Your Fountain of Youth with Lee Holden

Thousands of years ago, the ancients made a profound discovery.

Humans could experience a longer life with more radiant health, simply by mirroring the movements of nature Over the centuries.

They developed practices known as Qi Gong.

During my last 25 years of teaching these practices I've seen remarkable transformations as my students tap into their own life force energy.

This is the real fountain of youth Not hidden in some far away land but inside each one of us.

Each episode is a complete Qi Gong routine focused on one aspect of preventative health and wellness.

So try them all To discover which leaves you feeling the most nourished radiant and uplifted.

These routines are simple, gentle movements that don't require any special clothing or equipment.

All you need to do now Is stand up, get ready to move And I'll be your guide to your very own Fountain of Youth It's about being connected to the earth by mirroring the movements of nature.

So for balance it's really about being grounded like a tree Establishing our roots and feeling our ground.

Being present, connected, centered.

Where we feel like we belong.

Right here, right now.

Relax, enjoy, feel your body.

Feel this energy circulating.

And I'll see you there.

Thanks.

Welcome to this routine for better balance.

Qi Gong is called the Art of Effortless Power, and it creates harmony and balance within your mind and body.

Take both hands and bring 'em over the lower abdomen and take some deep centering breaths.

When you inhale, allow the abdomen to expand and when you exhale the abdomen moves towards the spine.

Breathe into your center.

It said that where the breath goes, the Qi, the life force energy follows.

You are bringing life force energy into the center of your body.

And this will create a stabilizing effect.

It'll clear mental stress and strengthen the body's internal energy.

Deep breathing into the lower abdomen.

Feel your feet on the ground.

Let the hands relax down to your sides and turn from your hips and your waist.

This exercise is called Knocking on the Door of Life.

It's a wonderful exercise to loosen up the lower spine to energize the body.

When your hands are knocking across your lower back and your lower abdomen, it's activating the Qi.

It wakes up the body's energy.

Knocking on the Door of Life is called spinal enlivening exercise.

It creates mobility and flexibility, especially through the lower spine.

When the lower spine is warmed up... activated, it helps to create balance through the legs and the feet.

Qi is the life force energy and when your body moves...

It helps to circulate that life force energy to improve circulation, to improve the nerve current.

Relax, bringing the hands down to the sides.

And now we're gonna do an exercise called the Tiger.

We're gonna bend the knees and hands come down.

Inhale, hands up over the head.

Exhale, bend the knees coming down.

Just come down as far as you can comfortably.

This exercise is gonna strengthen your legs.

Bring strength, power and energy to the legs.

Inhaling up exhale down.

When you come down, feel this as a release.

A letting go of old energy.

Anything that's weighing heavy in your mind, let it go on that long exhale.

Down to the earth.

Feel that you're cultivating strength and flexibility in the legs, the hips, the waist, and the lower back.

Squatting is a great exercise for health and longevity.

Build that strength through the legs.

Nice deep breathing.

Inhale as you come up.

Exhale as you come down.

As you exhale, you are releasing old energy down to the earth.

The earth takes old energy and recycles it, so you can imagine letting go of anything that you no longer need.

Any health challenges, any mental stress or emotional stress.

Let it go as you build strength and power in your body.

Come back to the center, hands to the sides And we're gonna come up onto the toes lifting the heels off the ground.

And this is gonna strengthen the feet and the lower legs.

This is key to better balance.

Lift up onto the toes.

And slowly come back down.

Feel the strength and power in your lower legs.

If you needed to hold onto a chair, that is fine.

You could even use a wall to hold onto.

Modify any of the exercises as you see fit it.

Lift up on the heels, come down on to the toes.

As you're doing this exercise, breathe deep.

Keep your breath natural, deep and full up onto the toes, down into the heels.

Pump the energy through the lower legs.

Strengthening the feet is key.

It opens the energy pathways and improves circulation.

Now we're gonna do an exercise called Shaking.

