How exactly do you relax your shoulders?

People often tell me to relax my shoulders.

In movies and dramas, when the protagonist gets nervous or
loses their temper,
people around them
tell them,
"Relax your shoulders."

However,
are they really tensing their shoulders?

Don't you think so?

This isn't about the shoulder muscles, but rather
a way of saying, "If you're too fixated on the results, you'll end up failing."

I think it's something of a metaphorical expression.

However,
even though it's a metaphor,
actually relaxing your shoulders does change your psychological state.

So, it doesn't seem like a lie after all.

When humans get nervous,
• Shoulders rise
• Neck stiffens
• Breathing becomes shallow
• Teeth clench
These reactions appear in the body.

Actually,
these are also reactions seen
when you tense your shoulders.

However, in this case,
the shoulders rose because you were nervous,
not because you tensed your shoulders and became nervous.

Man, the Japanese language is truly interesting.
(I'll wrap it up like some movie critic.)

Actually, this article
was inspired by an article from one of my
loyal readers, "Un-chan."

In the article,
there was a sentence that said, "While being swayed on the train home, I suddenly thought,
'How on earth do you relax your shoulders?'"
.

I thought, that's true.

Since I practice Tai Chi,
I thought, "In that case, I can turn my ideas into an article."

"Un-chan" is
someone who calls it a 'good luck experiment' and tries everything that might lead to good luck.
Please take a look if you'd like.

Now, from here on,
I would like to write about how to actually relax your shoulders.

I practice Tai Chi.
• Drop your shoulders
• Don't puff out your chest too much
• Breathe deeply

Just doing this
lowers both mental and physical tension a little.

In Tai Chi, there is a concept called "sink the shoulders" (chen jian).
It means to release unnecessary tension throughout the body by sinking the shoulders.

Simply put, sinking the shoulders involves:
• Expanding the chest just a little
• Breathing deeply
• Dropping the shoulders backward
This is the physical movement involved.

In everyday terms, it's like:
"The moment you realize you've been hunching your shoulders after working on a computer for a long time, and you let them drop while exhaling a sigh."
"The moment you reach the top of a mountain after carrying a heavy backpack and finally take it off."

The feeling you get at those times,
"Ah, that feels better."
is that sensation.

The feeling of your shoulders, which had risen without you noticing, returning to their natural position.
I think that is a state close to sinking the shoulders.

So, how do you do it specifically?
1. Expand your chest, but not too much.
2. Take two or three deep breaths.
3. Then, lift your shoulders slightly.
4. Drop your shoulders backward.
If you're not sure, just letting them drop naturally is fine.
5. Be aware of your shoulder blades being slightly toward the back.
Just be aware of them; don't put any force into it.

This part is optional. If expanding your chest or focusing on your shoulder blades causes you to tense up, you don't need to do it.

Don't hold anything in your hands. (No smartphones)
Do nothing.
When walking, don't force your arms to swing,
just let them dangle and sway.

That's the kind of feelingit is.

By the way, for people with rounded shoulders,
or those who have developed rounded shoulders due to aging without realizing it,
it is good to consciously expand your chest just a tiny bit.

However, only just a tiny bit.
If you expand your chest too firmly, it becomes difficult to breathe.

When you are tense, your shoulders rise.
Your breathing becomes shallow.

And conversely,
when you drop your shoulders and breathe deeply,
your mind also calms down a little.

People in the past
may have known this from experience.

For a long time, I thought
"relax your shoulders" was just a metaphorical expression.

But after starting Tai Chi,
I realized it might actually have been a literal instruction on how to use the body.

(The End)

If this resonated with you, I would be encouraged if you could press the 'Like' button.
I would also be very happy if you could follow me.

▶ Kindergarten Series
Stories that make you think like a kindergartner.

▶ Things I suddenly felt

▶ Things I suddenly felt while traveling

▶ Inner World/Her in My Mind Series (Episode 1)
I depict experiences with landscapes and entities that appear within my inner world.

▶ I have published my first Kindle book.
I am using the pen name Kiyohiro Ogasawara.
You can read it on Kindle Unlimited.
Also, I would be very happy if you could leave a comment.

▶ I have published my first Kindle book series (Episode 1)

▶ Self-introduction

▶ To those who have started experiencing something with Hemi-Sync (Episode 1)
I am writing this based on a realization I had just before finishing 'To those who experience nothing with Hemi-Sync.' I write about the kinds of walls one faces once things start to happen.

▶ To those who experience nothing with Hemi-Sync (Episode 1)
I am writing this based on the sensations I gained during long-term practice. I think this is content that anyone doing Hemi-Sync will be able to relate to. Please take a look.

▶ Hemi-Sync ○ Years Series (Episode 1)
I am recording the changes in consciousness and experiences that occurred during long-term practice.

▶ Series on failing at Qigong (Episode 1)
This is a story about when I tried Qigong 25 years ago and failed.
However, it seems that it has become the foundation for my current Hemi-Sync, Tai Chi, and other practices.

▶ Tai Chi Series (Episode 1)
Through Tai Chi, I am recording what I have felt regarding the relationship between consciousness and the body.

▶ Summary of my life so far
An article summarizing the flow of my life up to this point. Everything starts here.

▶ AI Series (Only one episode so far)