End of winter bonus: Tao Yin

I just spent the weekend diving back into my Tao Yin training and this week I am offering a bonus 15 minutes of Tao Yin floor stretches after class. For those who haven’t heard of it, Tao Yin is a fascinating practice that came to light when caves in China were excavated in the 1970’s. One of them contained a scroll showing 44 postures, which are, so far the earliest written exercises discovered, dating back about 2,ooo years. Of course, Qigong is much, much older, but that’s another story.

I did my first Tao Yin training in 2014, only a few months after recovering from a badly broken knee. At the time I said “This is taking the injuries right out of my body!” and I’ve been practicing and teaching it ever since. This week in our Zoom Qigong classes I will teach a short, beautiful Tao Yin sequence that shows how these stretches guide vital, life-force energy through our meridians. It’s a wonderful way to get flexible and strong through flowing, unforced movement.  (Don’t worry if you can’t make all three classes, I’ll talk you through it each time.) Then, to help get us ready for spring, immediately after each class I will teach some of the Tao Yin floor stretches to anyone who wants to hang around an extra 15 minutes or so. They’re great for the back, shoulders, hips, and hamstrings. I hope you can schedule in the time and join me. It’s my contribution to help us get through the end of winter.