The pictures below are taken from a TUINA GONG FA class at the TCM University in Hangzhou – Oct 2011
It is a prerequisite of traditional tuina training to spend considerable time performing specific exercises in order to help develop strength and skill as a tuina doctor.
These exercises take the form mainly of Qi Gong, and it could be said that tuina and qigong are so closely linked and share so many vital foundations that they are almost one and the same.
Although there are many types of qi gong, and whilst all have potentially very beneficial effects, there is a group of exercises specific to tuina training called ‘Tuina Gong Fa’. ‘Tuina Gong Fa’ can best be translated literally as ‘exercises for tuina’ and include adapted forms of Shaolin Neigong and the Yi Jin Jing qi gong exercises.
Unlike other UK tuina courses, we place great importance on the teaching of qi gong and related skills. Our tuina gong fa instruction is delivered throughout the course and in multiple ways, but focuses on teaching The Yi Jin Jing (muscle and tendon changing exercises).
These exercises are physically and mentally very demanding and can greatly change the body and mind for the better if practiced regularly. They are essential in developing skill in tuina and are quite unlike the qi gong that is frequently encountered in the West.
When practiced at the same time as the tuina techniques themselves, these exercises will lead to greater flexibility, increased strength and focus, and will pave the way to becoming a more effective and skilled tuina practitioner.