Dragon Loosens its Neck (4 Seasons Qigong)

Video Transcript

Audio File

Wellness for Educators Podcast · Dragon Loosens its Neck (4 Seasons)

Instructions

Begin with feet together and one hand resting inside the other, palms up, in front of the body. Draw a deep breath into the abdomen; as you exhale, step out to the left to shoulder-width; spread the hands apart, rotating the palms to face down.
Start with the chin tucked slightly down so that the back of the neck is long. Make sure that the head is also pulled comfortably back so that it sits over the spine and doesn’t thrust forward (which would round the upper back).
As you inhale, turn your head to the right towards your shoulder (while keeping your head level) and then look up slightly at the end of the movement. Do not exaggerate these movements; do just what’s comfortable.
Exhale and drop the head back down to level and rotate back to center.
Inhale and repeat movement to the left; exhale and return to center.
Keep this left-right movement going steadily, never rushing and always coordinating with the breath. The breathing and motion are continuous and never pause.
When done, return to center and begin the second motion: inhale and tilt your head so that your right ear approaches your right shoulder; this can be a very slight motion--don’t strain. At the end of the tilt, nod your head down along the line formed between nose and chin (you’re nodding at an angle). This activates muscles in upper back, but don’t push too far. (If you feel any strain in the back of the head in the occipital region, your head might be thrust too far forward from the spine.)
Exhale and raise the head back to neutral and return to center.
Inhale and repeat movement to the left; exhale and return to center.
Repeat these left and right motions with the breath for as long as feels good.
Whenever you exhale and return to center, pay attention to the muscles in the neck and back that are relaxing: you should feel a sense of comforting warmth. If you feel any tension at all, back off of the movements and make them smaller, slowing them down to coordinate with the breath. For this qigong, the smaller movements often offer the greatest benefits.
Close the exercise by inhaling and sweeping the arms up and out from the sides of the body until the hands hover just above the head, palms down. Exhale and slowly draw both hands down and towards the Dantian (the body’s energy storehouse), located one and a half inches below the navel. Align the palms and place both hands, palms-inward, over the Dantian as you take one more deep breath into the abdomen.
Step the left foot in towards the right to finish.