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Medical Qigong Exercise Program: White Crane Soft Qigong 1

White Crane Soft Qigong

Introduction

White Crane Soft Qigong was developed to help White Crane Kung Fu practitioners learn
to manifest Jin (explosive power) using the spine and chest and to help them recover
from the stresses of their martial training. White Crane Qigong is one of the best
exercises for health. This qigong helps you to rebuild or increase the strength of your
spine and chest. It will also strengthen the body’s muscles, tendons and ligaments.
Internally, the exercises will help improve Qi storage and circulation. The exercises are
beneficial for relieving stiffness of joints, healing injured or painful joints, and healing
and preventing diseases of the spine and of the organs and tissues of the chest.

During the practice, you imitate the movements of long-distance migratory birds like the
crane. These birds can fly long distances because their wing movements are
coordinated with their chest movements. In White Crane Qigong the most important
element is the movement of the chest and spine. The spine is alternately arced back
and flexed forward while the chest is alternately sunken inward and arced backward.
Shoulders are kept down and relaxed.

As with most Qigong practices, your body should be relaxed, your breathing should be
soft and slender and your mind should be in a meditative state. Relax your muscles,
tendons and joints. You can use either normal abdominal breathing or reverse
abdominal breathing. Practitioners who want to go deeper into internal energy work
with the exercises can incorporate Four Gates Breathing or Grand Circulation Breathing
to lead the Qi to the area being trained.

If a joint is painful during movement, try to extend the movement slightly into the range
of the pain. Be careful not to do too many repetitions at once. Over time, gradually
extend the range of motion and the number of repetitions. (If the joint is more than
normally painful the day after exercising, you have done too many repetitions.) Within
a few months, you should be able to extend the range of pain-free motion. Of course,
for serious joint injuries, one should consult a physician.

Basic White Crane Qigong Exercises

Warm-ups

It is important to warm up the muscles, tendons and joints, especially the spine and
chest, before doing the White Crane exercises so that the body can move easily and
fluidly.

Loosening the Joints

Shake wrists and elbows
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Shake the whole body

Swing arms side to side
Circle the torso
Circle the hips
Feet together and circle the knees
Circle the ankles

Stretching (the Four Seasons Medical Qigong All-Season Routine)

Two Hands Hold the Heavens
Loosening the Neck (Large Dragon Loosens its Neck)
Horizontal circles
Wave the spine and loosen the internal organs
Thrust the Chest and Arc the Chest
White Crane Waves Its Wings
White Crane Shakes Its Wings

Fundamental Practices

Except for finger waving gong, movements should involve the whole body moving in two
large arcing waves. One wave moves from the center of the chest to the tips of the
fingers. The other wave runs vertically up the spine. For White Crane martial artists,
this vertical wave starts at the waist and runs up the spine to the base of the neck.
Taijiquan practitioners may find this difficult since they are trained to begin their
movements at the bottoms of the feet. It is okay to continue to move from the bottoms
of the feet in White Crane Qigong.

Practice 20 to 50 or more repetitions for each movement, but increase the number of
repetitions gradually.

It is important to incorporate the White Crane hand form in the exercises (except for
finger waving and swimming octopus). The thumb and index finger are pushed slightly
forward of the middle finger, thumb held below the index finger, while the ring and
pinkie fingers are lifted slightly behind the middle finger. The fingers are relaxed and
firm, not limp.

Instructions for the Movements

Finger Waving:

• This exercise can be used for either of two goals. To loosen, relax and help heal
painful joints move in a relaxed manner. To build the endurance and strength of
the tendons and muscles, slightly tense the muscles and tendons.
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Medical Qigong Exercise Program: White Crane Soft Qigong 3

• Bend only the base joint of the fingers. Keep the second and third joints straight.
Wave the fingers from the thumb to the pinkie 30-50 times. Then wave from the
pinkie to the thumb 30-50 times. You can exercise both hands at once.

Swimming Octopus:

• In this exercise the focus is on both the fingers and the wrists. Its goals are the
same as in finger waving gong. It is also useful for increasing the wrist’s range of
motion and for healing and prevention of carpal tunnel syndrome.

