Jean Ross Summary	Karl Loren Summary
Chemotherapy	Pain Killers	New Life	Heart Rate
Radiation	Tiredness	Exercise	Eye Sight
Out Of Breath Panting	Balance	Weight Management	Food Cravings
Niacin Flush	Hubbard Detoxification	Vibrant Life Home	Blood Pressure
Talk To Jean	Table Of Contents	Detoxification Home	Write To Karl

Balance

By “balance” I mean “steadiness.” I found out, on the Detox, that I had so gradually lost my sense of balance that I didn’t even know I had lost it.

I considered that any unsteadiness I might have had, at any time in the last several years, was just natural, or natural for a fat guy, or natural for an old man.

If you had asked me some months ago whether, in all my research on health matters, I have heard that “stored toxins” could adversely affect balance I would certainly say “no.”

I don’t begin to understand how that can be true, but now have a great new research project – not to prove the efficacy of the Detox, but to find the link between “released toxins” and “regained balance.” This is another example of the type of “research” which I have already done and will be doing – it is based on what has happened to MY body in MY Detox experience.

My new awareness of poor balance came in a back-handed way.

When you are training in Kung Fu there is a ceremonial “bow” of respect to the instructor. Much of Kung Fu teaches “precise form” and posture. So, the “bow” is done with both feet together, toes and heels, and you bow from the waist, keeping the back straight and horizontal. You keep your arms flat to your side, fingers pointed, etc.

The first day of my Kung Fu class I found that I was not able to bow without falling over. That didn’t dismay me because I doubt if in any of many past years I had tried such a bow – so I didn’t worry about my lack of balance.

It had not been important to me to try to use some standard of precise posture as my measure.

So, at the Kung Fu class I simply spread my feet apart to get a more stable stance and bowed. My back may have not been straight, but I bowed. There was not even any correction of my spread feet from the gentle instructor.

But, being aware of the value of “precise forms” in Kung Fu, I tried the next few classes to bow properly.

I cannot believe that the mild exercises during Kung Fu made the dramatic change, but on about the third Kung Fu, after about two weeks on the Detox, I found that I could bow properly without falling over.

This was a tremendous win for me – a tiny thing, to be sure, for most people, but a sign that something as basic as balance could be changed at all, much less so easily!

Kung Fu, of course, involves “kicking” and kicking involves putting all your weight on one foot while moving the other. Early in my Kung Fu exercises we practiced modest kicking. I, “of course,” could not come even close to the motion. I could not stand on one foot if my life depended on it.

I could blame that on a recent hip replacement, my pot-belly and old age, but I still couldn’t kick.

After another two weeks on the Detox, at a Kung Fu exercise class, I found that I could kick if someone “lent me a balancing hand” – as the instructor did – and encouraged others to use. My pot-belly was still there and obviously was NOT the cause of a lack of balance.

I may not have been fully balanced, but I was supporting all my weight on one foot – something I had not considered possible before.

Then, with a bit of unsteadiness I found that I could actually stand on one foot without hanging on to someone!

Another big win.

There were also some other exercises in Kung Fu that I could do for the first time one Saturday. These related to my ability to sit on the floor and pull one foot up towards my groin – to then rotate the ankle in that position, or other similar positions where one leg crosses another. I have felt that it was my “too big belly” that prevented these before, but even though I have lost some weight I don’t think the belly is enough smaller to account for this rather sudden new ease of limberness. I am also getting closer to touching my toes during bending. There are still some motions where others bend or stretch FAR more than I yet can.

I have marveled at my ability to cross my legs so that one knee is actually on top of the other. After my hip surgery this was described as a posture I should not and probably could not use. I don’t do it easily, but I can do it. For some time I’ve been able to cross my ankles – hadn’t done that at all before the Detox. These changes mostly seem exercise-related, but loss of toxins could well be involved.

Senior to both Kung Fu and the Detox was the decision to change. That comes first.

The Kung Fu exercise continues to progress into recovered abilities – while the Kung Fu exercises are very different from the treadmill, I still don’t think the Kung Fu exercises would give me this wins were it not also for the Detox.

This win about balance broke through in a rush on one of the last days of my Detox. I reported it to the person in charge of the Detox this way:

There has been a paradigm shift in my balance. It may have been that I’ve been exterior from my body without noticing it, and maintaining balance with exteriorization and points of stability located in non-material space – I am familiar with that concept.

I often feel “great” after a day at the Detox and THEN realize that the great feeling was my being exterior from the body. When it gets common to feel the great feeling I usually don’t look for the exterior stuff. The physical sensation is “great.” It is more subtle to observe the exteriorization.

There is a “feeling” I have now and then – much of my last full day on the Detox was this way. I started the completion cycle the day after the below experience.

When I now walk down the hall, or just in any room, I feel extremely stable – like I can walk confidently without putting attention on balance. In many years past I have had this feeling. I used to practice racquet ball. My practice included starting in the center of the court, closing my eyes, and then seeing how close I could walk toward a wall without touching it. I would walk toward the wall, eyes closed, and stop, then open my eyes to see how close I was to the wall. I got so that I could usually be within a few inches of the wall. These were also times of a tremendous feeling of stability and balance – with my eyes closed.

The downstairs hall in the building where I go for the Detox is a good example. That hall is uneven in surface and rather dark. For the many weeks I’ve been walking that hall I have often felt that I had to put my hand out to touch the wall. A few times I have actually done that – just to be sure I was steady. The main stairway up to the lobby has called for the same action.

Other times I didn’t put my hand out but was aware of not being steady on my feet. I would hardly ever go up those stairs without using the rail.

The last day on the Detox I felt a significant difference – it was a feeling of confidence just in the simple walking down the hall. I also walked up those stairs without using the railing!

I noticed that also simply in my bedroom – I could walk across the room and feel “centered” or stable.

Part of the bedroom layout is that we have a dresser sticking out from the wall, holding the very large TV. The corner of the TV and dresser protrude into the bedroom space right next to the closet entrance. This means that you actually have to turn your body sideways a bit to enter the closet.

If you enter the closet in the dark, at night, it would be prudent to keep attention on that corner of the furniture so as to pass it without hitting it.

It is a small thing, but I noticed on the night after my last day on the Detox that I could walk past that dresser in the dark, into the closet, with a significant increase in stability and confidence. It was as if I was exterior from my body and guiding myself with non-eyeball stability points.

This is a real phenomenon to me and very welcome.

I have postulated that such a degree of exteriorization would be the key to effective Kung Fu exercises and fighting. I am not seriously expecting to do Kung Fu with my eyes closed, but then I might just start experimenting with that! My first "experiments" with this were on August 19, 2005. For the first time I realized how I can teach balance on such an easy gradient that virtually anyone can start with whatever age and body condition he has, and make regular and satisfying progress.