Fig. 2. Four vital acupressure points for practicing self-massage therapy.
PHYSIOTHERAPY: MASSAGE AND SOFT EXERCISE
Stagnation of bodily fluids due to insufficient movement is one of the great afflictions of modern life and a major contributing factor to chronic toxemia. The more “convenient” life becomes—with cars to replace feet, machines to wash clothes, elevators to avoid stairs, and motors to perform virtually every other chore—the more sedentary people become and the less they exercise their bodies. Like stagnant ponds, their bodily fluids become inert and turbid, losing vitality and the capacity to support life. In a section on health in the Confucian classic entitled Spring and Autumn Annals, compiled over two thousand years ago, it is written, “If the body does not move, essence [vital fluids] does not flow. When essence does not flow, energy stagnates.” And when energy stagnates, the whole system loses power, and the first function to fail is the body’s ability to cleanse and repair itself.
The human body was designed by nature to move, not to remain perpetually inert and immobile, and bodily fluids were meant to flow, not to sit still and stagnate. Some of these vital fluids, such as lymph, depend entirely on body movements for their own mobility. When you’re watching television or sitting at a desk, riding in a car or standing in an elevator, your lymph stands still and your blood slows down. Whenever such immobility takes place, waste drainage halts and toxins accumulate rapidly in the blood and tissues. Insufficient exercise also stiffens the joints and tightens the tendons, congests the bowels and reduces metabolic efficiency. Activity is the principle attribute of energy and of life itself, while inertia and stagnation pave the way for decay and death.
During detox, it is especially important to keep your blood, lymph, and other bodily fluids flowing freely, to keep your joints loose and limber, to stretch your tendons and other connective tissue, and to stimulate activity in your organs and glands. There is a tendency during detox to remain inert and inactive, because the detox process makes your body feel tired, weak, and sluggish as the toxins are released continuously into the bloodstream for elimination. However, if you don’t move your body and keep your fluids flowing, the toxins released from your tissues circulate in your bloodstream for a much longer period of time, making you feel even worse and prolonging the discomfort as well as the duration of the detox process.
Fortunately, if you’re too lazy or too tired to mobilize your own body and move your own blood and lymph during detox, you can pay someone else to do it for you with therapeutic massage, which kneads toxins from the tissues, activates lymph drainage, stimulates glandular secretions, calms the nervous system, and tones the joints, muscles, and tendons. If you cannot afford professional massage every day, or if it is not available, you may apply self-massage techniques instead to facilitate the detox process and prevent stagnation. Alternatively, you could practice some form of traditional Asian soft-style exercise, such as yoga, Tai Chi, or chi gung, or simply go for a stroll or a swim every day, to keep your body loose and limber, to stretch and tone your tissues, and to keep your cleansing bodily fluids flowing freely.
MASSAGE
The Chinese term for massage translates literally into English as “press and rub,” reflecting its two main techniques: deep tissue pressure, followed by shallow surface rubbing, applied alternately. The deep pressure stimulates vital points along the meridians and dislodges toxic deposits in the tissues. The rubbing then scatters the released toxins and facilitates their drainage through the blood and lymph. A variety of different styles of traditional Asian massage are available, and most of them work with a combination of deep tissue pressure and soothing surface palpation.
You may enhance the therapeutic benefits of detox massage by thoroughly washing your body (or having an herbal steam) before the massage, to remove dirt, oil, sweat, and toxic residues from your skin. Eliminating this greasy layer of dust, dead cells, and dried perspiration from the surface of your skin facilitates the interaction and exchange of energy between your body and the massage therapist’s hands, and this in turn amplifies the therapeutic benefits of the massage and corrects imbalances in your energy field. It is important to rest quietly and remain completely relaxed throughout the duration of a therapeutic massage. Don’t allow yourself to be disturbed by loud music, blaring televisions, urgent phone calls, or any other invasive distraction, and abstain from carrying on a conversation while you’re receiving massage therapy. Energy always follows wherever you aim your attention, so if you focus attention on external sensory distractions during a massage, your energy will flow out to those distractions and dissipate externally. On the other hand, if you focus your attention internally, shining it like a spotlight on the parts of the body that are being massaged, your energy will flow there instead, magnifying the therapeutic power of the massage on that part of the body. Last but not least, don’t forget to drink one or two large glasses of pure alkaline water immediately after every therapeutic massage, especially during a detox program. This hydration is necessary to quickly dissolve, flush out, and excrete the flood of toxins that deep tissue massage releases into the blood and lymph from every part of the body.
