“Brain gymnastics”: 6 exercises for the mind and performance

The centuries-old experience of Chinese traditional medicine is embodied in a simple but effective system of health-improving gymnastics, qigong, which is a set of elementary methods of controlling breathing and body movement.

Back in the 3rd century BC, the Chinese suggested that breathing is what directly connects the human body with its environment (the universe).

Health-improving qigong gymnastics is based on the ancient Chinese teaching about the harmonious relationship between man and nature. One of the most important elements of this interaction is breathing. According to Chinese sages, many diseases of the human body arise precisely from disharmony with nature. As a result of conscious, harmonious interaction between man and nature, vitality and internal energy are born. The Chinese call this life-giving energy, invisible to the human eye, qi.

Qi is the universal energy that gives rise to all elements of life and nourishes both the physical and spiritual worlds of man.

Qigong teaches that qi is consciously brought into our body through breathing. By receiving the life-giving energy of the Universe through breathing, you can restore the weakened strength of the body, recover from many serious diseases, strengthen the immune system and increase your own energy. Qigong is not only a philosophical teaching, but also a series of specific physical exercises.

The complex of therapeutic exercises included in qigong therapy includes special diaphragmatic breathing. This gymnastics is based on breathing exercises, which even a child can master.

Health-improving qigong gymnastics is most effective in the treatment and prevention of various diseases of the respiratory system and cardiovascular system and does not require much time and effort. Qigong therapy exercises not only have a healing effect, but also allow you to relax, “distract yourself” from everything that exists and tune in to a philosophical mood.

The importance of exercise

Correctly constructed eye gymnastics is very important. Exercises, properly interspersed with rest, will allow you to maintain visual acuity for a long time. Modern man absorbs a lot of information every day, and the work that most people do with a computer requires constant significant stress. A large number of eye diseases develop from such efforts.

If a person strains his eyes and does not give them rest, even with 100% vision, various problems appear by the end of the day. Among the most basic of them are dryness, redness and the inability to see distant objects.

If a person does light exercises for the eyes during the day, if he gives them rest, it will be possible to avoid all of the problems listed above. This concerns people with perfect vision, but what can be said about those who have certain problems. For them, gymnastics is simply necessary. This article presents simple complexes that do not take much time. Despite this simplicity, it is worth carefully studying the descriptions of each exercise.

Important! When performing eye exercises, it is important to carefully work out each movement. It is necessary to strictly follow the instructions for implementation.

So, what specific exercises can relieve eye fatigue and prevent eye strain? Here are some of the most effective exercises that you can do individually. Each of them can quickly relieve tension from the eyes and allow them to relax. If you don’t have much time at your disposal, if a person has quite busy working days, you can choose any of the exercises presented to your attention and provide yourself with a moment’s rest and relaxation.

Preventive gymnastics

To ensure that visual acuity does not decrease, it is necessary to carry out the following exercises from time to time:

1. "Drawing letters." You need to use your eyeballs to describe any number of letters from the alphabet. The exercise can be considered completely completed if you managed to describe all 33 letters. Open your mouth - close your eyes. At the same time open your mouth, then open your eyes wide. Try to open your mouth and eyes simultaneously.
2. Blinking/squeezing your eyes shut. It is necessary to alternate frequent blinking with 3-5 second squinting.
3. Massage the upper eyelids with light circular movements.
4. Moving your gaze up and down.
5. Moving your gaze diagonally.
6. Pressure. You should close your eyelids and not press too hard on them.
7. Look through your fingers. Covering your eyes with your palms, spread your fingers a short distance, look through them for a couple of seconds and squeeze them tightly again.
8. Narrowing. You need to close your eyes, touch the outer corner with your middle fingers, and pull to the sides. You need to feel a slight tension in the muscles.
9. Tilt your head down, relaxing your neck muscles and placing your chin on your sternum. Direct your gaze to the floor. Then slowly tilt your head back, looking up.

Do not underestimate preventive eye exercises. After all, it is the eyes that are constantly exposed to the most harmful factors. Stress, bad habits, lack of vitamins, frequent illnesses and an unfavorable environment often become the causes of sudden and rapid loss of vision.

The table below presents three groups of exercises that provide a set of preventive measures.

