Separating Clouds (18 Movements)

Video Transcript

Audio File

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. 

  • Relax and place both hands close together (but not touching) with their palms lined up and facing inward, just below the navel. Make sure that the lower (lumbar) spine isn’t arched, but straight (imagine having a small weight suspended from the tailbone, pulling the back into alignment).

  • As you inhale, draw the stacked hands up the centerline of the body to the chest, where the palms begin to rotate towards the front as the arms begin to part and open to either side of the body, lifting the hands above the head and out to the sides (the motion is a bit like opening a pair of drapes).

  • Exhale as the arms descend together on either side of the body, palms facing down, until they circle back to where they started in front of the abdomen. 

  • Repeat this gentle motion for as long as it feels good, coordinating the movement of the hands and arms with the breath and keeping the shoulders and neck relaxed. Follow your hands with your eyes throughout.

  • 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.

Modifications

  • Can be performed while seated in a chair, preferably with feet on the ground.

Contraindications

  • N/A

Parts of Body Benefited

  • Arms

  • Shoulders

  • Chest

  • Nervous system

Other strategies from:

Qigong

Other strategies for emotional support:

Anxiety

Depression