This morning, I started out with 1 hour of Chair Yoga with Maya. I stretched out muscles I didn't realize that I've been neglecting. As I went through the workout I struggled at first with my hip flexors and back and shoulder tightness which simply reminded me that I need to pay more attention to strengthening and stretching upper and lower back muscles. Through it all, I made it through it, and I was so proud of how amazing Arsenia was able to do these certain postures. Now onto some Qigong and Taichi (Beijing 24) Whatever you do today make it a plan to STRETCH EVERYTHING! Namaste 🧘♥️

Every practice begins with a first step, and this is ours together. In the comments, tell us: 🌍 Where you’re tuning in from 🌱 If you’re brand new or already on the path 🎯 What you hope to grow or discover here Your voice adds to the energy of this community ✨

Hey Rooted Alchemy family 🌿 We’re always looking for ways to improve the quality of this community and the live sessions we share together. Today we had almost 20 people on the live call, which is really special to see. As we continue to grow, we want to make sure these sessions stay intentional, valuable, and supportive of your practice. Your honest feedback helps us do that. If you have a moment, we’d love for you to answer the quick poll below and, if you feel called, leave a comment as well. Quick check-in How satisfied are you with the live sessions so far? 💡 Optional reflection (comment below):If there’s anything you’d love to see more of or improved in future live sessions, feel free to share. For example: - Quality of streaming or audio - More time for Q and A or Chi Talk - Longer or more structured practice - More interaction or discussion - Encouraging more cameras on - Timing or pacing of the session No pressure to write anything long. Even a short note helps us continue shaping these lives in a way that serves you best. Grateful to be practicing alongside you 🙏

A quick question: following prompts, trying to remember forms and movements, how crucial is left and right? I mean that not only am I left-handed, I'm extremely left-sided: my left eye is slightly myopic, my right very much so; my left shoe wears out much quicker than the right; despite similar injuries forty of years ago, I have quite painful osteoarthritis in my right knee, far less in my left; quite nasty varicose veins on my right leg, only very mild on my right. We "lefties" have come in for some stick historically: Latin for "left" is "sinister", right is "dexter" (even though I'm very "dextrous" with my left hand!); an obsolete English phrase for "left-handed" was "cack-handed", dating from before the invention of toilet paper! At school, my late dad (born 1925) was beaten across the hand with a ruler if he had the temerity to write with his left hand. That left him with a lifelong stutter. So generally in life my instinct is simply to reverse hands: if instructions say do something with my right, I do it with my left. Generally, that works very well (although sometimes it raised eyebrows in traditional settings when I lived in the Middle East!). How applicable is that to practice in Qi Gong and Tai Ji? Are there some moves and forms that HAVE to be right-led, as instructed? Or so long as both sides are practiced does that matter? How does that relate to Yin and Yang? Might practice, through harmonising Yin and Yang, eventually make one more ambidextrous? I don't mean "cure" left-handedness, I'm fine as I am, I just mean create something of a better balance. Any advice welcome!

I have been doing Qigong and a little Tai ji for close to a month now. Besides all the normal things that occur with a completely new practice such as aching muscles etc, I have noticed something which has really hit me. As far as I can remember, my whole life I have been a side sleeper, mainly left side but occasionally right side. A week ago I noticed that I am now a back sleeper, I CANNOT fall to sleep on my side. However I do turn onto one side or the other for a short time during the night. As I also have my arms either down by my side or across my chest, I started to wonder if this was something to do with 'grounding'. Has anyone else experienced this or similar and can the teachers explain this phenomenon. (Or am I just being weird?)