For those people who spend a lot of time at the computer, working with papers and small print, preventative gymnastics is simply necessary.

Major eye problems

Before describing the most effective exercises, it is worth considering the main problems that can be completely avoided or alleviated by performing well-thought-out eye gymnastics.

Some of the most common eye problems include the following:

1. Myopia is a disease in which the picture is not formed according to the standard, on the retina, but in front of it, which makes it difficult to view objects. The main cause of this problem is an enlarged eyeball. Such an effect may be genetically determined, may be a consequence of ill-constructed physical or visual stress, and the basis for the development of pathology may be constantly experienced stress and poor nutrition;
2. Farsightedness is a visual impairment when a person sees objects located in the distance very well, but everything nearby is poorly visible - cloudy and very blurry.
   Such an inability to distinguish between closely spaced objects is based on compression of the eyeball along the longitudinal axis. For this reason, pictures are recorded behind the retina, and not on it, as in the normal case; Important! A special negative side of this disease is the fact that lack of treatment can lead to the development of strabismus.
3. Amblyopia is a significant problem that occurs against the background of certain changes in the brain. This problem develops exclusively in childhood. Babies have a very plastic natural visual system. For this reason, any negative factor in the form of psychological experiences and traumas can cause the development of this pathology;
4. Age-related macular degeneration, or the presence of a spot on the retina measuring approximately 2 mm. Professionals call the place of formation of such a formation a yellow spot. This is where the sensitive cells that are responsible for transmitting the original color and clarity of the picture are concentrated. With age, when metabolism fails, the pathology of AMD is formed. The disease develops gradually, the onset appears as a stain during reading, which greatly blurs and covers the letters. If the problem is not treated, if the metabolism is not adjusted, the spot will grow, thereby causing even more serious problems;
5. Retinal detachment develops due to a lack of supply of nutrients and oxygen to the cells of the organ of vision.
   The first sign of the development of the disease is the appearance of spots before the eyes. If this phenomenon occurs more and more often, you should immediately contact a specialist. There are many reasons for retinal detachment - injury, development of diabetes, severe myopia, eye inflammation; Important! This is a very dangerous eye disorder. If left untreated, it can lead to loss of vision in a person.
6. Glaucoma is the most common cause of blindness. This disease develops after damage to the optic nerve endings. When treating the problem, you need to follow a strict diet with the complete exclusion of salt and coffee. It is imperative to monitor your blood pressure levels; it is important to take special medications aimed at reducing it. If the pressure cannot be reduced, doctors prescribe surgery in two stages. During the second procedure, such a common complication as clouding of the lens is treated;
7. A cataract is the clouding of the lens itself. As this problem develops, a decrease in visual acuity is noted. The cause of cataracts is poor nutrition, working in hazardous conditions and poor lifestyle. To eliminate the problem at the initial stage, special vitamin drops are prescribed. At a more advanced stage, surgery may be prescribed.

For all diseases without exception, at their very initial stages it is worth including eye exercises in your daily routine. In this case, the exercises must be agreed upon with the attending physician. Self-medication is extremely unacceptable here.

Solarization: the life-giving power of light

Solarization is a set of exercises, the main active factor of which is bright light.

Solarization can be carried out using:

• Sveta;
• sun;
• candles;
• electric incandescent lamp.

Solarization in sunlight

Solarization in sunlight is considered to be the most effective, but it is not always possible to use a natural light source. Therefore, candles and incandescent lamps can also find useful uses.

Solarization is performed in several steps:

1. Take a position relative to the light source so that your face is directly opposite it. The eyes should be closed.
2. Without squinting, try to get used to the bright light (your eyes should still be closed). If you feel pain in your eyes, you can cover them with your palms for a short time, then remove them and try again.
3. It is necessary to slowly turn your head, first to the right, then to the left, so that the light can exert its influence evenly.
4. Upon completion of solarization, do palming.

Solarization is effective in restoring vision. It improves blood circulation and also promotes rapid regeneration of eye tissue, especially in the postoperative period.

Causes of eye problems

Despite the fact that each form of eye disease has its own individual causes, there are several common causes that can lead to the development of inflammatory processes in the organs of vision. Common causes of decreased visual acuity and clarity can be hereditary or acquired. The former are transmitted from parents, the latter arise under the influence of various external factors.

