Daily Workout - First Thing In The Morning

Before getting out of bed I do zhan zhuang while lying on my back with my legs straight out. I place my right hand over my navel and left hand on top of my right. I relax and breath slowly, zhan zhuang style (tongue behind front teeth, belly inflates on inhalation, deflates on exhalation). I meditate on my body, checking for stiffness, soreness, etc. I observe whatever sounds and sensations occur. Examples: My breathing. Tingling in the soles of my feet as if they are breathing. Cramps in my calves. Arthritic throb in my right thumb. Congestion in my sinuses.

Believe it or not the meditation can result in the sinus congestion clearing or arthritic pain going away. I do not will it away. I just focus on the place and relax it, let the flow, whether imagined or not, reach the spot. It does not always work. The larger purpose of the meditation is to relax and focus.

After the zhan zhuang meditation I do leg stretches and self-massage while still lying on my back. First pose I call figure-4 - legs straight and arms by my side. I then bend my right leg, still flat, so that the sole of my right foot is on the inside of my left knee, right leg (below the knee) straight to the side. This pose will often reveal soreness (not detected by meditation) in the right hip, hamstring, or calf muscles. If so I massage the sore parts.

The massage techniques I use I made up. One is to poke, gently or not, my index finger into the muscles. Or the three middle fingers. Or to knead the muscle in my hand. Or to rub with my finger tips. These are effective but not totally. The soreness is from the previous day's exercises. If necessary I break the pose to do the massage and then resume the pose.

There are variants of the figure-4 legs. I do them all. First variation the right foot is moved so the ankle is on top of the left knee, rest of right leg staying where it was. Second variation the right foot is placed on the mattress on the other side of the left knee, resting on its outside edge, parallel with the left leg. Rest of right leg positioned in whatever way works, if any. The stress on the right hip might be too much to bear. If so abort mission. Third variation is like the second with the sole of the foot flat on the mattress and the foot pointing to the side, or at whatever angle works. This pose might also be too hard.

After the right leg I do the same for the left. Some days there is no need for massage. Most days there is. I might also massage my lower back, shoulders, elbows, wirsts, or hands. The massage is 10-100% effective. After the figure-4 I stretch each leg straight up in the air, clasping my hands together on the hamstring and pulling the leg toward the chest. Then I am ready to get out of bed with fresh legs.

Immediately after getting out of bed I always do three exercises. First is standing with legs shoulder width apart and arms outstretched to each side. I take eight slow easy breaths, zhan zhuang style. Second I swing my arms straight forward and repeat the eight breaths. Third I clasp my hands together in front of my chin and descend into an Asian squat as I inhale, and rise back to a standing position as I exhale. I repeat this until the 9th descent, then remain in the Asian squat for another 10 or so slow, easy, zhan zhuang breaths. The purpose of these exercises is to open up, particularly the torso.