“Jungshin” literally means “focused mind,” and promotes both the neurological and physical benefits of mindful meditation in easy-to-follow patterns that provide quick body-mind benefits over short periods of time.
Created by Annika Kahn, four-time world grand champion in the Korean art of Kuk Sool Won and competitive athlete in swimming and rowing, Jungshin offers a comprehensive workout. It offers the ancient benefits of the East with the functional exercises of the West to give the practitioner radical health benefits following the way of the sword.
To learn more about Jungshin Fitness®, visit the main site: jungshinfitness.com
Jungshin’s Philosophy
- JUNGSHIN requires consistent, disciplined training with an emphasis on breath control, functional strength, physical conditioning, balance, creativity, fluidity, control, precision, spatial awareness, and an acute sense of moving in relationship to gravity.
- JUNGSHIN movements typically include slicing through the air with custom-weighted wooden swords, fingertip pushups, jumping, balance, low strength stances, kicking from the core, rolling on the ground.
- JUNGSHIN training focuses on internal power (Ki and Chi or “life force”), longevity, strong tendons and joints, going beyond one’s comfort level, the spine and how it works in motion, self-improvement and self-responsibility.
- JUNGSHIN practitioners value the element of play in fitness, community, humility, positive collaboration, respect towards self and others, quiet mind, self-discipline, and an open heart approach to life while staying in one’s true power.
Jungshin’s Sword
Throughout human history, the meaning of the sword always represented a force to fight. Over centuries the significance of the sword as a means to engage one’s concentration and focus, eliciting an acute sense of power and effectiveness in combat, has remained consistent throughout the ages.
The custom-weighted wooden sword that is used in JUNGSHIN FITNESS® engages the athletic body and is used to cut physical restrictions away in order to achieve a human goal. The sword aligns the mind and body quickly, providing a cutting-edge element to fitness training by taking the mind off of the physical demands upon the body and giving the mind an element (the sword) to focus on. Through the repetitive motions of raising the sword over one’s head, Jungshin cuts engage the biceps and upper back muscles and align the sword with the spine on the inhale. On the exhale, each cut focuses on the core power, triceps, and lower abs, expanding the chest and increasing lower abdominal breathing.
The sword is an extension of the body, organic in material and made to fuse with the organic grip of the hand. It is designed in such a way with weighted handles. These handles and lever lengths allow for effective physics concerning expansion, away from spine and contraction, into the natural force of gravity creating a state of equilibrium and balance. Our lungs expand and contract. Our hearts expand and contract. Our brains expand and contract. These two opposing forces are dependent upon each other to exist. This is part of the story of the sword.