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By self-admission, NateDavison was once the proto-typical Angry Young Man.

"I was so angry and full of

rage that I would punch walls," said Davison, 28, ofBarrington. "I mean, puncha hole right through."

Davison seemed a primecandidate for a martial artsdiscipline. But he pickedone, qigong, not known forits punching, kicking orscreaming. His daily qigongpractice helped him use his

head rather than literallybang it into walls.

Qigong (pronounced "chee-gung") is a centuries-old

Chinese healing art that Americans are rediscover-ing. Some upscale healthclubs and spas have addedclasses, and companies suchas Prudential Financial andMattel are offering qigong

workshops for employees.

Even golfers, includingsome competing in Sunday'sfinal round of the U.S. Open

It's 'chee,' not 'qwee'

The word "qigong" is peculiar enough to make one wonder if

this form of physical activity can become popular. It can be dif-

ficult to get enthusiastic about something you can't pronounce

To eliminate such obstacles, here's a quick primer, compli-

ments of all things "Q":

"Qi" is pronounced "chee" and means energy, vital force or

breath of life. It is sometimes spelled "chi."

"Gong" is pronounced "gung" (calling it "kung" seems to be

acceptable but definitely not "gong"). It translates to practice

skill or mastery. What you are practicing is self-discipline.

To impress your friends, you can casually mention that

qigong once was closely guarded from commoners by

Chinese elites. It was later forbidden during the Cultura

Revolution, and a recent form has been suspected as a reli-

gious cult by the current regime.

-- B.C

By Bob Condor Tribune staff reporter

Published June 15, 2003

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at local Olympia Fields, areexploring the possibilitieson strength of a rumor thatTiger Woods practicedqigong as a child.

Qigong is appearing onexercise class schedules inNew York and Los Angeles

clubs, which, per usual,means that Chicagoans like-ly will follow. For instance,Sports Club/LA offers"SynerChi Sculpt," a classthat combines qigong, yogaand weight lifting.

"It's not just about the tro-phy body anymore," saidNorris Tomlinson, whosupervises exercise pro-grams for the nearly 400

Bally Total Fitness clubsacross the country.

Some of us might better rec-ognize the martial art as taichi ("tie-chee"), thoughthere is a distinction.

Qigong is a series of whatappear to be simple deep-

breathing exercises and sub-tle movements, such as flex-ing torso muscles.

Tai chi could be called a sub-set of qigong. Tai chi's gen-tle, flowing exercises arepart of the large number ofqigong movements that areprescribed by Chinese tradi-tional medicine practices to"move" someone's "qi," orenergy.

Tai chi is a sort of introduc-tion to qigong taught atmany health clubs and fit-ness centers. The East BankClub in Chicago offers tradi-tional tai chi and a tai chistretch class.

Qigong, despite its outwardsimilarity to sitting or stand-ing meditation, is moreintense and exhausting for

body and mind. Its deep- breathing component is

much more than a matter ofinhaling and exhaling air.

Breathing with purpose

"A deep breath alone willnot bring you more oxygen,"said Roger Jahnke, anosteopathic physician based

in Santa Barbara, Calif., andauthor of "The HealingPromise of Qi" (McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Books,$24.95). "You must get

yourself into a state of relax-ation to benefit from deeper,more purposeful breathing."

Make no mistake. The mus-cular movements of qigong,such as squeezing andreleasing the sphincter mus-

cle (which controls urineflow), are demanding.Qigong students routinely

work up a river of sweat.

The mental componentrequires total focus, butqigong fans say the work-outs result in feeling moreclear and less stressed out.

Jahnke said qigong studentslearn to get into such relax-

ation states within secondsfor numerous mini-breaks.The theory is that you aremoving life energy through-out your body.

The discipline creates bodyawareness. That makes itdifferent from many popularforms of exercise, whichallow for TV viewing, read-ing or socializing.

"We are definitely seeing abigger interest in the martialarts than we have in quite a

while," said Nancy Burrows,director of exercise pro-grams at the East BankClub. "Movies like `TheMatrix' motivate people."

Nonetheless, Burrows saidEast Bank Club membersare more inclined to attend

tai chi classes (especially thestretching variation) thanqigong, not currently on theschedule.

"It's a tougher discipline oflearning," she explained.

Burrows said the same phe-

nomenon occurs with yoga.People might take a class forgentle movement andstretching. Then as a yogapractice intensifies, mem-

bers realize "it's one of thehardest activities."

