Passed down for generations, the Dragon form is over 1500 years old — a Daoist practice rooted in medicine, movement and spirit. Where most Qigong moves in straight lines and circles, the Dragon spirals. Each twist presses and releases, and the whole spine gets wrung out like a cloth.
▶️ The full 25-minute practice, filmed on Tenerife. Spoken in English — the same practice in Spanish is here. Press play and follow along.
At twenty-five minutes this is the longest routine on the channel. That is deliberate: the spirals only start to feel like anything once the body has been properly loosened first.
What "the kidneys" means here
In Daoist thought the kidneys are the source of courage, will and vitality, and fear is said to live there. Movement restores the flow — this is the path of water, the path of resilience.
That is a tradition, and worth being clear about: it is a way of understanding the body that is centuries old, not a medical claim. Nothing in this practice treats a kidney condition. What it does do is unmistakably physical — it mobilises the lower back, the hips and the whole length of the spine, which is exactly the region that stiffens from sitting.
If the tradition itself interests you, I wrote about where it comes from in White Tiger Qigong — where ancient Daoist medicine meets modern science. This form reaches me through that lineage.
How the twenty-five minutes are built
More than half of it is preparation, and that half matters:
- Settling — feet rooted, spine neutral, one palm below the navel, breath dropping into the belly
- Cleansing breath — in through the nose, out through the mouth, a long slow exhale, three full rounds
- Shaking — arms loose, legs, hips, shoulders. Feel what's heavy and let it drop
- Feeling your own energy — palms slowly opening and closing, that faint magnetic resistance between them
- Forward fold and kidney massage — rolling up through the spine, hands warming the lower back
- Hip circles — slow, both directions
- Two stances — Mabu, the horse stance, and Gongbu, the bow stance
- The Dragon spirals — a chi ball at the chest, then the twist that gives the form its name
Before you press play
Bare feet or flat shoes, and room to step out wide. Keep the knees tracking over the toes and never let them collapse inward. In the spirals, keep the core and glutes engaged — that is what protects the lower back — and only go as deep as feels safe. Slow breathing calms the nervous system measurably; everything else here works better slow than deep.
This is general wellness content, not medical advice. If you have a back or knee condition, or you're pregnant, check with your doctor first.
This practice is one of the free follow-along videos on my YouTube channel MindBodyInMotion — there's a new one every two weeks. New to Qigong? Start with the free 7-Day Tai Chi & Qigong Challenge.
