Unlocking the Power of Qi Gong: How to Bring Energy, Balance, and Strength into Your Everyday Life

Unlocking the Power of Qi Gong: How to Bring Energy, Balance, and Strength into Your Everyday Life

Energy Update, HEALTH & WELLNESS

Discovering the Magic of Qi Gong

What if you had a hidden superpower—an untapped energy source within you that could bring balance, strength, and clarity to your everyday life? That’s exactly what Qi Gong offers.

For women over 45, this ancient practice isn’t just about movement; it’s about reclaiming vitality, confidence, and inner peace. And the best part? You don’t need to be an expert. You just need to be willing to connect with your own energy, your Qi, and let it flow.

This month at Chi Flow with Jo, we’re honored to welcome Sheena Woods, founder of the Cork School of Shiatsu and an exceptional Qi Gong teacher. Sheena’s journey into Qi Gong is an inspiring one, rooted in her passion for martial arts and her deep understanding of the body’s natural energy systems.

Like many of us, she first encountered Qi—without even knowing it—long before she officially discovered the practice of Qi Gong.

Growing up with two older brothers, Sheena took up judo as a way to hold her own, quickly realizing that power wasn’t just about size—it was about energy. That same principle applies to Qi Gong.

You don’t have to be physically strong to feel powerful. Instead, by connecting with your breath, aligning your body, and moving with intention, you can cultivate an energy that makes you feel grounded, centered, and in control—whether you’re walking down the street or navigating the challenges of daily life.

Qi Gong isn’t just an exercise; it’s a way of being. As Sheena describes, the real magic happens when you take Qi Gong beyond your dedicated practice time and weave it into your everyday routine. Imagine feeling calm and balanced while hanging out the laundry, centered while cooking dinner, or relaxed while driving in traffic.

It’s about bringing mindfulness and flow into every moment, transforming ordinary tasks into opportunities for connection and self-care.

And here’s the secret: it’s easier than you think. By simply shifting your awareness, focusing on your breath, your posture, and your energy, you can begin to feel the profound effects of Qi Gong in your daily life. Whether you’re looking for relief from stress, a way to boost your vitality, or a practice that brings joy and ease into your body, Qi Gong is a tool that every woman should have in her wellness toolkit.

WuJi – The Art of Standing Still with Power

One of the most profound yet simplest Qi Gong practices is WuJi—the art of standing in effortless alignment. It may seem like ‘just standing,’ but WuJi is a powerhouse of energy cultivation. This foundational stance is the perfect way to recharge, reset, and realign your energy at any time of the day. Whether you’re waiting in a queue, standing in your kitchen, or taking a moment of stillness in your garden, WuJi allows you to tap into deep reservoirs of strength and balance.

Sheena describes WuJi as her go-to practice, something she returns to again and again. Why? Because it’s easy to do yet infinitely rich in its benefits. By standing with your feet hip-width apart, your shoulders relaxed, and your body soft yet aligned, you allow Qi to flow freely. Tension dissolves, stiffness melts away, and your energy moves with ease.

It’s a simple shift with profound results. When you soften your body and maintain an open posture, you create space for the Qi to move, preventing stagnation and blockages that lead to discomfort.

Often, our joints accumulate tension, making us feel heavy and sluggish.

But with WuJi, you allow everything to flow, reconnecting with the earth beneath you and the vast energy of the universe above.

The real challenge? Staying present. As Sheena explains, the mind will naturally wander—thinking about groceries, dinner plans, or a twinge in your back. But the power of WuJi lies in the practice of returning to stillness, again and again. Over time, this cultivates a deep reservoir of energy, like charging your inner battery, leaving you feeling vibrant and centered no matter what the day brings.

And then, from this stillness, all movement arises. WuJi is the foundation from which Qi Gong’s flowing forms and spontaneous movements emerge. It’s the birthplace of energy, intention, and flow.