You're just gonna shake the whole body by bouncing into the legs.

Imagine that you're standing on a little trampoline and bouncing into the legs and to the feet.

This will build strength in your legs.

Take a deep breath in through the nose.

Exhale long and slow out through the mouth.

Let go of any tension or tightness in your body.

You can even scan your body, noticing the areas that you might hold tension and release.

Pump the wrists and the arms.

Relax your shoulders pump into the legs to strengthen your legs.

Then pay special attention to your lower back.

Let the lower back release feeling the energetic connection between your lower back and your legs.

Qi is the energy in the body and it flows through you like water.

When the energy is activated, it creates health and vitality.

It creates balance and harmony within your whole system.

Inhale through the nose, exhale out through the mouth.

Feel that release.

And at the end of this exercise, you're gonna feel the Qi in your body.

Relax and just notice how you feel hands at your sides.

Close your eyes.

Take a deep breath.

Feel the buzzing, tingling life force energy inside you.

Now, lift your left ankle off the floor.

Stay on the left toes and circle the leg.

This will loosen up the ankle, the knee, and the hip.

It's great for balance.

You are strengthening the right leg.

Circle that left leg.

I'm doing your mirror image, so you do your left leg.

Even though I'm doing my right.

Circle, feel the ankle loosen up the toes, stay on the floor.

It's not only opening through the ankle, it's also loosening the knee and the hip for a smooth flow of energy.

The leg that you're standing on is strengthening, so you get double benefit.

The legs that's circling.

You're promoting flexibility.

Do the other side.

Right foot toes on the floor.

Lift the right ankle and circle.

Circle the knee and the hip, opening the foot and all the joints in the leg.

Keep breathing.

Breathe deep and slow through your nose.

Circling the ankle, creating flexibility in the foot, the knee, and the hip.

The leg you're standing on is getting strong, balanced, rooted to the ground.

Breathe into it.

These exercises in Qi Gong, were known as oiling the joints.

It keeps all the joints well oiled, flexible, mobilized, and strong.

Breathe deep, relax.

Feel your body getting stronger and more balanced.

Now come back to the middle and we'regonna do the same exercise, but lift.

Lift that left foot off the ground and circle.

Circle the ankle anytime you need to, you can bring the toes back onto the floor.

You could use a chair to hold onto.

You could even do this sitting down and circle the foot.

Promote that good circulation through the ankle joint.

Now the leg that you're standing on, you are strengthening.

Circle that ankle in both directions, circling and oiling the ankle joint, and really feel the leg that you're standing on getting stronger, building those muscles and the proprioceptors down into the leg.

Then switch sides.

Lift and circle.

Your hands are out to the sides.

In Qi Gong, the saying is, "Put your hands on the heads of two tigers."

And the hands out to the sides helps you with balance.

Again, if you need to hold onto a chair or a wall, go ahead and do that.

Circle the ankle, go one direction, and then go the other direction when you're ready.

Oil the ankle joint, and then the leg that you're standing on, you're building strength, balance and a rooted side of the body.

Breathe into it.

This exercise is key to better balance.

Feel your body getting stronger and more open through the lower body Both feet on the ground.

And now just circle your hips, circle the hips, going one way.

Take your thumbs into your lower back and when your hips come forward, go ahead and just press in a little bit.

Work some of those pressure points in the lower back area.

As the hips come forward, press in a little bit, work the energy into the lower back.

We're gonna create a nice, open, lower back area, a flexible lower spine with open hips.

So that the energy flows down the legs to the feet, and we have a strong senseof balance and a connection to the earth.

Circle the hips.

This is called oiling the hip joints.

The hips are the largest joints in the body.

Keep those hips nice and open.

Mobilize the joints and then go the other way.

Circle the hips, the thumbs are in the lower back area.

Press the thumbs in as the hips come forward, you can move the thumbs to different locations around the lower back and even over the tailbone.

Hips come forward, press in.

Feeling that openness through the lower spine and sacrum.

