MCO, Sternum, Flexing the Rib-Cage, Pumping the Marrow, prompted by Plato's blog

-- later edit --
warning: This method has aggressive results. Watch out. Read the whole thread first.
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Some time back I saw Plato's two blog-posts on using a ball to work on ren (the front channel of the orbit):
- How to Open the Front Channel of the Microcosmic Orbit
- Training Method Refinement #1

I finally drove up to Sport's Chalet and picked out a couple of rubber balls. What I got were Mikasa playground balls P500 and P700 (5" and 7" in diameter). Cost me less than $10 total. (They can be ordered online, btw.) These are the soft, air filled, bouncy balls. Considerably softer than the one that Plato was using in his post, I think, and the practice took an interesting turn because of that.


Basically, I got in some variant of push-up position, and experimented with using a ball to massage the whole front of the torso - from the top of the sternum to the top of the pubic bone.

The first day I went for the gut, would roll on the ball, also rest into it and breathe. Immediately, clearly, obviously helpful. Really good belly massage. I was impressed, and it put me through some stuff.

The second day I experimented with the sternum, and it got really interesting. I could bounce on the ball, with my hands and knees still in support, and this is a soft ball but still resilient enough to offer resistance, ... so, I'd bounce with enough pressure to flex my rib-cage, but just real moderate about it (not gonzo maniac like Plato's description in his post ). I thought, "wow, that was cool", and figured I was opening up the sternum area for the front channel of the orbit (which I was), but that was just the beginning...

As the day went on, the effects I felt (from the morning session only) progressed. Definately some of it was detox. Uncomfortable tension pain (not like injury pain), heat. But there was really, really interesting pleasurable stuff mixed in. I could feel that I'd really flexed my whole rib-cage, that my ribs - the bones - had received a gentle rhythmic flexing massage, and I was feeling new circulation. An hour or two goes by and I realize (feel) that my thoracic vertebrae (connected to ribs) also got a massage, and that there's new circulation in my sternum, front channel, ribs, and thoracic section of my spine. A few more hours go by, and I feel my whole rib-cage pulsing along with my whole spine! The whole thing, top to bottom, along with the rib-cage, like the ribs and spine are one thing, doin' this happy slow jig together! There was definately discomfort present along through the whole process, partly release of heat, so I drank a lot of water throughout the day, ate fruit, and went swimming in the evening. Slept well, felt really good the next day.

Thanks! to that rude a###### Plato for the blog posts.

Trunk

Trunk, that's good shit! Excellent ideas you've been experimenting with, definitely going to try it out. I'm going to the sporting goods store tonight to get one of those balls. 1001 uses. Not only for the front channel, but I now can totally brush up on my dodgeball skills...

Are you still using both sizes, or did you settle on one as preferable?

Most impressive!! I went out and bought the ball after reading Plato's blog, but my kids squirrelled it away with the other balls and that was that. I'll dig it up and try it. Thanks for the report.

I like them both. They're only $3.95 each, and ... I know it's too early to tell, and I'm in 'the thrall of my latest practice', like some happy qi gong puppy ... but I'd say these playground balls are worth their weight in gold.

These things are superior for circulating blood throughout the torso. Since the "sternum bounce", I've been using it more on the abdomen, from the solar plexus to just above the pubic bone. In some variant of push-up postion, I'll put the ball between me and the floor, and I'll bounce on it - at whatever pace and pressure seems moderate yet progressive. And I'll breathe into the section of the torso that the ball is at: smooth inhale at a count of 5, smooth exhale at a count of 5. All the time I'm bouncing on the rubber playground ball, so it's adding a rhythm of cushy-pumping of pressure to the whole torso region in which I'm breathing.

This ball stuff, from top of the sternum to the top of the pubic bone, it's like the micrcocosmic orbit, marrow-washing, iron shirt, and turbo-charge of LTT breathing - all rolled up into one. Only danger I've noticed so far: easily mistaken for a rubber-ball fetish in action.

What I'm finding is that it's wonderful for blood circulation, and is thorough (for the region of the torso at which you're breathin' & bouncin'). For me, sexual energy easily sticks places, causes stagnation, and so I've been using whatever techniques to loosen up this spot or that spot. Massaging, 50 kinds of breathing, sticking stuff up my ass, squating, etc. (go reference the 10,000 pages of my website). There always seems to be some place I am not getting, because jing can stick anywhere and everywhere, and nothing ever seemed to get all of it - on a really physical layer - for me. Breathing while bouncing, on these f'ing little $4 balls, seems to circulate blood better, and more thoroughly for that region of the torso, than anything I've tried up to this point.