Burrows, like others whospot exercise trends for a liv-ing, hears a distant butadvancing drumbeat forqigong. The mind-body

aspect of the workoutappeals to anyone who is

burned out on, say, runningor power lifting.

According to the Chinesebelief system, qi is naturallyoccurring energy or lifeforce (some call it "bioener-gy") within the body. The actof cultivating, refining ormobilizing this life force forhealing purposes is called

"gong." The mind guides thebody's qi.

"We incorporate qigong intoa number of our martial artsclasses," said Tomlinson."Members are more educat-ed about knowing they needa combination of activitiesto be fit and well. I recom-mend people combineqigong with some cardiovas-cular and strength workouts[lifting weights, yoga orPilates] each week."

Results can be dramatic,especially for the mind andquality of life.

Escaping a dead end

Davison started his qigongpractice five years ago.

Within weeks, he quit a

dead-end warehouse job topursue his lifelong love ofmusic. He now plays regu-larly with blues, jazz androck bands while teachingguitar to a steady list ofclients.

On Thursday nights he

teaches qigong class ("I tendto attract people who are20-somethings") at theTiger Kyuki-DO martial artsschool in Barrington.

"Once I understood the par-allels between playing guitarand qigong, I took to it," saidDavison, who has been play-ing music since age 12"There are the same rigor-ous training and repeti-

tions."

Davison encourages new-comers to be patient, notalways a staple in the

American mind-set.

"It takes time to understandhow the qi moves in your

body," Davison said. "If youstick with it, you will feel it.Then you see the positivechanges it can create in your

life."

Gary J. Clyman is a 51-year-old qigong teacher whotutors Davison along withthousands of others whohave attended his work-shops, bought his video and

book or scheduled privatlessons since 1983 (checkout www.chikung.com). Hesaid it is not uncommon forhis students to experience afirst few weeks of frustrationonce they commit to aqigong practice.

"People start moving theenergy around," saidClyman, who first learnedqigong in 1978. "They real-ize they aren't happy. Theyfigure out ways to reworktheir marriage and or ask fora raise."

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As a master teacher, he seeshis role as both movingenergy himself in a person's

body and teaching the stu-dent to do it on his or herown. The goal is moving theinternal energy to createinternal power.

"I call it flexing the muscleof your will," Clyman said."Learning to move energyaround is about 30 percentphysical and 70 percentmental."

For example, one client whotalked about selling her con-dominium and moving toCosta Rica did just that

within six weeks of followingClyman's qigong practice.

Clyman said he routinely"fixes marriages" and "helpspeople project the desiredresults of a business meet-ing" through recirculated qi.

Clyman's client list includesthe expected doctors,

lawyers and business con-sultants. But he also works

with security guards andfinancial traders.

In fact, his trader clientele was booming in the late1980s to the point that onefirm provided an office forhim to see traders during

work breaks.

"There was a period whenthat's all I was doing,"Clyman recalled.

A reinvigorated life

Clyman's qigong lessonsawaken a person's sense of"deservingness." He charac-terizes the workout routineas much more than a way tosweat off pounds or reducestress.

"When you practice qigong, you stop slouching off, youstop taking what's less, youstop procrastinating, youstop having bad relation-

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ships," Clyman said.

Such dividends require persistence, hesaid. His qigong routine that can beperformed at home in a 6-foot-squarespace gradually engages students in 28individual movements.

"We start with low repetitions, then

build word by word, sentence by sen-tence," Clyman said.

The qigong master teacher eschews theself-massage segment of ancientChinese qigong teachings ("it's just a

bunch of lip rubbing and ear pulling")

but acknowledges that someAmericans will pursue qigong in yearsahead to feel calmer and more ground-ed.

"There are many different flavors andlevels of qigong and tai chi," Clymansaid. "My suggestion is you pick a sim-ple series of exercises to get started."

Laughing, Clyman said he "thought the wave was then" during his heyday oftraining up to 100 traders in the late1980s. Yet his phone and Internet sitehave been noticeably busier in the lastfew months. He will be airing an

infomercial on local stations in thecoming weeks.

"Something is happening," Clymansaid. "People are going past wantingmuscle strength and weight loss and a

better appearance. They are lookinfor a new wave of anti-aging and ener-getics."

Copyright 2003, Chicago Tribune