Keep energy circulating through the hips.

Feeling that flow go down the legs to the feet.

Balance comes from the lower back and the center, keeping a nice flow of energy from the center down the legs.

Breathe into it and then relax.

Hands down to the sides.

Next we're gonna do an exercise called hip swings.

It's great for balance and opening the energy through the hips.

Take one leg across the body and then back.

Swing the leg and lift the knee.

If you need to hold onto a chair, go ahead and do so.

You're swinging across the body, bringing it back and lifting the knee.

And this opens the outside and the inside of the hips.

It works on your balance, keeping that flow of energy going down through the legs to the feet.

Swing and swing.

Open the outside of the hip and the inside of the hip.

On the inside of the hip is where all the lymph nodes are.

So when you're doing this, it helps to circulate the lymph, open the joints, and improve circulation, going down to the legs and the feet.

This one takes a little practice, stick with it.

Swing one way, then the other way, and up with the knee.

You're turning from your hips and your waist from your center, turn to one side and relax the leg.

As you swing, breathe, let it flow.

Opening the energy through the hips and the leg.

The initial movement, the outside of the foot is forward, then the inside, and then lift the knee.

Outside of the foot.

Inside of the foot, lift the knee.

Turn from your hips and your waist and your center.

Feel open through the hips, creating that balance down to the earth.

Take a deep breath Now stabilize your Qi and just feel it circulating in your body.

When Qi flows, it feels expansive.

Energizing healing and healthy.

Breathe deep and then take your hands over your knees and circle the knees inward in towards each other back and around.

The knees come in together.

They go back and circle around with swirl the energy through the knee joints.

This will also strengthen your legs.

Go the other way.

You might feel this in the quadriceps and the calves all the way down to the feet.

Breathe into it.

Opening up the knee joints is key to energy flow and a great way to work on our balance.

Come all the way up.

Take a deep breath.

Bring your hands out to the sides.

Lift the leg.

And then move the leg from the front to the side and behind you.

This is a great exercise for improving balance.

If you need to, you can hold onto a chair or a wall.

You will get better with this practice and this exercise over time.

You can lift the leg in front of you, go out to the side, bring it behind you And this way you strengthen all the muscles in the foot and lower leg leg on the foot you're standing on.

Keep breathing while you do this.

Lifting the knee up if you want.

To the sides and back.

You can freestyle this.

Doing it at your own rhythm and pace.

Explore your range of motion by extending the leg either forward or back coming out to the side.

And really work on your balance.

Take a nice deep breath.

And when you're ready, we're gonna bring that leg down and do the other side.

Stabilize and ground through the leg that you're standing on.

Arms can be out to your sides to help with your balance.

Lift and move the leg.

Start off with small movements, a little bit back and forth, and then you can get bigger with your movements and range of motion.

You can lift the knee, extend the foot forward, go to the side, come back behind you.

Again, feel free to hold on in the beginning to something.

And with time, you're gonna get better and stronger with practice.

See if you can breathe through it.

Keep your breath flowing and deep through your nose.

Your body is getting stronger.

Your connection to the earth is getting fortified.

Freestyle it.

Do the movement at your own pace and rhythm.

Coming behind you If you want.

Extend as far as you'd like to, lifting the knee out to the sides.

Whatever feels good for you.

Take a deep breath, bring the foot down.

Stabilize your energy.

Feel the energy going down the legs to your feet.

Next we're gonna do an exercise called Rooster Stands on one Leg.

You're gonna lift one leg and one arm, and then stand down and switch sides.

Lift the knee, stand tall, slowly come back to center and switch.

Rooster Stands on One Leg is an exercise from the Tai Chi form.

It's great for balance and bringing stability to the left and right sides of the body.

As you lift the knee, lift the arm.

Then sink down.

As you lift the knee, stand tall right through the crown of your head.

Feel grounded, and then lift.

Feel connected to the sky.

Feel connected to the earth.

Your energy system is a bridge between heaven and earth.

