Flushing the Swamp: Maintain Circulation in the Body

Our body is partially active and partially passive. Our heart automatically pumps blood through our bodies, but our lymphatic and glymphatic (spinal) fluids fluid need assistance to circulate well.

To stay health we must assist our bodies through movement.

The 4 Hearts

The 3 Hearts of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) models us as having three hearts. Under this view, a ‘heart’ is process or organ which moves fluid and energy around your body.

• The first heart is your actual heart, which moves blood around your body
• The second heart is your abdomen. By performing abdominal breathing you massage your organs and help move fluids through them. This aids your digestion, breaks up adhesions which form between your internal organs, and spread the lymphatic fluids to move nutrients through and to flush toxins from the body.
• The third heart are your calves. Gravity pull fluids done into your legs: edemas happen, ankles swell. The lower body is passive, that is, there is no active mechanism to move lymphatic fluid out of the legs. You must move to contract muscles in the leg to push the fluids back into the body. You can perform movements which cause your calves to tighten in order to achieve this.
• The fourth heart is the spinal column. For many movements we flex the spine from Horse Back to Turtle Back. This opens up the spine and circulates spinal fluids to the brain.