Traditional Thai Massage
Thai massage originated in India, but over the centuries it has also adopted some techniques from China, such as the applying of acupressure to vital points along the energy meridians. It is one of the most comprehensive and effective therapeutic massage systems in the world, combining deep-tissue massage, yoga stretches applied to your body by the therapist, acupressure therapy, joint and spine manipulation, and direct stimulation of the endocrine glands. Even the force of gravity is employed to mobilize the flow of vital fluids by holding the body in various upside-down postures. Another maneuver unique to Thai massage is the artery block, whereby the major arteries that feed blood into the legs are blocked shut by manual pressure for thirty to forty-five seconds, then suddenly released. This brings a strong wave of blood rushing warmly down through the legs, sweeping loose plaque and other debris from the walls of these arteries and providing a big boost to circulation throughout the system.
A session of traditional Thai massage, which is known as nuat boran and still widely practiced today in Thailand, should last for at least one hour, preferably two or three. Some of the older, classically trained massage masters in Thailand refuse to do a session of fewer than two hours, because this therapy was designed to slowly and very systematically detoxify, tone, and rebalance the entire human system, including all the organs, glands, and tissues of the physical body as well as the channels, chakras, and energy fields of the body. This takes time, and since some of the techniques are quite powerful, such as the artery block and the spinal stretches, they cannot be applied quickly in rapid succession. Instead, strong and gentle techniques are applied alternately, gradually preparing the body for the deeper techniques and giving the whole system time to adjust and rebalance itself after each major shift.
Again, don’t forget to drink one or two large glasses of pure water after a Thai massage, just as you would after any therapeutic massage.
Chinese tui-na Massage
One of the most ancient forms of therapeutic massage is Chinese tui-na, literally “press and rub,” as mentioned above. It is done with the ball of the thumb and sometimes with the knuckles of the index and middle fingers. Tui-na massage is performed with a single deep press of the thumb or knuckle, pushing deeply into the tissues, then releasing the pressure and immediately rubbing the surface with circular motion to disperse stagnant energy. This pressing and rubbing therapy is applied repeatedly along the entire length of specific energy meridians and nerve channels associated with the organs and tissues that require treatment. Stagnant organs and toxic tissues are activated by the deep pressure along the meridians and nerves that control them, stimulating them to discharge their toxins, recharge their cells, replenish their fluids, and rebalance their functions. The deep pressure and rhythmic rubbing gradually kneads toxic residues loose from the tissues and drives them into the lymphatic system for disposal.
Since blood vessels and lymph channels follow the same basic pathways through the body as meridians and nerves, tui-na therapy stimulates blood circulation and lymph drainage as well. This facilitates swift elimination of the toxins and acid wastes discharged from the organs and other tissues.
Tui-na massage is particularly effective for dislodging impacted toxins from nerve tissue and pushing them into the lymph channels for elimination. As noted earlier, some of the most hazardous toxic substances in the body, such as heavy metals and inorganic chemicals, have a particular affinity for nerve tissue due to its electromagnetic potential. The body’s natural cleansing mechanisms cannot easily eliminate these heavy toxins, and so they cling to nerve tissues, gradually becoming embedded there and causing all kinds of maladies and malfunctions of the nervous system. Tui-na massage, applied along the entire length of the neck and spine and down along the major nerves of the arms and legs, loosens and releases clumps of toxic deposits impacted in the nerve tissues, allowing them to be dissolved and carried away for excretion in the blood and lymph. When the deep tissue pressure is released and followed by circular rubbing on the surface, fresh blood and energy flow into the tissues, repairing and recharging nerves damaged by long-term toxicity.
Some tui-na therapists begin each session with fifteen to twenty minutes of work applied entirely to the four branches of the bladder meridian, which run up along the spine, with two parallel channels on each side. This technique relaxes the internal organs, switches the nervous system into the healing mode of the parasympathetic branch, and releases tension from the muscles that support the spinal cord. These branches of the bladder meridian pass through the thick, tough bands of muscle that support the spinal cord. In most people, these muscles are usually tight as springs with nervous tension. This tension compresses the upper vertebrae and inhibits the passage of nerve signals through the spinal cord and out to the organs and glands. Tension in the nerves and muscles of the spine also keeps the autonomous nervous system locked into the hyperactive “fight or flight” responses of the sympathetic branch, thereby blocking detoxification and healing responses. By applying alternating deep-tissue pressure and circular rubbing along the full length of the bladder meridians on both sides of the spine, tension in the spinal muscles is gradually released and the entire spinal cord and all the vertebrae and surrounding connective tissues gradually relax, switching the nervous system over to the calm, healing mode of the parasympathetic branch and allowing the nerves to communicate freely with the organs and endocrine system to activate cleansing and healing responses throughout the system.