Feel the flow.

Feel that golden light, that energy circulating through you.

Pump the energy from the left side to the right side.

Feeling that stability in your flow.

Come down, get grounded, lift and lengthen.

Continue breathing slow and deep.

Bring both hands to your sides.

We're gonna do an exercise called Soaring Crane.

Come off one foot as you pump the arms up and down.

You're on the toes of one foot and on the full foot on the other side.

Lift the arms up.

Pump the arms down.

You're like a regal bird soaring through the sky.

One knee is slightly bent on the toes of that foot with the heel lifted.

and the other side fully grounded.

When you inhale, the arms float up.

Exhale the arms float down.

Strengthen that side of your body.

And cultivate lightness and relaxation through the whole system.

As you breathe deep, you're drawing in the light.

The feeling of levity, the relaxation, and the flow through the whole body.

Inhale your arms, float up.

Exhale down.

Inhale up, exhale down.

Nice deep breath as the arms lift.

Exhale down.

Do that one more time.

Come back to the center and switch sides.

Lift the heel.

Come onto the toes.

Float the arms up.

As you inhale, float the arms down as you exhale.

Soaring Crane.

Feel the flow.

Qi Gong movements are like water.

They flow through the body, opening all your joints, activating the meridian lines, the energy pathways that flow through you.

This exercise creates both grounding and lightness.

As you do this exercise, feel that you can elevate above any stress or worries.

Cultivate that lightness, relaxation, and a deep sense of grounding into the present moment.

Pump the energy through the legs.

Feeling that strength and stability on the leg you're standing on and the lightness through the other leg and the rest of the body.

Take a nice deep breath.

Arms float up.

Exhale arms, float down, pump the energy through you.

Elevate and rise above any stress letting your mind be carefree and relaxed.

Come back to your center.

Both feet on the ground.

Lift the arms in front of the chest And we'll do an exercise called Embracing the Tree with a Twist.

Take a deep breath as you exhale, twist to one side.

Feeling that turn through the spine and then inhale, come back to the center.

Exhale and turn to the other side.

Creating mobility and flexibility in your spine and a deep sense of grounding through the legs.

Keep both knees bent, feet pointing straight ahead as you turn to one side.

See if you can bend into it.

Really sink down as you twist.

Let all the joints in your spine move.

Feeling the twist and the stretch.

Turn to the side, keep the arms round.

Maintain the integrity of the arms.

A nice circular flow through the arms as you turn to the other.

The top of the head is lifted towards the universe.

The legs grounded like the roots of a tree, feeling strong and balanced through the legs as you twist.

This builds strength through the legs and flexibility in your spine.

Come back to the center.

Arms round and just stabilize.

Feel your body like a tree.

Strong and rooted.

Move the energy through the spine and feel connected to the energy above you.

Take a slow, deep breath.

Fortify all that life force energy within you.

Feel it contained and slowly bring your arms down.

Take a deep breath as you bring the arms up over your head and exhale down.

This is a movement called Pulling Down the Heavens.

Inhale and exhale.

Get a sense of whatever kind of energy that you might need in your life.

Be open and receptive to it.

Tune in, draw it in from the universe above you.

Inhale the arms, float up.

Exhale the arms float down.

Feel this movement bringing in waves of relaxation, bringing in healing energy.

Feel connected to the energy above you.

Feel grounded and strong, connected to the energy below you.

The breath is deep, full, and relaxed.

Allow the energy to just wash through your body.

Filling you up with health, vitality, happiness, and joy.

Bring all that into your center.

Take the feet, bring 'em together.

Hands over your lower abdomen.

Feel your body like bamboo in the wind.

Rooted to the earth.

Flexible through your.

Clear in your mind.

Take a few centering breaths.

Let your body just gently rock and sway.

Allow that energy to move through you like wind through the tree.

Keep your neck and shoulders relaxed.

Feel the energy in your body like golden glowing light.

Slowly relax your arms And take that feeling with you into the rest of your day.