If I were much more enthused about this method, it would be a rubber-ball fetish. (It's still early in this exploration; I'll keep you posted. )

Trunk

-- later edit --
Another benefit. When you're doing it just above the pubic bone, it's rhythmically stretching~relaxing the low abdominal connective tissue. All the stomach muscles and stuff, that become more dense and connective-tissuey as they gather to connect to the pubic bone.

Been playin w/ my balls for years ;o) All good ideas guys. I also think a very effective way to clear the channel is to engage in cross sides top and bottom escape flow for a few minutes then repeat. Rickson and others practice w/ half deflated basketballs to practice top pressure and pivoting on all the various vertices, roll down lines and edges, and traverse through a variety of planes. All using the simply geometry of a ball.

Also I use every size ball imaginable for going down any line that feels like it needs it therapuetically. Two tennisballs stuffed in a nylon and tied off act as a good back roller as well. (thx Sifu Fong/pdx)

Iron sharpens iron. Flow w/ the Go. There are no straight lines.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cNvpIamQOE



This post has been edited by Spectrum: Jan 26 2007, 11:59 AM

Sweet link!

I looked at Plato's page and I just decided that I'm not working anywhere near hard enough to become a dirty old man when I grow up

*runs to my yoga ball to try that*
Wow! That's fun! Really good for the spine, all angles.
Interesting post, Spectrum - seems there's lots of possibilities.

I've found, with the bouncy balls, that doing the push-up bounces stuff on them is not something I want to do every day. Too intense. A couple of days back I did sternum, solar plexus, and low ab .. definately didn't want to repeat yesterday, probably won't today. Still feeling the effects. Doing various other stuff.

Got out my back roller. Really complements the front bouncy-ball massage work.



-- later edit --
In response to an offline question, and to clarify: the air-filled balls for the bouncy front massage must be soft and resilient. (Otherwise, you'd hurt yourself when you bounce. For instance, a basketball would be way way too hard.)

The harder the ball, the more you're forced to contract the surrounding muscles through the rotation. Hopefully not causing any bruising on the old pelvic girdle. I call my hips my ice-cream scoops for collecting elbows. (j/k)Totally agree for therapy / newness / niceness, soft and gushy is more friendly then hard and dry.

You and I were referring to very different methods. For the "bouncing along the front line" method, soft is important to avoid injury, imo.

You're absolutely right. I was not specific. I was refering to body rolling the ball along the various lines and edges of the trunk and limbs, also camping on vertices such as the butt divot, behind the shoulder blade, etc, while rotating the joint through it's range feels GREAT while pressure is on a release/acupoint.

"Bouncing" sounds like it would work good for gently massaging up and down the central lines (sensitive central structures such as sternum, etc), and specific points perhaps shrinking the size of the ball? And would most definately feel best with a squishy ball to begin with.

With that in mind, tennis balls actually work pretty good for rolling right next to the spine because of their squishiness. Half deflated basketball works pretty good at popping vertebra back into place run up the back.

Spectrum

I looked through one of my books, "Secrets the Gurus will never Show You" from umaatantra.com.
It implies that stress is stored in the solar plexus. I tried the belly breathing/buddhist breathing at night, the following morning I thought that I was having some sort of heart attack or anxiety attack (without the anxiety). It lasted for a little less than a minute. I was thinking "WTF?" while it was going on. I stood quietly because I really hate feeding shit like that more energy than it deserves.

"Bouncing the Front-line" (that's a good name for it) definately has brought stress to the fore, for me. Stuck places that've held emotional bruises, sexual tension, and illness divots. Old deep relationship grief. All good signs.

After bouncing the front, a few things have helped me process:
- Dont' sit around after. Move, stretch, breathe, run, whatever - just don't do this technique and then be immediately sedentary. Have the bouncing near the beginning of your practice session, not right at the end.
- Back-roller.
- Remember to breathe during the following hours, day.

The payoff: Everything is getting much easier.
I was giggleing all while doing errands today.

The meditation today didn't feel too comfortable. Come to think of it, the area around the spinal cord felt really tight during an acupressure massage a couple of weeks ago. How much easier did the ma roller make it to sit upright?

"Bouncing the front" has definately brought out major stresses, emotional and physical. The back roller has been very helpful, crucial at least once, for me. The front method brought out physical stress that looked like it was going to ruin my day, I applied the back roller and the stuck tension just zipped around and alleviated.

I have also noticed some mild back strain as a result of bouncing the front. Th