There’s a special branch of tui-na massage in TCM called hsiao-er tui na, literally meaning “little children’s tui-na.” It was developed entirely for pediatric application. Most children rebel at taking bitter herbal concoctions, and they buck like broncos if a doctor tries to stick an acupuncture needle in their bodies. Pediatric tui-na was thus developed as a special branch of TCM to provide an effective means of applying medical therapy that children will accept. To make it even more acceptable for children, soothing aromatic oils are usually applied to the skin as well, to increase the therapeutic benefits of the massage and to produce a more pleasant sensation. Children are far more responsive to touch than adults, and they usually don’t carry the psychic tensions that tighten the tissues of adult bodies. A relatively lighter touch may therefore be used on children’s bodies than on adults, making the therapy even less invasive. Due to the softness and sensitivity of children’s growing bodies, therapeutic results are usually swift and effective. A weekly or monthly “tune-up” with pediatric tui-na massage by a qualified therapist is an excellent preventive regimen for keeping young children’s systems healthy and strong and counteracting the toxicity that junk food and environmental pollution produces in children today.
Shiatsu is a traditional Japanese therapy based on even older Chinese acupressure techniques. In shiatsu, a thumb or knuckle is used to apply deep pressure to various acupuncture points to produce a specific therapeutic effect in the organs associated with those points. This technique is especially effective when applied by a therapist who has developed the ability to “emit energy” (fa chi) through his or her hands, thereby boosting the therapeutic benefits of the acupressure by transferring a “turbocharge” of healing energy directly into the patient’s energy system. In recent years, both shiatsu and traditional Thai massage have come to the attention of alternative health-care providers in Europe and North America, and many aspiring young healers from the Western world now spend time in Thailand and Japan learning these ancient healing arts under the tutelage of accomplished masters. If you’re doing a detox program in an area where you can find a qualified practitioner of shiatsu or traditional Thai massage, you can accelerate the pace and reduce the discomfort of the detox process by having a daily treatment.
Traditional Asian Foot Massage
All Asian healing traditions include a special form of therapeutic massage applied exclusively to the terminals of major energy meridians and nerve channels located in the feet. In the West, this form of foot therapy is called “reflexology,” but it is not nearly as well developed nor as effective as the ancient Asian method, which has been practiced continuously throughout the East for thousands of years.
The techniques of traditional Asian foot massage are similar to the deep-tissue pressing and surface rubbing used in tui-na but are applied exclusively to vital points on the many meridians and nerve channels that terminate in the feet. Six of the twelve primary organ-energy meridians have terminals in the feet—spleen, liver, kidneys, stomach, bladder, and gall bladder—and the main branches of the autonomic nervous system also have roots there. By stimulating specific points on the feet with deep tissue pressure, specific therapeutic effects may be produced in the related organs and glands of the body.
In TCM, cramped and misshapen feet are seen as a primary cause of chronic dysfunction in the internal organs and glands connected to the nerve and energy channels in the feet. These terminals are literally crushed by hardened tissues and bone deformities in the feet. The liver and kidneys, for example, which are responsible for filtering toxins from the blood, cannot properly perform their cleansing functions when the energy meridians and nerve endings that regulate them are pinched and blocked in the feet. Consequently, toxic wastes accumulate in the blood and tissues, and bodily fluids become increasingly acidic, producing a state of chronic toxemia that sets the stage for the onset of disease and degeneration. Deep acupressure applied to blocked nerves and meridians on the soles of the feet triggers a massive internal cleansing response in the related organs, particularly the liver and kidneys. Individuals who are especially toxic will sometimes run to the nearest toilet to pass a liter of coffee-colored urine immediately after their first treatment, or purge their bowels with a bout of diarrhea. A foul odor often exudes from their skin as well, as toxins are driven out through the pores. Clearly, this is a powerful detox therapy.
