The Five Tibetans exercise is the shortest, easiest exercise that actually encapsulates all the basic physical qualities necessary to communicate the HERO'S JOURNEY program.
First described in a 1937 book called "The Eye of Revelation" by Peter Kelder, it described an encounter between the author and a "Colonel Bradford" who traveled in the far east and learned a series of "Immortality" exercises from monks in a Tibetan Monastery.
They do not resemble any Tibetan exercises I've ever seen, or heard of. But they seem to be versions of well-known yoga exercises, even if used in a slightly unorthadox manner. Ordinarily, a yoga pose is held for a few seconds to several minutes, and perhaps repeated once or twice before moving on to another pose.
One of yoga's benefits is to teach you to relax under pressure. In life, you succeed almost in direct proportion to your capacity to take stress without breaking. If you learn to breathe in a relaxed, powerful, centered fashion, and can bring this into your life on a regular basis, you have an incredible tool. In general, if stress doesn't break you, the only way your body or psyche can react is by growing stronger.
While living in the Northwest, I met fitness wizard Scott Sonnon (www.Rmaxinternational.tv) who taught a Russian health system he had learned while a competitive Sambo (Russian judo) player. Scott is 100% real, and his interpretation of his Russian teaching is simply brilliant.
The Russians say that every physical maneuver is composed of three aspects: breath, movement, and structure. Each of them creates the other two: movement and structure create breath. Movement and Breath create structure. Structure and breath create movement. We'll re-visit this later, but for now, grasp that this is an important tool in learning how to keep stress from damaging you. More on this as well. We have time together.
For now, know that the five Tibetan exercises are to be done every day. Every single day, at LEAST six days a week. For the first week, just do three of each. Then in seven days add two more of each, so that you do five of #1, then five of #2, and so forth. At the most basic levels, you will be spending only about three minutes, until you've reached twenty-one repetitions of each. At the highest levels, all twenty- one repetitions of five exercises will take about ten minutes. If you can do this, you are much fitter than most people. An incredibly small investment.
You will do this for at least this 101 day period, even if they are easy for you. If they are, great. But we need to have a base of common experience, and the only way I can coach you at a distance is if I know EXACTLY what you are doing in one arena of your life. It allows us to create a common language.
Can you do more than this? Sure--you can do other exercises, but take the Tibetans as offered. Add yoga, weights, kettlebells, clubbells, running, martial arts...whatever. Or not. That depends on you, and your goals and capacities. We will make a specific recommendation, one that will require you go to the local sporting goods store and spend maybe twenty bucks for something incredibly fun and effective and absurdly portable.
But do the basic level: Three of each Tibetan, over several months increasing to twenty-one reps, or you aren't doing the program. Period.
The Five Tibetan Rites
Rite #1
Stand erect with arms outstretched horizontal to the floor, palms facing out, as if you were gently pushing two walls away from you. Your elbows should be down, your arms should be in line with your shoulders. Spin around clockwise. Perform 3 spins. Add NO MORE than two spins per week, until you reach a maximum of 21 reps. Then, maintain at this levl.
Breathing: Exhale hard from the belly, once per spin. Then relax and allow a passive inhalation. Your goal is one out and in breath per full rotation. Curl the tailbone under slightly
Lie flat on the floor, face up. Fully extend your arms Along your sides and place the palms of your hands against the floor, keeping fingers close together. Then raise your head off the floor tucking your chin into your chest. As you do this, lift your legs, knees straight, into a vertical position. CREATE AN EXHALATION. If possible, extend the legs over the body towards your head. Do not let the knees bend. Then slowly lower the legs and head to the floor, always Keeping the knees straight. Allow the muscles to relax, and repeat for three reps. ADD NO MORE THAN TWO PER WEEK, TO A MAX OF 21. Maintain at this level.
Breathing: Exhale hard as you lift your head and legs. Relax and allow a passive inhalation as you lower head and legs.
Rite #2
Rite #3
"Stand" on your knees, hands braced on your upper thighs or buttocks, feet behind you so that the body is in a reverse "L". You may want to put a folded blanket under your knees to relieve pressure. Now, exhale and "crunch" your body forward, tensing the abdominal muscles, bringing the ribs closer to the hips in a contraction. The contraction should compress the diaphragm to create an exhalation. Now lean back as far as is comfortable. You'll feel this in your upper thighs, and a stretching sensation in your abs. You will lean back a few degrees from perpendictular, but always keep your balance. Repeat, "crunching" forward again. Exhale on forward contraction, allow passive inhalation as you go backward.
Rite #4
Sit down on the floor with your legs straight out in front of you and your feet about 12" apart. With the trunk of the body erect, place the palms of your hands on the floor alongside your buttocks. Then tuck the chin forward against the chest. Now drop the head backward as far as it will go. At the same time raise your body so that the knees bend while the arms remain straight. Then tense every muscle in your body. Finally let the muscles relax as you return to your original sitting position. Rest a second or two before repeating this Rite. Start with three repetitions, and then increase no more than two per week until you reach twenty-one.
Breathing: You will be tensed at the top--but the contraction of abdominals and back muscles must be worked to allow a passive inhalation. This will demand attention, and coordination. EXHALE fully as you come down,
contracting the abs. This one is tricky, but if you concentrate on the EXHALATION part of the cycle, you will find that your body will learn to "inhale" sufficiently.
Rite #5
Lie down with your face down to the floor. You will be supported by the hands palms down against the floor and the toes in the flexed position. Throughout this rite, the hands and feet should be kept straight. Start with your arms perpendicular to the Floor, and the spine arched, so that the body Is in a sagging position. Now throw the head back as far as possible. The, bending at the hips, bring the body up into an inverted "V". At the same time, bring the chin forward, Tucking it against the chest. This is the classic upward dog/Downward dog, and is pretty close to an exercise system in itself. You can increase the value by doing a "Hindu Pushup" instead. That's fine. But keeping the arms straight is just as good for our purposes.
Breathing: We suggest that you EXHALE HARD as you Upward Dog. RELAX the diaphragm as you Downward Dog, allowing the inhalation. It may be possible to make the "Downward Dog" the exhalation instead--the most important consideration, by far, is to concentrate on the EXHALATION PHASE and allow the inhalation to happen passively. Need more air? Exhale more powerfully. Let your body teach you what it needs.
This last can also be modified as a HINDU PUSHUP
Start with three repetitions per day. Add two reps per week.
The Tibetans can be modified to make them easier, or take stress off the joints. Technique is more important than numbers, but if three of these feels like nothing, feel free to do Hindus instead--but don't increase the number of reps for at least a week. Take this time to integrate the breathing and body consciousness. Slow down. Feel each repetition. Feel every joint and muscle.