Everywhere, there is movement in this expanse of trees and grass and temples. All ages–from 9 to 99–are here, practicing Tai-chi and Sword Arts, swinging their arms, rubbing their kidneys, rotating their waists, and hanging from low-hanging tree branches (to stretch their spines).

Amid all of this, is one thing that produces me rub my sleepy eyes and appearance again: categories of women are walking backwards up the lane. Just that: walking backwards, calmly and confidently.

This ancient exercise (yes! It is an exercise!) is amongst the treasures of Chinese health practice, addressing problems with balance, leg strength, back strength, and posture. It may look simple, however the explanations why this is a good practice are profound. Read about a few:

1. As we age, our fear of falling causes us to react wrongly. When babies fall backwards, they simply plump as a result of a sitting position, however this tendency disappears once we mature. Many falls find yourself going backward because we arch our backs. Walking backwards rounds that a part of our back that individuals arch, and encourages ‘forward’ muscle use.

2. Precisely what is wrong concerning your posture came from walking forward! Slumping, slouching, rounding, arching…those undesirable habits. Walking backwards reverses these habits.

3. From an energetics standpoint, walking backwards actually re-frames consciousness within our bodies. The straightforward explanation is always that our attention is likely to favor top in our bodies towards the exclusion of what is behind us. Chinese health insurance and martial exercises both encourage ‘whole body’ awareness for ‘whole body’ health. Walking backwards results in a ‘sensor’ to integrate the therapy lamp.

4. Walking backwards actually engages different multiple muscles. This will be relevant especially as our bodies age, because we lose flexibility and our flexibility often diminishes. Through the use of different muscles we exercise parts of our body that need attention.

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