Dr. Lee Shih-min, a doctor from Taiwan who was trained in modern Western medicine, has in recent years drawn a lot of serious professional attention to his use of this ancient Chinese healing art form in America. At the University of Southern California’s medical center, where Dr. Lee practiced Western medicine for many years, he was frequently exposed to the invasive and often counterproductive methods of modern allopathic medicine and radical surgery. After a while, he says, he “got so tired of all the needles, knives, and drugs” that he started studying the ancient ways of traditional Chinese medicine in search of better methods. There he discovered foot therapy and started practicing it as a sideline in his own clinic. Before long, he gained a reputation for producing “medical miracles,” and foot therapy soon became his main profession, as more and more doctors and surgeons at the medical center referred their “hopeless cases” to him as a last resort. More often than not, he completely cured those patients. Initially skeptical, his medical colleagues themselves now go to Dr. Lee for treatment. It can take months to get an appointment with him. Fortunately, Dr. Lee is training a new generation of therapists in this powerful detoxification and healing technique, and hopefully it will soon become more widely available.
If you’re traveling in Thailand these days, you’ll notice dozens of new foot massage salons in every major city and resort area. Traditional Asian foot massage has enjoyed a big revival in Thailand recently, and most of the salons are staffed by properly trained therapists. A traditional Asian foot massage costs less than having a few beers in a bar, and it is therefore a service that most visitors can afford on a daily basis. Even if you’re not doing a detox program, having a traditional Asian foot massage from time to time is a wonderful way to totally relax your body and recharge your batteries, while also cleansing the internal organs, stimulating glandular secretions, and clearing congested energy and nerve channels in the feet.
A convenient way to perform your own deep tissue foot massage is to walk barefoot on smooth round stones embedded in concrete, like little cobblestones. This technique, known in Chinese as “treading stones” (tsai shir-tou), has been used for thousands of years in China and elsewhere in Asia as self-healing therapy, and its effects are fast and effective, because it stimulates points deeply imbedded in the tissues of the feet. You can easily make your own therapeutic stone walk at home by pouring one or two square meters of concrete and setting smooth round stones varying in size from a plum to a peach halfway into the wet cement, then letting it dry. To use the stones for deep-tissue foot massage, walk around slowly on the stones with bare feet, pausing to rock back and forth on your feet whenever you find points that are sore or sensitive. The idea is to soften any hard spots and to dissolve any crystallized particles that you find in your feet by pressing and rubbing those spots on the stones. For best results, you should try to do this for about twenty minutes, twice daily, for a period of one to two weeks. It is also an excellent supplemental therapy for any detox program, because it greatly accelerates internal cleansing and elimination of wastes and it stimulates healing responses throughout the system.
Nei-dzang Internal Organ Massage
TCM also has a special type of massage designed to directly stimulate the internal organs, facilitate their drainage of toxic wastes, and draw circulation of blood and energy into the organs and glands to repair and replenish them. Known as nei-dzang (literally, “internal organ”) massage, this technique employs the extended tips of the index, middle, and ring fingers to probe deeply into the abdominal cavity and apply massage therapy directly to the internal organs. This direct pressure clears stagnant fluids and disperses congested energy, drives toxic residues from the organ tissues, and stimulates sluggish organs to restore normal function. It is a very effective way to relieve abdominal bloating and water retention, move clogged bowels, clear liver congestion, reduce swelling in the pancreas, and eliminate gas. Not many therapists are qualified to practice this method today, and it should only be done by someone properly trained to work in the soft tissues of the abdominal cavity, but if you manage to find a qualified practitioner, it is well worth arranging a series of treatments as a support for any detox program.
When internal organ massage is performed by a healer who has mastered the skill of “emitting energy” through the hands, it is known as chi nei-dzang, and the results are even more dramatic. The hands of such healers are known as “flags of energy” in Chinese, because they can wave healing energy directly into the channels of the ailing organs through their palms and fingertips, producing therapeutic effects in the energy system to amplify the physical therapy provided by tactile pressure.
Hot Herbal Oil Massage
In India, Thailand, and Bali, a form of traditional therapeutic massage using hot herbal oils and based on the principles of classical ayurvedic medicine is still widely practiced. Natural massage oils such as sesame, sweet almond, and coconut are infused with aromatic essential oils known for their purifying and healing medicinal properties and heated to slightly above body temperature. The hot medicinal oil is applied liberally to the body with a vigorous massage, driving the volatile medicinal essences deeply into the tissues, where they enter the bloodstream and energy meridians and circulate throughout the system. This type of massage is particularly effective for curing arthritis, rheumatism, and any sort of inflammation in the joints and ligaments. It also drains the lymph channels, tones the skin, and soothes the nervous system.
