Learn to sing the health song of the Spring Equinox according to the solar terms to maintain your health

The Spring Equinox is between March 20 and 21 every year. It is the fourth solar term in the 24 solar terms and the fourth solar term in spring. On March 20 this year, we entered the Spring Equinox. We often say "Spring Equinox, day and night are equal", which means that the day and night are of equal length. At this time, the climate is mild and sunny. How should we maintain health during the Spring Equinox?

【Spring Equinox Health Song】

"Spring Equinox Health Song" is a piece of music from the "Twenty-Four Solar Terms Health and Wellness Series" created by teachers and students of the Primary School Affiliated to Renmin University of China.

The lyrics are rich in solar terms culture and health knowledge. They not only vividly describe the spring equinox, the phenological changes in nature and people's daily life, but also tell people how to maintain their bodies through daily life, diet, exercise, and regulating internal organs during the spring equinox. The song has a soothing and beautiful melody. We might as well learn health knowledge by singing along with the song during the spring equinox, or by reciting the lyrics.

lyrics:

Spring Equinox, the fourth solar term, day and night are equal, cold and heat are equal, around March 20, cloudy and sunny. Spring Equinox, wind is not small, reduce clothes, not too early, pay attention to conditioning early to bed and early to get up, to prevent pain and deep disturbance. Spring Equinox, eggs are pretty, auspicious, heart comfortable, yam and spinach soften liver and lungs, nourishing yin is essential. Take advantage of the east wind, fly kites, more activities, outdoor noise, drink warm water after exercise, remember to eat less salt. Apples, oranges, big white pears, not too full, comb your hair hundreds of times in the morning, gradually Yang Qi rises.

Spring Equinox, the fourth solar term, day and night are equal, cold and heat are equal, around March 20, cloudy and sunny. Spring Equinox, wind is not small, reduce clothes, not too early, pay attention to conditioning early to bed and early to get up, to prevent pain and deep disturbance. Spring Equinox, eggs are pretty, auspicious, heart comfortable, yam and spinach soften liver and lungs, nourishing yin is essential. Take advantage of the east wind, fly kites, more activities, outdoor noise, drink warm water after exercise, remember to eat less salt. Apples, oranges, big white pears, not too full, comb your hair hundreds of times in the morning, gradually Yang Qi rises.

Early to bed, early to rise

The weather is getting warmer during the Spring Equinox, and people tend to feel sleepy. Therefore, we should go to bed early and get up early to ensure adequate sleep. People spend one-third of their lives sleeping, so sleep is very important for everyone. It can be said that good sleep means good health. In March, there is an important day for sleep, which is World Sleep Day, which is usually on March 21st every year. This year's theme is "Healthy Sleep for Everyone". The best time to sleep is to fall asleep around 10:30 pm and get up around 6 am, ensuring 7-8 hours of sleep. Traditional Chinese medicine has many ways to promote sleep and improve sleep quality, so you may want to give it a try.

【Rubbing Yongquan acupoint】

Yongquan Point: Located on the sole of the foot, in the depression at the front of the foot when the foot is curled, approximately at the intersection of the front 1/3 and the back 2/3 of the line connecting the ends of the webs between the 2nd and 3rd toes and the heel.

How to do it: Sit upright on a chair or bed, first place your right foot on your left leg, hold your toes with your right hand, and then rub the Yongquan acupoint on the center of your right foot with your left palm until the center of your foot becomes warm. Then place your left foot on your right leg, hold your toes with your left hand, and then rub the Yongquan acupoint on the center of your left foot with your right palm until the center of your foot becomes warm.

Rubbing the Yongquan acupoint not only promotes sleep, but also has the effect of nourishing the body. Yongquan acupoint is the first acupoint of the foot Shaoyin kidney meridian. Rubbing the Yongquan acupoint can nourish the kidney essence, make people's hearing and eyesight clear, and waist and legs strong.

【Press and rub Shenmen acupoint】

Shenmen acupoint: Located on the wrist, at the ulnar end of the palmar transverse line of the wrist, in the radial depression of the ulnar flexor carpi tendon. Simple method of finding the acupoint: Put your fingers together, draw an extension line along the gap between the ring finger and the little finger, and the intersection of the wrist transverse line is the acupoint.

Operation method: Press and rub the acupoints with the tip of your thumb for 3 minutes each time, alternating between your left and right hands.

Tips for getting a good night’s sleep:

1. Soak your feet and massage acupoints before going to bed

2. Try not to drink a lot of water half an hour before going to bed

3. Please place your phone away from the bedside and do not lie in bed watching videos or playing games before going to bed.

4. Take a deep breath. Inhale to make your stomach bulge, exhale to make your stomach deflate. One inhalation and one exhalation counts as one time. Three times count as a set. Do five sets.

Egg erection game

"When the Spring Equinox comes, the eggs are pretty." Every year on the Spring Equinox, we play the game of standing an egg upright. We choose an egg with a smooth and even surface, and gently place it upright on the table. If it stands upright, it is considered a success. This custom has been popular in my country for a long time to celebrate the arrival of spring. Nowadays, people still use the game of standing an egg upright on the Spring Equinox to express their love for spring.

The Spring Equinox is a good time to take care of your spirit and keep a happy mood. The egg-standing game during the Spring Equinox is not only a ritual to welcome spring, but also a good way to take care of your spirit.