Sheena shares a profound realization from her own journey, an ‘aha’ moment that confirmed Qi Gong’s power. During a deep meditation, she experienced a sensation of complete dissolution, as if she had expanded beyond her physical form, merging with the universe. In that moment, she understood that we are only as limited as we believe ourselves to be.

Qi Gong teaches us that we are more than just our thoughts, our routines, or even our bodies. We are energetic beings, capable of shifting, expanding, and reconnecting with the world in a deeply intuitive way. By practicing WuJi, by standing in alignment with both heaven and earth, we open ourselves to this powerful truth.

The Journey of Teaching and the Flow of Spring Energy

Teaching is one of the most powerful ways to deepen your own practice. This month, Sheena is committing to teaching Chi Flow with Jo, not only to share her wisdom but to deepen her own connection to Qi Gong. Rooting herself in this daily discipline, she embraces the structure of consistent practice—an experience she believes will bring growth and transformation.

Sheena’s approach to morning rituals has evolved over time. With fewer external demands, she now thrives in a fluid routine, consciously breaking old patterns to invite spontaneity. However, she acknowledges that a structured practice like Qi Gong creates a sense of wakefulness, alertness, and presence, qualities that enhance every aspect of life.

April’s practice will focus on the dynamic energy of wood, the element of growth and movement in Traditional Chinese Medicine.

But before diving into the wood element, Sheena will first check in with the water energy, ensuring a strong foundation.

Just as water nourishes the growth of trees, a balanced foundation supports effortless expansion.

A highlight of the month’s practice will be a powerful liver cleanse,  a Qi Gong remedy routine passed down by Master Zou. This gentle yet effective series of movements supports the liver, an organ closely tied to the wood element. When liver energy is stagnant, we may experience headaches, tension in the neck and shoulders, or emotional frustration. By opening up this energy pathway, we allow vitality to rise naturally, bringing clarity, flexibility, and ease.

Sheena’s invitation is simple: join her for a month of Chi Flow and experience the profound shifts that arise from consistent practice. Whether you’re new to Qi Gong or a seasoned practitioner, this journey offers the perfect opportunity to align with the energy of spring, embrace new beginnings, and cultivate lasting balance.

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ENERGY UPDATE PODCAST

ready to feel the flow?

Join us in April for Liver Cleanse Qi Gong and discover how a daily practice can transform your energy, your health, and your life.

Boost your health and vitality with Chi Flow with Jo—a holistic approach that integrates movement, acupressure, and food medicine. Scroll down to watch the podcast episode and sign up for a FREE online Qi Gong class.

Self-administered acupressure or Chinese Medicine is not a substitute for visits to qualified healthcare practitioners.

Knowing how to treat yourself and your loved ones with complimentary therapies like acupressure can be greatly beneficial and convenient. However, for serious and chronic conditions, you’ll want to visit an Shiatsu therapist / Acupuncturist or other qualified healthcare practitioner who can develop a treatment plan based on your unique medical history and combination of symptoms.  

The information provided should not be considered medical advice.

Inflammation and Blood Sugar Levels Post-Menopause

Inflammation and Blood Sugar Levels Post-Menopause

Ask Me Anything

Inflammation and Blood Sugar Levels Post-Menopause

In my most recent episode of Ask Me Anything, Shelley asked about post menopausal inflammation and high blood sugar peaks and troughs. This is actually something that comes up a lot in Chi Flow with Jo! Most of the participants are peri, mid, and post menopausal so often these symptoms occur.

This is why we do intermittent fasting together as a group in January and February.

Symptoms of joint pain, low energy, putting weight on around the middle, all tend to happen mid and post menopause. This is usually due to liver congestion which can happen from a lifetime of eating fried foods, eating late at night, and alcohol.

So how do we clear the liver so that blood flows well, we don’t have big hot flushes, we don’t suffer from insomnia, and we have good blood sugar levels?