Chiropractic
Chiropractic is a remarkably effective medical therapy developed as an early offshoot of Western medicine and long ridiculed by conventional allopathic doctors as some sort of “voodoo medicine.” But just like Dr. Lee’s traditional Chinese foot-massage therapy, chiropractic is based on sound scientific principles and often produces positive results when all modern medical methods fail. The public is therefore beginning to rediscover and utilize this form of treatment, which realigns all of the major joints and bones in the body and rebalances the entire skeletal framework. Misaligned bones, especially in the neck, spine, and sacrum, can cramp and obstruct nerve and energy channels, depriving the related organs and glands of energy, and blocking nerve signals to them from the brain. By loosening up the joints and ligaments and by manipulating the bones back into proper alignment, the free flow of blood, energy, and nerve impulses is restored to all of the internal organs, thereby allowing them to cleanse and heal themselves. During prolonged periods of toxicity, the body stores many toxic wastes as crystalline deposits in the joints, gradually throwing posture off balance and pushing bones out of position. Therefore, a few chiropractic adjustments either before or during a detox program can assist the body’s cleansing and healing mechanisms to function more efficiently.
SELF-MASSAGE
Self-massage is a simple, convenient technique that may be applied any time, any place, during the detox process to help keep bodily fluids moving, release tension and toxins from tissues, and relieve the minor aches and pains that arise in the body during detox. Anyone can do it, and it requires no special training.
When practicing self-massage, it is best to sit on a chair or stool with the spine straight and feet flat on the floor. Before you start, rub the palms of the hands together briskly for about thirty seconds, until they feel warm, to charge them with energy and increase their polarity. This enhances the therapeutic benefits of self-massage, especially when working on vital points along the energy meridians. Recharge the palms in this manner every two to three minutes throughout the treatment.
Acupressure
Several major energy points on the body may be effectively stimulated for detox purposes by means of self-acupressure. It is important to remain as relaxed as possible while doing this, because energy cannot flow freely through tissues that are “uptight” with physical tension. It is also best to do this technique while breathing deeply and slowly from the diaphragm, to help circulate blood and energy and keep the nervous system in the restorative parasympathetic mode.
The four most useful points for self-acupressure during detox are illustrated in figure 2 and are briefly described below:
Ho-gu (“Valley of Harmony”): This is one of the body’s primary power points, and stimulation here gives a boost to the entire energy system. It is located on the large intestine meridian, in the V-shaped depression in the webbing between the base of the thumb and index finger. Press the tip of the thumb deeply into the “valley” until you find this sensitive point, then push hard on it for about ten seconds, release, rub the surface in circles, and repeat two or three times. This point stimulates the colon, relieves headaches and toothaches on the side pressed, alleviates fatigue, and improves respiration, all of which are beneficial to the detox process.
Tai-chung (“Supreme Thruster”): This point is the equivalent on the foot to the “Valley of Harmony” point on the hand. Located along the liver meridian on top of the foot, the point is tucked in between the tendons of the big and second toes, a little over an inch up from the slot between those toes. Press the thumb deeply between these two tendons until you find the point, then apply pressure in the same way as described above. This point is the most powerful one on the liver meridian, and acupressure here stimulates all liver functions, prompts liver detoxification, helps cure hepatitis and other liver disease, relieves headaches and eye aches caused by congestion and “fire” in the liver, and is also a good way to take the edge off a hangover.
Fig. 2. Four vital acupressure points for practicing self-massage therapy.
San-yin-jiao (“Triple Yin Intersection”): Located at the junction where the meridians of the three primary Yin organs (liver, kidneys, and spleen) intersect on the inside of the calf, this point is found one hand-width above the ankle, along the inside edge of the shin bone. Both the liver and kidneys are primary excretory organs, and pressure on this point provides strong stimulation to both. It also governs sexual energy, enhancing potency in men and helping to regulate menstrual cycles in women. It is a good point to press for an energy boost when your vitality is running low during detox.
