about using counterforce breathing during the standing postures. I plan on getting the QF 3 package eventually to learn all of the energetics, but thought that a simple explanation might be able to help me with my grounding practices. Thanks in advance!
Jeff
Hi Jeff,
Do natural breathing: inhale, and abdomen expands;
exhale, and abdomen contracts.What makes it different from natural breathing
is the internal energetics.Internally, you become aware of a qi ball in your lower dantian.
While you do the natural breathing physically (as described above),
the qi ball also expands and contracts, but moves in opposite
directions to your abdomen’s movement. This is the
“counterforce” to the “physical force” of the abdomen.So: abdomen expands, and qi ball contracts simultaneously;
abdomen contracts, and qi ball expands simultaneously.More details of three breathing methods–i.e. natural,
reverse, and counterforce breathing–are covered on the
QF3 audio set. The QF3 video contains a separate qigong
form that integrates the audio work. It’s best to get
the whole QF3 package, as it is cheaper to buy together
than to buy separately.The bit on the QF4 video involving counterforce breathing is
a qigong method to integrate movement with counterforce
breathing. Typically your physical body (with the
exception of the abdomen) move in the direction of
motion of the qi ball.Qi,
StevenThanks Steven, good explanation as always. I see how this correlates with the navel counterforce movement, in which the hand motion is compressing (the chi ball) while you are breathing in and vice versa, which is actually the opposite of ocean breathing. This should help me out while doing the standing postures and movements.
To follow up on my questions about the QF’s from a while back, based on your advice I ended up getting the QF 2 package and I love the opening the orbit qigong set! The pearl and dragon are nice additions to the MO when I do meditate. I recently got the QF 4 DVD only and plan to get the QF 3 package next. I love the joint and tendon qigong warmups. Really going through a qigong phase now. I want to learn the primordial qigong later this year also. I figure I’ll get back into deeper meditation eventually when I am ready and decide to learn Fusion.
Have a good one and happy new year!
Yes, you are exactly right about the counterforce qigong on QF4.
It’s good to hear about your experiences with
the QF2 package and the QF4 DVD. It’s all good stuff.Spending the time that you are on the physical qigong
will only help you regarding the meditations. It is
vitally important to get embodied.It sounds like you have a solid plan for future
and continued practices.Best wishes and qi,
StevenSo what is the difference between counterforce and reverse breathing (simple explanation)? Thanks!
“These practices are very simple, that is actually why they are difficult.” -Winn
I don’t know how much detail you want, so I’ll
give you some choices . . .In short:
With reverse breathing, it is the *abdomen* that
moves in opposition to the breath, not the qi ball.With more detail:
Reverse breathing (mechanics)
inhale=abdomen contracts
exhale=abdomen expandsThe qi ball, on the other hand, moves in coordination
with the abdomen movement. It is only in
counterforce breathing that the qi ball
moves opposite to abdomen movement.With even more detail:
Of course, I am sort of oversimplifying things, as
the qi ball in reverse breathing does not change size
as it does in natural breathing or counterforce breathing.
It instead moves linearly from front-to-back and
back-to-front through your lower dantian.More advanced info:
All three breathing methods can further be supercharged
by adding color instructions to the qi ball energetics,
something I haven’t discussed here.Qi,
StevenWell, it sort of makes sense, but understanding this is not that important to me right now. I figure I’ll learn it later from QF3. I just remember what I sort of understood from Chia’s description in Iron Shirt I is that it seemed like you were almost flexing your abdomen to prevent it from expanding, so the internal pressure acted to pack the chi in your fascia, etc. At least that’s what it seemed to me, and then I moved on because I didn’t plan on “packing.”
I do have a question about bone breathing as well (I apologize for so many questions). He doesn’t mention anything about it in the DVD although I know he does in the audio portion (that is part of the QF4 title). I have learned a little bit about it from my reading, and it seems to me like what he is doing in the still standing postures is sort of like bone breathing through the fingers and toes. One could also interpret the full body breathing as bone breathing. I guess it comes down to the internal energetics and how you visualize the chi entering and/or spiraling the bones. Am I on to something here?
