Do your hands or feet ever feel cold, even when the rest of your body is warm?
In some cases, cold hands and feet can be a sign that your Qi isn’t flowing properly throughout your body. Fortunately, there’s often a natural way to overcome excessive coldness.
Gloves and thick socks can help you feel warm, but they don’t really address the root cause of feeling cold. In order to understand why you might have cold hands and feet, it can be helpful to learn about your internal energy system.
In this blog, we’ll discuss how energy blockages can contribute to cold hands and feet. We’ll also share a three-minute Qi Gong exercise to help you warm up your extremities whenever they feel chilly.
Just as blood flows throughout your body, so does Qi. And just as blood flows through arteries and blood vessels, your Qi has its own network of pathways called meridians.
Meridians connect all parts of your body. When your Qi flows smoothly throughout your meridians, you feel energized and full of vitality. When blockages occur, on the other hand, you can experience a variety of health ailments and imbalances. One of these is excessive coldness, especially in your hands and feet.
In order to regain harmony and overcome excessive coldness, it’s important to open up your meridians so Qi can flow once again. And one of the best ways to do this is to practice specific Qi Gong exercises that focus on circulating Qi throughout these important energy channels.
Although all of your meridians are important, your heart meridian plays an especially crucial role when it comes to warming your hands and feet. This is because your heart is connected to the Fire Element, which, not surprisingly, is important for helping you stay warm. Additionally, your heart meridian flows directly from your heart down your arms to your hands.
One of the best Qi Gong exercises for warming your hands and feet is called Ignite the Inner Fire. This exercise focuses on activating your Heart energy so it can circulate and bring warmth to different parts of your body, especially your hands, and feet.
We’ve included a brief video of master Qi Gong teacher, Lee Holden, teaching this exercise. We’ve also provided written instructions below the video.
Stand with your feet a little wider than shoulder-width apart and take some slow, deep breaths. Try to fully relax your body and let go of any thoughts that enter your mind.
After a minute or two of deep breathing, bring the palms of your hands together so they’re touching in front of you. On your next breath, move your hands over to the right side of your body and let your palms rotate. Your right elbow should extend outward, away from your midline.
As you move your hands to the right, let your weight move to the right so it’s over your right leg. Look to the left so you experience a gentle twist in your upper body.
Then, move your hands to the left as you shift your weight to the left in synchronicity. Look to the right to create another gentle twist in your upper body.
Continue this exercise on each side of your body. As you shift your hands and weight to your right, look to the left. As you shift your hands and weight to the left, look to the right.
Keep doing Ignite the Inner Fire and feel the energy building within you. Visualize your heart energy strengthening in your heart center and flowing down your extremities, bringing warmth to your hands and feet. Continue doing this movement for at least three minutes.
When you’re ready, bring your feet together and rest your hands over your lower abdomen. Take a few deep breaths to center your energy and take that feeling of warmth and groundedness with you into the rest of your day.
If you’re interested in learning more exercises for cultivating your heart energy and the Fire Element, be sure to check out our on-demand Qi Gong for Summer Workshop.
In our on-demand Qi Gong for Summer Workshop, you’ll learn a variety of powerful exercises to strengthen your Fire Element and experience its positive qualities. In addition to overcoming cold hands and feet, you’ll discover practices to help you experience more joy and love in everyday life.
All of these lessons are taught by master Qi Gong teacher Lee Holden. And because you’ll get lifetime access, you can enjoy the lessons as often as you’d like from the comfort of your home.
Click on the banner below to discover how Qi Gong can help warm your body and feel your best this summer.