Yung-chuan (“Bubbling Spring”): This is the most powerful point on the kidney meridian, located in the center of the ball of the foot, 2 inches down from the middle toe. Pressure here stimulates kidney functions and energizes the entire system. This point is also specifically effective for treating hypertension, anxiety, and insomnia, and for balancing irregular heart rhythms. In addition, this point stimulates the adrenal glands, which are attached to the kidneys, to secrete hormones that enhance vitality and to help keep the entire endocrine system in balance.
Squeezing (ya) and Rubbing (mo)
This technique may be applied to the flesh and joints of the neck, shoulders, arms, and legs to stimulate drainage of lymph channels, activate blood circulation, drive toxic residues from tissues, and release tension from muscles and tendons. Rub the palms together to charge them with energy, then use the fingers and thumb of the right hand to grab and give a strong squeeze to the muscles and tendons on the left side of the body, then briskly rub the surface with an open palm. Start at the neck and shoulder, work down the arm to the fingers, and massage from the top of the thigh down the leg to the toes. Then use the left hand to work on the right side of the body.
“Chi Brushing”
This method uses the charged palm of the hand as a “brush” to disperse congested energy from various tissues and organs, thereby opening circulation of blood and energy to those tissues, clearing stagnation, and draining toxins. It is also a good way to relieve minor aches in the body. After charging the hands by rubbing them together till warm, use one palm to repeatedly brush in a downward direction across the surface of the tissues you wish to treat, as though you were trying to wipe off something from the skin and sweep it away. For example, if the muscles of your arms or legs ache, brush a charged palm across the aching muscles, always sweeping downward and away from the body. This “scatters chi” (san chi) from tissues where energy and fluids have become congested and stagnant, relieving the pain and reducing the inflammation that such congestion causes. If you wish to clear and soothe an aching liver, use the charged palm of your left hand to reach across and brush down across the surface of the skin directly over the liver. Since this therapy works primarily on the level of energy, the clearing and soothing effects are not confined only to the physical surface where the brushing is applied; the hand functions as a sort of “energy wand” to transmit therapeutic benefits deeply into the tissues beneath the surface.
While we’re on the topic of “brushing,” another tried-and-true way to facilitate rapid detox by self-massage is by dry-brushing the entire surface of the body, except for the head, using a dry bath brush made with natural plant bristles. Brush briskly down the inside and outside of the arms, from shoulders down to hands, down the entire surface of the legs from hips to feet, and down the front and back of the torso and both sides of the rib cage, moving from neck down to waist. This is an excellent way to activate lymph drainage and stimulate microcirculation of blood in surface tissues. It also strips away dead skin cells and stimulates generation of new skin, which is a highly beneficial effect during detox.
Tapping (chui-da)
Rhythmically tapping various tissues of the body produces a vibrational wave that carries therapeutic stimulation deeply into the body and penetrates the bone and marrow as well. Tapping therapy has manifold benefits that assist the detox process. It scatters congested energy and stagnant fluids from surface tissues as well as internal organs, activates blood circulation and lymph drainage, stimulates glandular secretions, clears blocked meridians, and loosens toxic residues from nerves and other tissues. By virtue of the piezoelectric effect, the vibrations resonate into the crystalline structure of the bones, which transform the vibrations into energy pulses that stimulate production of white blood cells and other immune factors in the marrow. This effect strengthens immune response, thereby making the detox process more efficient.
Fig. 3. Diagrams of how the hand is held in two different ways for self-tapping therapy: A) Cupped palm for tapping meridians and energy gates. B) Clenched fist for tapping meridians and energy gates.
There are two basic ways to apply tapping therapy. One way is to slightly curl the fingers and thumb to form a concave “cup” in the palm (figure 3A). This creates a little “echo chamber” in the palm that amplifies the tapping vibrations and resonates them within the hollow cavities of the chest and abdomen, where they stimulate the organs and glands. This technique is particularly effective for dislodging toxic residues from the lungs and abdominal organs. First charge the hands, then use the cupped palm of one hand to slap and tap down the opposite side of the ribs from armpit to hip, and from the collarbone down the front of the chest and torso to the waist, then do the same thing with the other hand on the other side.
Another technique is to curl your fingers all the way down to form a fist, with the thumb pressed against the side of the index finger, rather than across the knuckles (figure 3B), and use the curled knuckles and the butt of the palm as a mallet to tap the body. This method is most effective for rattling toxic deposits loose from nerve tissue and stimulating hormone secretions in the endocrine glands. It also has a strong piezoelectric effect on the crystalline structures within the body.