Thanks,
JeffHi Jeff,
Part of your confusion here lies in that
you are not getting a complete teaching
on the breathing methods via questions
that just address pieces of it. More
details, of course, are covered in QF3 audio.However, in lieu of that, let me just summarize
the practice of the 3 breathing methods from QF3.
It will perhaps hopefully lift any confusion.Natural Breathing:
Inhale and abdomen expands.
Exhale and abdomen contracts.
Picture a qi ball in your dantian.
Let the color be “clear”.
When you inhale, and the abdomen expands,
the qi ball also expands. The front edge
of the qi ball turns blue, while the back
edge turns red, and the center still remains
clear.
When you exhale, and the abdomen contracts,
the qi ball also contracts. The qi ball
returns to a smaller size that is entirely clear.
Note that the qi ball expands/contracts with
the movement of the abdomen.
The practice is good for overall relaxation,
activation of parasympathetic nervous system,
general enhanced awareness of the lower dantian.Reverse Breathing:
Inhale and abdomen contracts.
Exhale and abdomen expands.
This part is opposite to natural breathing.
Picture a qi ball in your dantian.
Let the color be “clear”.
When you inhale, and the abdomen contracts
toward the spine, the qi ball does not change
size, but moves back toward the spine as well;
when it does so, the qi ball changes color from
clear to red.
When you exhale, and the abdomen expands forward,
the qi ball does not change size, but moves forward
toward the front of your belly; when it does so, the
red qi ball changes to clear (as it passes through
the center), and then changes to blue when it reaches
the front of your abdomen.
Note that the qi ball does not change size, and it
moves in coordination with the direction of the
abdomen movement, which is identical to natural breathing.
This practice is good for compressing qi into the
kidneys/mingmen to help with kidney depletion; also
good for strengthening the connection between
your dantian and mingmen, as well as your navel.
It also brings heat to the kidneys.
By focusing on different areas of your lower centers,
you can “pack qi” into the fascia . . . discussed
in the Iron Shirt 1 book, but is not actively taught
as there are now better methods for doing so,
and it can be dangerous if one overdoes it.
It is important to only move the belly during
reverse breathing, as moving the chest will activate
the sympathetic nervous system (fight-or-flight),
creating panicky feelings, as well as bringing
too much energy to the heart and upper centers.Counterforce breathing:
Inhale and abdomen expands.
Exhale and abdomen contracts.
This part is identical to natural breathing.
Picture a qi ball in your dantian.
Let the color be gold.
When you inhale, and the abdomen expands,
the qi ball contracts.
When you exhale, and the abdomen contracts,
the qi ball expands.
Note that the qi ball expands/contracts in
opposition to the movement of the abdomen.
The practice is good for energizing the body,
and for generating neutral force (yuan qi)
within the body. This latter bit is unprogrammed
qi which can help reset dysfunctional patterns
within the body and helps to mediate between
yin-yang forces and the 5 phase cycles within.
In counterforce qigong, the hands move in
coordination with the expansion/contraction
of the qi ball (not the physical body).This is, of course, the “crib notes” version
of the three breathing methods taught in QF3.
Expanded details, additional theory, and
other things are covered in the course.Qi,
StevenYes, there is internal energetics to bone breathing.
The details are covered on the QF4 audio set.For the three “Standing-in-Stillness” postures
he covers in QF4, you breathe in blue qi
through the bones.Inhale blue qi from the earth, through your feet,
to your lower dantian passing through the bones.
Exhale blue qi from the lower dantian through
the bones up and out your extended arms (or
through the crown in the prayer mudra position).
Then reverse . . .
Inhale blue qi from the environment into your
fingers and arms to your lower dantian (or through
the top of your head in the prayer mudra position).
Exhale blue qi from the lower dantian down your
legs (through the bones) down into the earth.In QF4, he also covers bone compression, bone spiraling,
and many other assorted techniques that forms
a survey course and warmup to the Iron Shirt I-III
sequence.Qi,
Steven-It is important to only move the belly during
-reverse breathing, as moving the chest will activate
-the sympathetic nervous system (fight-or-flight),Why does the movement in the upper chest activate
the SNS and belly movement the PSNS?Adel
Because if you are going to be attacked by a lion,
all the blood and qi is drawn to the heart area,
and the heart starts pumping really fast to give
you extra energy to run faster and/or fight for your
life. You breathe differently too . . . typically
short, shallow, quick breaths in the upper chest.