One of the first things we can do in intermittent fasting is Qi Gong. We need to have a good exercise routine to retain muscle mass. This will help things from rocketing out of control and help your resting metabolic rate. So even when you are sitting down at a rest, your body is working well because you have good muscle mass. Gentle squats using the arms are an easy exercise. We don’t need to run a marathon, we just need to stay active.

Qi Gong/Acupoints

A great point is Liver 13. Liver 13 is on the edge of the ribs and you can massage and press into that area.

We do a movement in Qi Gong called Scratching Monkey, so scratch and massage into that point.

It’s going to help loosen the waist area, so we can move and massage the liver with those movements.

Late Night Snacks

Another way to give the liver a good cleanse is by not eating late at night. That is why we do intermittent fasting. It’s really important, especially as an older woman, not to over stress the body. When we do intermittent fasting and we are older, if we suddenly launch into not eating for large periods of time our hormones will go crazy and our kidneys will not be happy. Our kidneys manage the balance of our hormones in the body.

So we want to do this gradually and can do that by making our dinner time earlier and earlier.

We do this together in Chi Flow with Jo over the course of six weeks. We start with not eating from 8pm to 8am and gradually extend that time.

The Meridian Clock

The time for the liver on the Meridian clock is from 1am to 3am.

In that time the body needs to be detoxifying, resting, and restoring. If you’ve eaten at 11 or 10 at night, your body is still digesting and can’t do those things.

You need to give your body time to rest and clear the liver as the liver stores the blood and purifies it.

Food for the Liver

Colour: The Colour for the liver in Chinese Medicine is green. A green and kind of yellow colour. You’ll see if people have problems with their liver they have yellow eyes and if they have jaundice they have yellow skin. So that helps us to remember that it’s that yellow green that actually nourishes the liver. 

Flavour: The flavour for the liver is sour. You can use sour foods like cider vinegar or lemon in hot water to help cleanse the liver. Other foods would include vinaigrettes on green leafy vegetables.

A food that I really like is milk thistle. Be careful when taking milk thistle though, it has such an effect on the liver that if you’re having a blood test, you must tell the people giving you the test that you are taking milk thistle. I would recommend taking it every other month.

And remember you can’t be eating loads of burgers and chips and then think milk thistle will solve my problems!

Another thing that I really like is turmeric. Turmeric is a stimulant for the bile in the liver and the gallbladder. So taking plenty of fresh turmeric in your everyday diet is really good. Also dandelion root, burdock root, chicory, and bitter greens are really going to benefit the liver. 

We also don’t want to stress the body and one thing that does that is coffee. If you’re drinking lots of coffee and you’re wondering why you’re having all these hormonal problems, try changing that out for dandelion root coffee. Dandelion root coffee is a wonderfully bitter flavour that’s going to benefit the kidneys and will help detox and clear the liver. 

Why not join Chi Flow and see how easy our Intermittent Fasting programme really is?

Intermittent Fasting (IF) is more than just a trendy health practice—it’s a powerful tool to reset your body, mind, and spirit. By alternating periods of eating and fasting, IF can help balance blood sugar levels, support weight management, enhance mental clarity, and promote cellular repair. It’s a natural way to reduce inflammation, improve energy, and align with your body’s innate rhythms.

Ready to kickstart your journey?

Join Chi Flow with Jo’s 6-Week Intermittent Fasting Programme and embrace a healthier, more vibrant you. Together, we’ll combine the ancient wisdom of Qi Gong, mindful self-care, and balanced eating to elevate your New Year energy. Let’s make 2025 your year of transformation!

With Love and Chi,

Self-administered acupressure or Chinese Medicine is not a substitute for visits to qualified healthcare practitioners.

Knowing how to treat yourself and your loved ones with complimentary therapies like acupressure can be greatly beneficial and convenient. However, for serious and chronic conditions, you’ll want to visit an Shiatsu therapist / Acupuncturist or other qualified healthcare practitioner who can develop a treatment plan based on your unique medical history and combination of symptoms.  

The information provided should not be considered medical advice.