A traditional self-tapping set drawn from chi gung practice may be applied as a highly effective therapeutic support during detox. It is also an excellent morning exercise to give a daily boost to immune response and to balance the endocrine system. Known as “The Three Taps” (Figure 4), this set has been introduced in several of the author’s previous books, but since it is so useful for detox and only takes about ten minutes, it is worth a brief review again here. This exercise involves the rhythmic tapping of three parts of the body where important glands are located: the head and neck (pituitary); the center of the chest over the heart (thymus); and the kidneys (adrenals). Spending three to four minutes on each one is sufficient to obtain therapeutic benefits. The Three Taps are briefly explained below:
Neck and Head Tap
Rub the hands together to charge them with energy, then roll the fingers into a fist, with the thumbs pressed against the sides of the index fingers. Use the palm-side of the fists to drum vigorously along both sides of the vertebrae in the neck, alternately left and right, starting at the top of the shoulders and moving slowly up along the neck, continuing up the back of the skull and over the top of the head to the hairline, then drumming back down to the neck again. Tap a bit harder and longer on the area where the neck runs into the base of the skull. The tapping vibrations reverberate through the skull into the head, stimulating hormone secretions from the pituitary gland, dislodging toxins from the tissues of the brain and the thick nerve cords in the neck, and activating circulation of blood and energy in the head. It is a great way to clear “cobwebs” from your head in the morning and stimulate cerebral functions.
Fig. 4. “The Three Taps:” A) Neck, Head, and Pituitary Tap; B) Heart and Thymus Tap; C) Kidney and Adrenal Tap.
For this exercise, use the second row of knuckles on the fist of one hand to rhythmically rap on the breastbone in the center of the chest, directly over the heart. Time the tapping to a beat of one heavy tap followed by two lighter taps: ONE, two three; ONE, two, three; etc. This pattern specifically stimulates the thymus gland, which is located directly beneath the breastbone and whose secretions play a vital role in immune response. One of the first symptoms of AIDS is a radical reduction in the production of immune factors from the thymus gland known as “T-cells.” Daily tapping on the thymus gradually increases the size of this important gland, which tends to shrink with age, and stimulates secretion of T-cells and other immune factors. This exercise also loosens impacted toxins from lung tissue and has a stimulating effect on the heart.
Kidney Tap
To tap the kidneys, use the back side of the hands to gently tap the kidneys, alternately left and right, from top to bottom, covering the area on the back from the soft tissue just below the rib cage up to the third rib. The vibrations stimulate secretions in the adrenal glands, which sit like hats on top of the kidneys and whose hormones regulate a wide range of vital functions. Chronic stress depletes the adrenals, so this is a good way to recharge them. As in all three taps, the vibrations work on both the physical level, by vibrating the glandular tissues, and on the energetic level, by virtue of the piezoelectric effect on the structures within the glands. In addition, the kidney tap dislodges toxic deposits in kidney tissues and helps break up crystallized acid wastes before they can form kidney stones. This makes it particularly effective as a kidney support during detox.
SOFT EXERCISE
Many people these days completely avoid exercise because they associate it with panting and sweating, strain and injury, toil and trouble. The popular Western notion of exercise includes such heart-racing, jointgrinding, tendon-tearing activities as jogging and weight lifting, tennis and football, surfing and skiing—activities that most people are neither fit nor inclined to do. As a result, when it comes to exercise, the population is divided into a small minority that does it, and an overwhelming majority that just watches.
In Asia, exercise has traditionally been regarded as something one does for therapeutic purposes, not for fun, and it still plays a key role in most traditional Eastern medical systems. Like all “medicine,” the first principle of exercise is that it should “do no harm.” That obviously eliminates any activity that strains the body, injures tissues, and leaves one exhausted. Instead, traditional Asian exercises, particularly Chinese styles, are designed to help the body repair and heal itself, to assist the blood and lymph in detoxifying tissues and excreting wastes, and to energize rather than deplete the system. Such exercises are known as soft exercise. In addition to being soft, they are also very slow and smooth.
In his great masterpiece, Precious Recipes, written fifteen hundred years ago, the renowned Tang Dynasty physician Sun Ssu-mo states:
The Tao of nurturing life requires that one keep oneself as fluid and flexible as possible. One should not stay still for too long, nor should one exhaust oneself by trying to perform impossible tasks. As the ancient Chinese expression says, one should learn how to exercise from nature by observing the fact that flowing water never stagnates and active hinges never rust.