Why this is desirable for projecting your qi outward
in an survivalist endurance mode, is something
you’d have to ask someone who knows more about
physiology than me.If you are in everyday life, and if your breath
starts to become more shallow and more centered
in the upper chest, the body starts to interpret
that as moving in the direction of the systemic
response in fight-or-flight, so the sympathetic
nervous system kicks in.On the other hand, if you breathe diaphragmatically
so that it is concentrated in the abdomen, the
body understands that you are in a relaxed state,
away from fight-or-flight . . . parasympathetic
nervous system kicks in.If I had to guess, I would figure that since the
adrenal glands lie on top of kidneys, across from
the solar plexus, I’m guessing that depending on
how you breathe . . . your adrenal glands are
either stimulated or not stimulated to releasing
adrenaline, which activates the heart and the
sympathetic nervous system.If anyone has a deeper understanding of human
physiology here, they are welcome to weigh in.S
Right, it could also cause it like when
you feel stressed your shoulders raise
and your diaphragm freezes up which only
allows for shallow upper body breathing.Makes sense, either way the cause is the
effect and vice verse.
Thanks, AdelI see, that makes sense. It is both the
cause and the effect. When you start to
feel stressed your shoulders rise and
your diaphragm tightens up which basically
only allows you to breathe in the upper
body. Short and shallow.THanks, Adel
Thanks for your detailed descriptions of the breating methods and bone breathing! This will help greatly with my QF4 practice. I’m going to “chew on” this for a while before adding QF3.
I have been going through the DVD bit by bit and finally got to do them all in sequence over the weekend. I only spent a short amount of time on each one, but man I felt fantastic afterward! It was funny, my 4 month old babies just laid on the floor and watched me…I have a theory that babies can “see” energy fields. I know they could see me walking through the room even before they could optically see further than 12″.
Daoist practices such as qigong and meditation help
to calm down these events . . . S
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Believing you’re stressed is making you even more stressed
By Alexandra Duron, Women’s HealthAs if being stressed weren’t bad enough, thinking you’re stressed might also cause serious problems. Turns out, perceived stress, or how much you think you’re stressed, is associated with a higher risk of coronary heart disease, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Cardiology.
Researchers analyzed six studies to see how perceived stress affects your ticker. Each of the studies asked participants to self-report intense or frequent feelings of stress and then followed each participant for about 14 years to see if they were diagnosed with, hospitalized, or died from coronary heart disease. What they found: Participants who reported high levels of stress had a 27 percent higher risk of developing coronary heart disease.
“When people say that they’re stressed, it’s a good indicator of how often they’re experiencing the increased reactivity of their autonomic nervous system–the sort of flight-or-fight response that we think of as associated with stress,” says Donald Edmondson, Ph.D., assistant professor of Behavioral Medicine at the Center for Behavioral Cardiovascular Health at the Columbia University Medical Center, and one of the study authors.
In other words, when our minds sense a need for action–which is what happens when we’re faced with a stressful situation–our bodies “gear up” in preparation for some kind of response, he says. When this happens, adrenaline increases blood pressure to boost energy, which can strain your heart. Though this natural reaction dates back to our earliest ancestors, modern-day stressors don’t require an immediate need for physical action. (Do you get stress headaches? Try these Yoga Moves to Beat Headaches, Back Pain, and More.)
“Today when we feel stressed it’s not because we have to run away from a lion,” he says. “It’s because our boss is giving us more work than we think we can manage, or one of our family members is in need of care, and we’re trying to juggle too many things at once. These are not things that require our bodies to do a lot, but our bodies still gear up to be active. That cardiovascular response is damaging.”
So damaging that it can, over time, increase the wear-and-tear on the cardiovascular system, which can lead to heart hazards, like the development of plaques, plaque rupture, and cardiac events, he explains.
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