• Move the palm forward with the mind in the Lao Gong cavity in the center of the
palm (PC 8) and stretch the fingers back to open the Lao Gong. Then move the
hand backward, bring the fingers together and stretch them to stretch the wrist.
At first focus on connecting the shoulder, elbow, and wrist in movement like a
slow soft whip. Once this is achieved, focus on adding connection to waist and
chest. When doing single hand, turn the waist and Kua. When doing both
hands, open and close the chest.

Sideways Spreading

• White Crane Kung Fu artists use these movements to train defensive hand
techniques, but it is also useful for loosing and increasing the range of motion of
the wrists and loosening and relaxing the back and chest.

• Breathing is according to the martial pattern of exhaling on Yang (outward

movement) and inhaling on Yin (inward movement).

• Start by arcing the back and sinking the chest while inhaling and scooping both
arms upward close to the chest fingers pointing up and palms turning first
toward you then outward. Then while exhaling, expand both the arms to the
sides turning the palms out, straightening the torso, and expanding the chest.
Vary the exercise by reversing the movement downward. Then mix the
movement with one hand going upward and the other downward.

Downward Dropping

• In White Crane Kung Fu this movement is use to train the sinking motion from
the wrist and forearm to seal or control the actions of the opponent’s upper
limbs. It is also useful for training coiling Jin for Taiji Qin Na practice. For health
purposes, this movement helps to loosen and relax the wrist, elbows and
shoulders for the prevention and healing of injuries, stiffness and disease of
those joints.
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• Breathing is according to the martial pattern of exhale on Yang (outward

movement) and inhale on Yin (inward movement).

• Begin by arcing your back and sinking your chest while inhaling and scooping
both of your arms upward with fingers pointed upward. Then while exhaling,
move the arms outward to the front with the fingers pointing forward.
Continuing to exhale, turn the fingers to point downward as you straighten your
torso and expand your chest. After you gain experience in this movement,
gradually replace muscular force with relaxed and soft movements and mental
concentration.

Arm Flapping

• This exercise trains the coordination of with the flapping action of the arms. As
with the exercises above, it is beneficial for the joints.

• Begin on inhalation, arcing the back and sinking the chest and folding the arms
across the chest.

• Next on exhalation, flap the arms out to the sides either up, sideways or down.

Coiling

• Both White Crane and Taijiquan martial artists use this exercise to train coiling
Jin. The twisting movement provides additional benefit for the shoulder, elbow,
and wrist joints. When the tendons and muscles wrap around the bones of the
arms and shoulders during the twisting movement, the pressure on the
piezoelectric cells of the bones generates bioelectricity (Qi) thereby helping to
improve the health of the bones.

• Breathing is according to the martial pattern of exhale on Yang (outward

movement) and inhale on Yin (inward movement).

• Start with the elbow bent and the hand in front of the shoulder, palm down.
White Crane Kung Fu artists initiate the movement from the waist. For others,
the movement can be initiated at the bottoms of the feet and directed by the
waist. Extend the arm at shoulder height, turning the palm up, and moving the
arm like a snake coiling around a tree branch. You must be soft and relaxed so
that you can stick and adhere to the “tree branch.” Put the other hand on the
Dan tian to feel the waist turning in directing the movement. You can vary the
exercise by doing both arms at once, by alternating the arms and by repeating
one arm at a time to enhance the feeling in the joints. You can enhance the
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twisting effect by focusing on the thumb and little finger at the end of the arm’s
extension but be careful to keep the muscles relaxed.

Crane Neck Gong

• Martial arts use this movement to help train the muscles and joints of the neck
to prevent injury during Jin training. The exercise is beneficial for loosen and
relax the cervical vertebrae.

• Generate a small and gentle wave motion from the waist or bottoms of the feet.
Keep this motion small and gentle until it reaches the base of the neck, and then
gently amplify it as you lead the motion up the neck and to the crown of the
head. The joints and muscles of the neck should remain relaxed. Repeat the
motion 20 times with the facing straight forward, then gradually turn the head to
one side then the other. Keep the shoulders square to the front when turning
the head.

Soothe the Lung

• This movement serves to cool down and soothe the spine and chest after qigong
training. It is especially important as a recovery form after hard Jin training. It
also helps to break up stagnant Qi and trapped emotions as well as to promote
the circulation of blood and qi in the chest.

