Chinese Medicine: 3 Tips To Stay In Shape In Winter
The winter season is often synonymous with fatigue, colds and even seasonal depression. Fortunately, traditional medicines can help you keep your energy up and boost your immune system. Here are 3 tips inspired by Chinese medicine to stay in shape in winter.
1- Choose foods that heat up
Dietetics is one of the pillars of Chinese medicine along with herbal medicine, acupuncture, qi gong and massage. This preventive medicine that appeared several millennia ago does not neglect any method of well-being to treat the human body as a whole.
In traditional Chinese medicine, foods are classified according to their effect on the body after assimilation. Furthermore, this traditional medicine associates the different organs of the body with the seasons and states that in winter you should strengthen the energy of the kidneys.
To boost kidney energy and stay fit in winter, traditional Chinese dietetics recommends focusing on warm, warming foods such as seasonal vegetables: leeks, squash, carrots, Jerusalem artichokes and turnips.
According to Chinese dietetics, other seasonal foods are lamb, shrimp and game as well as spices and black tea. This season is the best time of the year to simmer stews and stew and to warm up with hot, spicy drinks.
On the other hand, limit raw vegetables and citrus fruits, especially orange juice in the morning, which is a bad idea. For breakfast, choose a black tea with spices, flavored with cinnamon or cardamom for example.
2- Do self-massages on the lumbar and stomach areas
As I explained above, Chinese medicine is not limited to combining acupuncture and herbal medicine. Although less familiar to Westerners than acupuncture needles, massage and self-massage also have their place in this traditional preventive medicine to circulate energy (or qi) along the meridians.
According to Chinese medicine, our physical and mental balance depends on the proper circulation of this energy. The second tip for staying fit in winter is to practice massages in the lower back and belly area.
It is possible to practice self-massage using the Chinese method over clothing or on bare skin. Begin by standing and rubbing your hands together. This gesture brings energy into the palms at the lao gong, a very important energy point.
Once your palms are warm, quickly rub the hollow of your lumbar spine up and down for about 40 seconds. Then clench your fists and tap the same area with your closed fists.
To do a belly self-massage: bring the energy into your hands as before, then massage the area below your belly button for 30 seconds with your hands placed diagonally. As the left hand goes down, the right hand goes up and vice versa. Finally, lightly clench your fists and gently tap the same area of your lower abdomen.
3- Do a qi gong exercise
During the cold season, it can be difficult to get out of the house to work out. If you're lazy about going for a run or heading to the gym for your usual workout, you can at least try an exercise from qi gong (traditional Chinese gymnastics).
To stay in shape in winter, Chinese medicine recommends that you do the posture called 'hugging the tree', preferably in the afternoon because that's the time of day that corresponds to the kidney organ!
To take this energy-boosting and immune-boosting qi gong posture, stand with your arms at your sides. Be sure to tuck your chin in a little and not arch your back. Place your feet flat, shoulder-width apart, and bend your knees slightly to get a good grounding.
Once your body is properly aligned, with your head straight and shoulders relaxed, move your arms in a circle in front of your lower abdomen as if you were holding a large ball between your arms. Breathe through your nose without straining, placing your breath at belly level. Feel how your belly inflates a little on the inhale and deflates on the exhale.
You can hold this posture for 10 to 15 minutes. Do this exercise once or twice a day and extend it as long as you can keep your mind focused on your abdominal breathing.