Among the numerous circumstances that in most cases cause visual impairment are:

• Long-term tension and incorrect positioning. It is important to monitor your posture during the working day, whether you are working on a PC or reading a book. In addition, it is important to control your psychological and mental mood. Overexertion can lead to various vision problems;

  

• Food that is not structured according to the rules. Eyes are one of the important parts of the body. If a person does not eat properly, he automatically loses his sight;
• Long-term stress and constant lack of sleep;
• Eye injury.

The last factor deserves special attention. Speaking about eye injury, it should be noted that this may not necessarily be a mechanical impact. Often, injury to the eye muscles occurs in women during childbirth during periods of severe overexertion. To avoid it and prepare the eye muscles, it is important to train them daily by performing the exercises presented in the article.

Competent and regularly performed eye exercises are recommended not only for those who work at the computer and pregnant women, but for every person. Every day a fairly serious load is placed on the eyes; for this it is not necessary to work on a PC all day. Eye exercises are an excellent prevention for a large number of diseases.

Brain training apps

Living in the world of technology, it is impossible not to include special applications for smart devices in the methods of brain gymnastics.

Elevate

Probably the best app on the market. The basic version is free for all platforms. She will be enough. Every day you are given 3 exercises to do. Gradually the tasks will become more difficult. The disadvantage of the application is the lack of Russian language (according to the developer, this function will be available soon) and the need to connect to the Internet to play. The application has more than 35 games.

Memory trainer

Daily use of this application guarantees improvement in brain function. The program improves mechanical memory capabilities, which facilitates learning and increases concentration.

Lumosity

You will definitely like this application, and it will help your brain work as productively as possible. It improves logical thinking, memory, concentration (includes mindfullness exercises). During a short test, the app will evaluate your abilities and provide daily exercises accordingly. The games are characterized by excellent graphics.

Palming

To perform this exercise, you need to sit as straight as possible and relax. The exercise must be performed in accordance with the following rules:

• The middle of each palm is located opposite the eyeballs;
• The palms should be positioned as softly as possible; there is no need to press them to the face. Free fingers can be crossed on the forehead or positioned in another way;
• When performing palming, it is important to ensure that there are no gaps. Only after making sure can you close your eyelids;
• The elbows are lowered to the surface so that the neck and column of the spine are as even as possible;
• It is important to ensure that the body is completely relaxed and breathing is fairly even.

In such a position you need to sit, imagining yourself by the sea, relaxing your body and soul. This is an ideal exercise for the workplace when you can organize short breaks. It is very important to “exit” this exercise correctly. Without lifting your palms, you need to fully open your eyelids and, as soon as your eyes adjust, lift your hands from your face.

Important! Even 15-20 full seconds of this exercise is enough for the eyes to receive such important rest.

How should you start exercising?

Qigong is a system that cannot be described in words on paper: you just need to learn it visually. Therefore, either watch the video or sign up for live Qigong groups. It is important to remember the following rules:

1. increase the load gradually, even if you feel good and do not feel tired;
2. Monitor your heart rate during exercise. It should not exceed 120 beats per minute;
3. if you have any pain in the heart, temporarily stop or change your activities;
4. After eating, an hour and a half to two hours should pass before classes: working out on a full stomach is both difficult and dangerous.

Chinese gymnastics for blood vessels suggests that thoughts and actions must necessarily coincide. The skill is “here and now” - a difficult skill, but very useful for both the mind and body.

I hope that the information in this article was useful to you, so subscribe to my blog and share the article on social networks. If you have any questions regarding Chinese gymnastics, you can ask them in the comments - I will be happy to answer.

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Best regards, Vladimir Manerov

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Comments to the article: 5

The Chinese, as always, are ahead of the rest! You should take a closer look at this health-improving gymnastics, because this nation is famous for its longevity and good mobility until old age!

One day, a friend of mine decided to take up Chinese gymnastics. I became so involved in this process that I still do it on a regular basis to this day. I think this is correct. Although, it could have been ordinary gymnastics, not necessarily Chinese, right?

