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The causes of physical and mental tension

Over the course of our life, it is possible that stress and fatigue accumulate mental and physical tension without us even realizing it.

Note – This article has been asked by one of our Core Course practitioners on Patreon (see how to attend our home study classes here Learn Kung Fu online: a beginner-to-expert course).

This can happen because the accumulation is so slow and constant that it falls within our concept of “normality”: only when we reach the critical threshold, we realize that something is wrong.

Often, only when the conditions in which we find ourselves are such that to alter the quality of our life, we understand that we have to do something; the trouble is that, at that point, the work we have to do becomes much more difficult and onerous.

A few classical disease examples

Here are some examples:

Backache
Cervical pains
Dizziness
Mental tension
Absence of forces
Constant nervousness
Panic attacks
Impossibility to sleep
In extreme cases even semi-paralysis
…

The most common causes

The causes of these symptoms can be:

Physical – Diseases, injuries, exposure to seasonal agents, incorrect postures, etc.
Mental – Work-related, family, sexual, health-related stress, etc.

In both cases there is a solution that can:

In a lot of cases, permanently solve the whole (as long as we continue to practice)
In the remaining (the most extreme) to alleviate most of the problems encountered

The “miracle medicine” we are going to analyze is called: controlled breathing.

How can breathing solve our problems?

As it may seem inconceivable, practicing daily with one or more sessions of controlled breathing (in other words meditation) can drastically change our lives.

In most cases, what damages our well-being is caused by:

Excessive efforts both from a physical and a mental point of view (proportionally to our real possibilities)
Tension that generates stress and stress that generates tension
Lack of a relief valve and freedom that goes beyond the normal night sleep
Incapacity to listen, understand and alter the state of our body
…

Controlled breathing puts us in a condition to:

Control an ample part of our mind – Removing the concentration of the mind from the source of tension (eg. worries, etc.) and giving it the relief it needed
Control an ample part of our body – Slow down the heartbeat and then, indirectly, take control of a large part of our internal and external body elements

A note by Master Kongling – There is no need to become fakirs, ascetics or hermits in order to act in this way at a more than satisfactory level: it is sufficient to practice and be determined (especially in front of the first inevitable failures).

Breathing for immediate relaxation: how to

First of all, it must be stressed that breathing for immediate relaxation:

It is not only a set of techniques to be known and applied
It is a skill to understand and train

The technique

We can use any form of (serious) meditation:

In 6 Dragons Kung Fu, in particular, is advisable our Meditation method 5
But if we are novices, to start, it is better to choose Meditation method 1 (and gradually follow the others, read A meditation mini-guide: how to start)

The training

What we call “real training” consists of focusing on the meditative practice:

On eliminating any tension – Imagining that our breath travels through our body, gradually stretching out everything that is contracted (as if it were a warm and gentle wave of the sea)
On clearing our mind – Focusing 100% of our attention (cognitive ability) on getting a breathing more and more consistent with the method we are using
On analyzing – With calm and precision all the symptoms that characterize our problem within our body (where, how, when, why, etc.)
On a targeted action – Imagining to focus our breathing on the specific points where we perceive malaise and to slowly eliminate any tension
On slowing down – Trying every second to slow down more and more our breathing and the functions of our body (but without ever causing the slightest breathlessness)

To ensure that the quality of our ability to breathe in a controlled manner is such as to guarantee us the ability to obtain immediate relaxation, we need:

Daily practice – We have to start with at least 5-10 minutes of meditation per day (for example, before going to bed at night and / or after morning wake-up, read also How to meditate: 3 easy approaches (for beginners))
Use emotional anchors – Learn how to use mental anchors to recall positive feelings on command and instantaneously (read Fighting and mind control: the anchors)
Believe in it – There is nothing paranormal in all this and it is not necessary to be Buddhist, to believe in Qi (read The use of Qi in the 6DKF’s meaning) or else to embrace meditation

Final notes

Finally, it is important to reflect on the fact that:

Again, there is nothing magical or spiritual in meditation (the philosophical-religious implications do not necessarily interest us); this practice is about cause and effect, we distract our mind and we empty it, we breathe slowly and our body follows us by relaxing what was in tension (nothing more, nothing less)
Practicing without conviction is a waste of time; in the absence of regular, concentrated and rational practice it is absolutely impossible to learn how to achieve immediate relaxation; as it is not conceivable to get a sprinter performance without training hard it is equally ridiculous to think to take control of our body by doing two or three deep breaths once a month
Wellbeing will come quickly but it will take weeks / months to see the first (extraordinary) results; let’s eliminate laziness understanding the fact that the ones we dedicate to this activity, will be our only moments, a pure personal pleasure (that we deserve)
As a Pro fighter (eg. of MMA) does not spend all the time fighting with high-level opponents, in the same way, those who want to learn to control their psychophysical state cannot think of starting doing it during moments of maximum tension; it is extremely counterproductive to confuse meditation training with the actual practical use, this way we risk transforming the practice itself into a stressful moment (thus negating all of its potential)
Looking beyond the momentary benefit, what really changes through meditation is our way of dealing with life; gradually we will learn that is our vision of the happenings that causes pain and not the happenings by themselves, we will learn to give less and less relevance to what is useless (pride, fear, frustration, desire, resentment, etc.) and to accept our / others’ limits; an infinite well-being will be the natural consequence of this new way of being
…

In the next article of this series, we will go more in-depth about how to practically use the skills we are building.

In-depth video courses

Breathing methods and exercises – The hidden power behind breathing techniques
Meditation: how to start – A step-by-step path toward the most effective relaxation method
Mind self-control hacks – How to exploit the full power of our brain
Basic 6 Dragons Kung Fu exercises – All the basic exercises of our Kung Fu
Soft QI gong for wellness – A simple explanation of a routine for deep wellness
Full body stretching exercises – Fundamenta elongation methods for the entire body
Wellness: self-massage techniques – How to improve wellness and health with a self-treatment

In-depth articles

How to use emotions in workout and combat – How to not be the victim of emotions / sensations and use instead them in our favor
Accept problems to find solutions – How to take the first step? Admit having a problem, then we can address it

Questions

Reply in the comments and share your experience:

Have you ever tried meditation?

Author: Master Kongling

Founder of 6 Dragons Kung Fu.

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