Let’s take a quick look at some of the basic differences between hard Western-style exercise and traditional soft Eastern-style exercise. Soft exercise focuses on stretching the muscles and tendons and loosening the joints and limbs, thereby opening all the tissues of the body to the free flow of blood and energy. Hard exercise contracts the muscles and compacts the joints, blocking circulation and retaining toxic wastes in the tissues for a long time. Soft exercises are done in conjunction with deep, slow, diaphragmic breathing, which oxygenates and alkalizes the blood and tissues, while hard exercises force the breath into a shallow, panting mode that utilizes only the narrow upper sections of the lungs. This type of fast shallow breathing in the upper lungs exposes only a very small fraction of the lungs’ surface area to incoming air, greatly reducing the intake of oxygen and the discharge of carbon dioxide. As a result, the blood and tissues become increasingly acidic and oxygen-deficient for as long as the exercise continues.
That’s not all. Hard exercise causes a rapid accumulation of lactic acid in the tissues, thereby contributing to acidosis. Lactic acid is a metabolic waste produced by muscular exertion, and the last thing you want to do during detox is to produce more acid wastes. By contrast, soft exercise, which requires only minimal muscular exertion, avoids the accumulation of lactic acid in the tissues, and since it is usually done in conjunction with deep breathing, it actually alkalizes and oxygenates the bloodstream, rather than loading it with acids and carbon dioxide. Hard exercise strains the heart by forcing it to race to accelerate circulation of blood to the muscles. Furthermore, since hard exercise makes the breath grow shallow, the diaphragm is not engaged in the breathing process, and therefore the heart must bear the full load of pumping extra supplies of blood through the body. Soft exercise combined with deep breathing effectively turns the diaphragm into a second heart, engaging it to help pump blood through the circulatory system by virtue of differential pressures in the abdominal and chest cavities. This takes a huge work load off the heart, and when practiced daily, the cumulative benefits to the heart can be lifesaving.
Perhaps most important, soft exercise performed in conjunction with deep, slow breathing shifts the autonomous nervous system into the calm, cleansing, healing mode of the parasympathetic branch and keeps it in this mode. This point is important because unless you take effective measures to unwind, relax, and keep the parasympathetic branch of the nervous system switched on, and the sympathetic branch turned off, for at least a few days, your body’s self-cleansing and healing responses will not be able to function properly, and the detox process cannot proceed. Doing soft exercise and deep breathing for an hour or two each day is a very good way to stay relaxed and keep your nervous system in the healing detox mode.
The best type of soft exercises for detox purposes are stretching and loosening maneuvers, such as those found in yoga and in the Chinese exercises associated with Tai Chi and chi gung. Stretching the muscles squeezes stagnant venous blood out of the tissues, while the subsequent relaxation phase allows fresh arterial blood to flow in. Since these movements are always done softly, slowly, and smoothly, with minimal exertion, they do not result in the accumulation of lactic acid in the tissues, they don’t race the heart, and they don’t shorten the breath. Stretching also keeps the nerve and energy channels open and active and stimulates lymph drainage.
There are many good books on yoga available today, and lots of qualified yoga teachers. As for traditional Chinese stretching and loosening exercises, the author has described and illustrated several dozen of these in previous titles (see The Tao of Health, Sex, and Longevity, The Complete Book of Chinese Health and Healing, and The Complete Guide to Chi Gung). Prior to practicing these exercises, it is important to familiarize yourself with the basic principles of chi gung movement and breathing, and observe a few precautions, which is why the reader is referred to the books mentioned above for guidance.
If you simply don’t like doing repetitive formal exercises, almost any type of gentle, slow activity that does not race the heart or shorten the breath, but that does move the “water” and activate the “hinges” of the body, may be done instead as a way of keeping fluids flowing and tissues toned during detox. A long stroll on the beach or a hike in the forest, paddling slowly around in a swimming pool or in the ocean, tending a garden—any such activity will do the trick, as long as you do it softly, slowly, and smoothly. If you’re a confirmed “couch potato” and flatly refuse to do even that much activity, then at least you can pay someone else to keep your blood and other bodily fluids moving and your tissues active with therapeutic massage.
The bottom line is this: the blood, the body, and the breath are designed to move, not to stand still and stagnate. Anything that remains still and stagnant for too long invariably loses its vitality and starts to degenerate and decay. So the basic message here is, “Move it before you lose it!”