I’ve read about this gymnastics before. I haven’t tried it yet. I'm afraid to do it myself, without a coach. But I still can’t find a normal coach who is truly an expert not in everything, but specifically in this gymnastics. Usually they combine yoga and Qigong, but somehow this does not inspire confidence.

Vascular disease and cardiovascular diseases, I agree with you, are the scourge of the 21st century. After reading your article, I decided to pay attention to Chinese gymnastics, as it is quite accessible.

Written nose movements

This exercise is needed for quick and effective relaxation. This is an important point, because excessive tension seriously disrupts the natural nutrition of the visual organs. The movement is also simple; it can be done in any position - sitting, fully lying down and standing. Its essence is to perform the following actions:

1. You need to relax your body.
2. The eyes close.
3. You need to mentally turn your own nose into an ordinary ballpoint pen.
4. Next, movements are made with the pen, imitating the writing of certain letters, numbers or images.

If you imagine writing on a pin, you can achieve complete immobility of the head. The exercise can be performed at work without any problems. From the outside, the employee will look like a resting person with his eyelids closed. Thanks to this immobility, you can do this exercise in public transport.

Why train your brain?

What are the benefits of brain gymnastics for children, adults, and the elderly? Self-development and self-education has a number of positive effects, including the following:

• increase in the number of synapses;
• increased brain density;
• gaining a more powerful, flexible, effective mind;
• not only slowing down, but also preventing brain aging;
• the ability to more easily and effectively solve everyday problems;
• prevention of degenerative brain diseases;
• the ability to restore a damaged brain area or replace it with another thanks to plasticity.

Look through your fingers

Optimal and fairly quick muscle relaxation can be easily achieved by holding your gaze on a specific object. If you need to quickly remove tension, you need to do this exact movement while sitting. The sequence of actions here is as follows:

1. The arms are bent at the elbow joints so that the hands are significantly below eye level.
2. The fingers open.
3. Easy small turns are made.

When performing this movement, it is important to ensure that your gaze is directed strictly through your fingers. If you follow the rules, you will get the feeling that your hands are moving past your face.

To effectively relax the eye muscles, you should perform three turns with your eyes open and completely closed. It is recommended to do 20-35 such cycles in total. Breathing is as free as possible.

Complex according to Norbekov

The technique is based on a set of physical exercises and self-hypnosis. To get a positive effect from gymnastics, you need to maintain your posture, straighten your shoulders while performing, and be emotionally attuned. Make all movements with a smile on your face.

Complex for one lesson:

• Sit up straight. Without tilting your head, lower your eyes, trying to look into your throat.
• Raise your gaze upward, without throwing your head back, continue it along your forehead, looking at the sky or ceiling.
• Move your eyes to the right, look through your right ear, then to the left in the same way.
• Draw a butterfly in front of you with your eyes so that the range of movements of the eyeball is maximum.
• Display the path of a figure eight or infinity sign.
• Bring both eyes towards the tip of your nose or a finger placed towards it. Relax, remove focus, and look at the surrounding objects with your peripheral vision. The exercise is intended to correct myopia.

Gymnastics should be performed with a positive inner attitude, in a quiet environment. Eliminate irritating factors in advance. After each individual task, you need to blink for 20-30 seconds.

Eyebrow movement

During work, after a long day at work, the eyelids tend to get heavy. A slight movement of the eyebrows will relieve the eyes of such heaviness and instantly look younger. The essence of the movement is to raise the eyebrows as high as possible. They need to be raised as high as possible and simultaneously until sensations appear in the upper part of each ear. The main task of this cycle is to acquire sensation near the ears without the help of eyebrows.

This exercise requires certain skills; it does not work out the first time. If at first there is no result, do not despair. If you don’t rush at all and constantly listen to your feelings, everything will automatically work out.

Special morning cycle

This is a special complex that will become a real salvation not only in the morning after waking up, but also during the working day. Unlike individual movements, this complex requires a little more time. But if you have 5-10 minutes to spare, don’t neglect it.

The complex can bring incomparable benefits to the eye muscles. And it consists of such exercises as:

1. Several times you need to open your eyes very wide;
2. Next, perform 6-12 squints;
3. The “writing with the nose” manipulation is performed;
4. The eyebrow movement described above is carried out;
5. The head turns;
6. Finally, palming is carried out and it is advisable to spend 5-6 minutes on it.