• The movement is like sighing with both the bow of the spine and the bow of the
chest moving. While inhaling, expand your chest forward with the shoulders
gently pushing backward and generate a wave motion from the waist. Then
while exhaling, bring the wave upward through the spine to the top of the chest
while circling your shoulders to the side and then to the front. You can softly
make the sound of “Hen” [pronounced Heng] when exhaling to enhance the
relaxation effect.

White Crane Soft Qigong Moving Set

Move your body like a slow, soft whip with every part connected from—as discussed
above—either the waist or the bottoms of the feet to the tips of the fingers.
Movements flow slowly, gently and comfortably through every joint. The body must be
soft and relaxed.

In many of the movements you will feel the body moving in two arcs—one from the feet
and legs up through the spine and the other from the center of the chest and out to the
fingertips of each hand. Try to coordinate the movement of those two arcs smoothly.
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Use either Normal Abdominal Breathing or Reverse Abdominal Breathing. Coordinate

your breathing with your body’s movements. You can inhale as your “wings” expand
and exhale when they contract, or do the opposite. Use whatever method feels
comfortable. Just be consistent. Persons suffering asthma or other illnesses of the
bronchial tubes should try inhaling when the shoulders are back and the chest is arced
forward and exhaling when the shoulders are forward and the back is arced backward.
This type of breathing is one of the Qigong treatments for asthma.

Remember the imagery of a crane perched on top of a tall bamboo tree moving its
wings to maintain its stability as a breeze slowly builds and then slowly abates.

The movements can be done in three modes: stationary, rocking and walking. In
stationary mode, the feet are even at about hip or shoulder width apart. In rocking
mode, one foot is in front and the weight is shifted from about a 60-40 ratio in favor of
the front leg to a 40-60 ratio in favor of the back leg in coordination with the arm
movements. In walking mode, you step forward or backward as in Taiji walking in
coordination with the arms movements. When performing alternating single wing
flying, vary your weight shifting in rocking and your stepping in walking between moving
in coordination with the same side arm and the opposite side arm.

White Crane Flying Cong Palm Set

Forward and Backward Flying
Double Wing Flying
Single Wing Flying (Alternating the arms. Imagine the wind is blowing from the
side, and you have to twist your body to maintain your balance.)
Left and Right Flying (arms move to the sides and up over your head)
Double Wing
Single Wing Flying
Straight Backwards Flying (arms move sideways to the rear)
Double Wing Flying
Single Wing Flying (Alternating)
Internal Circular Flying-Vertical Palm (arms circling forward from outside to inside)
Double Wing Flying
Single Wing Flying
Internal Circular Flying—Horizontal Palm
Double Wing Flying
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Single Wing Flying

Internal Circular Flying--Combination--(Palm changes up and down)
Double Wing Flying (Eagle Attacks Its Prey)
Lion Rotates the Ball (Lion Rolls the Ball)
External Circular Flying—Vertical Palm (Arms circle forward from inside to outside.)
Double Wing Flying
Single Wing Flying
External Circular Flying—Horizontal Palm
Double Wing Flying
Single Wing Flying
External Circular Flying--Combination—
Double Wing (Large Bear Swims in the Water)
Single Wing (Left and Right to Open the Mountains)
Backward Circular Flying (like Taiji Ball Vertical Circle underhand.)
Double Wing Flying
Single Wing Flying
Forward Circular Flying (like Taiji Ball Vertical Circle overhand. )
Double Wing Flying
Single Wing Flying
Baby Crane Waves Its Wings (a cool down exercise, with soft and relaxed motions)
Double Wing Flying (Inhale while raising arms up. Exhale when lowering the
arms.) This movement is also used in the Qigong for Breast Cancer Prevention.
Single Wing Flying

References: On background and theory, Dr. Yang Jwing Ming, The Essence of Shaolin
White Crane, Martial Power and Qigong, pp. 187-188, 202-203, 214-221. Illustrations of
the movements, Dr. Yang Jwing Ming, The Essence of Shaolin White Crane, White Crane
Hard & Soft Qigong, DVD