During the entire complex, it is important to monitor your breathing. It must be smooth and very calm. The complex is called “morning”, but it can be performed before bed. In addition, such gymnastics are indispensable during a long working day at the PC or while reading.

Who can use brain training?

Cognitive exercise is suitable for the following groups of people:

• children with ADHD or learning difficulties;
• patients after chemotherapy;
• patients after a stroke or head injury;
• drivers;
• people whose work requires increased attentiveness and memory;
• athletes involved in collective sports;
• older people (age 50+).

This is a recommended list of population groups for whom it is advisable to engage in brain gymnastics. Activities to develop brain activity can be done by everyone, from a preschool or school-age child to a person enjoying the peace of retirement.

Unique yoga for vision

This advantageous complex should be done every day. This is the optimal opportunity to maintain your vision in an ideal position. As numerous followers of the teachings of yoga say, performing this exercise in the morning and in the evening, starting from youth, will allow you to maintain your ideal vision until old age and never use standard glasses. The complex does not take much time, since you only need to perform five exercises.

Before you begin, you need to take the most comfortable and convenient position while sitting on a regular work chair, you can also sit on your heels on a special sports mat. The back is fully straightened. Only those muscles that help support the back remain active; all others relax. When performing the entire cycle, you need to look straight ahead.

Important! When making movements, it is recommended to focus on the eyes, but at the same time do not allow significant intensification.

• Exercise No. 1. Inhaling quite deeply with your entire chest, you need to direct your gaze to your own space between the eyebrows. The eyeballs should be held in this position. Also, while exhaling calmly, you need to return to the original position and close them completely tightly for a couple of seconds. This exercise is repeated 10-12 times. After about a couple of weeks, the delay time in this position is allowed to increase;
• Exercise No. 2. While letting air into your chest as fully as possible, it is recommended to look at your nose. There is a slight delay at this stage. When exhaling, you need to completely return to the original position and close your eyelids. The number of repetitions is also 12 times;
• Exercise No. 3. When inhaling, you need to turn to the right, all the way. There is no need to linger here for a while; you immediately exhale, and the eyeballs automatically return to their original position. Then this movement is repeated, but with a turn to the left; At the initial stage, it is worth doing one full cycle, after about a couple of weeks you can perform two full-fledged complexes at once, then include three full circles in the mode. After finishing, you should always close your eyes tightly. Repetitions are only 10-12, no more;
• Exercise No. 4. When inhaling, you need to look up, to the right corner, at approximately a 45-degree angle. There is also no need to linger in this pose. After a second has passed, it is important to quickly return the eyes to their original position. When inhaling, you need to direct your gaze to the lower left corner and, when releasing air, quickly return to the original position. As for intensity, here at first you need to perform strictly only one cycle. After about 7 days, two full cycles are allowed, and after another couple of weeks, three full cycles are allowed. Immediately after the procedure, you should also close your eyes tightly for a short time;
• Exercises No. 5. During the process of deep exhalation, you should completely lower your eyes straight down and then slowly turn them strictly clockwise. As you complete each circle, you need to stop it at the top point. Next, you need to make a standard exhalation while continuing the turn directed in the direction of the arrow, stopping in the directly opposite lower section.

At the beginning, it is required to carry out one circle, increasing the total number of rotations to 10-13 circles. This result can be achieved in about a couple of weeks. Once the transition to several laps is completed, it is important to ensure that there are no delays after each of them.

After performing this exercise, you need to close your eyes tightly for 5-7 seconds. The movement is repeated, but in the opposite direction, against the arrow. At the end of the full cycle, you need to perform a short palming, the time of which ranges from 2 to 5 minutes.

Improving blood circulation with gymnastics

Often a person loses vision due to the fact that blood circulation in a certain area is disrupted. It does not reach the necessary muscles and nerves in the required volume, which is why myopia develops and the retina becomes thinner. The best thing you can do without surgery is to try to improve your circulation yourself. Massage movements are best suited for this.

After completing such a complex, the muscles of the visual apparatus will become toned and you will not only receive a therapeutic effect after the first exercises performed, but also prevent various eye diseases associated with poor blood circulation.