Standing an egg upright requires holding your breath and concentrating, which helps to calm your mind. When we successfully stand the egg upright, our hearty laughter can regulate the body's qi and unblock the circulation of qi and blood.

Increase sweetness and reduce acidity

Traditional Chinese medicine believes that "in spring, it is better to eat less sour food and more sweet food to nourish the spleen", which means that in spring, it is better to eat less sour food and eat more sweet food. In spring, the liver qi is strong, and eating too much sour food will make the liver qi too strong and damage the spleen and stomach, so you should eat less sour food. Common sweet foods include pumpkin, jujube, yam, honey, lotus seeds, white fungus, spinach, lettuce, cabbage, carrots, sweet potatoes, potatoes, etc.

In spring, we might as well cook a pot of fruit soup. The ingredients are: 1 apple, 1 pear, and 2 oranges.

1. Wash the apples, pears and oranges with clean water first, then rub the surface of the fruit with salt, and finally rinse with clean water;

2. Cut apples and pears into small pieces with skin, break oranges into segments, and add 1000 ml of water;

3. Bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer for about 15 minutes until the fruit is soft. Fruit soup is not only delicious, but also good for the spleen and stomach.

Moderate exercise

[Go out for an outing and smile at every flower you encounter]

"If you don't go to the garden, how can you know how beautiful spring is!" This is the exclamation that Du Liniang couldn't help but utter when she first entered the garden in "The Peony Pavilion". Before her eyes appeared a scene of colorful flowers, bright red, bright purple, delicate yellow, and shy pink and light green. From ancient times to the present, we all love this bright spring, beautiful flowers, and warm sunshine. Flowers are the representatives of beauty in nature. We appreciate and love flowers, which is our hope for a better life.

More than 900 years ago, Qin Guan, a famous writer in the Northern Song Dynasty, left us a famous poem "Xingxiangzi" during a spring outing. From the lines "There are red peach blossoms, white plum blossoms, yellow cauliflowers...orioles are singing, swallows are dancing, and butterflies are busy", we seem to see the colorful and beautiful natural scenery full of spring in the eyes of the poet.

In the fast-paced life, we need a good attitude, and smiling makes us more optimistic. Smiling is not just a simple movement of the mouth, but also a state of life. Smile to your family, smile to your friends, smile to life, smile to strangers, even smile to a flower, smile to everything in the world, let smile become the sunshine of our life.

"When I turned around, all the grass behind me was blooming. A large patch of it. It was as if someone told a joke and made the grass laugh. I was lying on the hillside thinking about something. Maybe what I was thinking about - the strange ideas in a person's mind made the grass laugh, and it laughed back and forth in the breeze. Some laughed out loud, and some half covered their lips, unable to help laughing. Of the two flowers close to me, one faced me, with its thin pink petals opened, and I seemed to hear a whisper of laughter; the other turned its head to cover its face, but still couldn't hide its smile. I couldn't help laughing too. First I smiled, and then I laughed out loud. This was the first time I laughed out loud alone in the wilderness." This passage is from an essay by the writer Liu Liangcheng titled "Smile at a Flower". The author's description of all things in nature is delicate and vivid. When we read such words, we smile unconsciously.

【Swing, kite flying】

"Jingchu Sui Shi Ji" records: "In spring, long ropes are hung on tall trees, and men and women in colorful clothes sit on them and push and pull them, which is called swinging." Swinging has a long history. During the spring equinox, the spring breeze blows on your face, and colorful clothes dance in the wind. "The girls in spring laugh and talk loudly, swinging on the swings in the shadows of green willows. They dance in the air with light skirts, and they are probably Chang'e descending from the sky." Swinging is not only an interesting activity, but also allows people to welcome the arrival of spring in activities and laughter. When spring is warm and flowers are blooming, people go out together, swinging on the swings and fluttering their clothes in the deep of flowers and willows.

The Yangliuqing New Year painting "Ten Beauties Flying Kites" during the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty depicts ten beauties flying ten kinds of kites in spring, including strings of lanterns, eagles, Tang Monk seeking scriptures, butterflies, etc. The custom of flying kites in spring has continued to this day and is deeply loved by people. During the spring equinox, people fly colorful kites to feel freedom and happiness. Flying kites is not only a leisure and entertainment activity, but also means that we can fly freely in the vast sky and pursue our dreams.

[Combing your hair hundreds of times in the morning]

Ji Kang mentioned in "Health Preservation Theory": "In March, comb your hair 100 to 200 times every morning, and you will live longer." The head is the meeting point of all yang and the place where all meridians converge. In the morning of spring, pick up a horn comb, sheep horn comb, peach wood comb, etc. and comb your hair about 100 times. You can also use your fingers instead of a comb to comb your hair from front to back until your scalp is slightly warm. Doing this in the spring can not only promote the circulation of qi and blood in the head, help the growth of yang, and promote the flow of yang, but also nourish the hair, relieve fatigue, and refresh the mind.

【Sunbathing】

Sunbathing in the spring can help us dredge the blood and qi of the whole body and cheer up our mood. Chen Zhi, a health expert in the Song Dynasty, proposed the "Ten Joys of Life", namely reading, talking, lying quietly, sunbathing, drinking, farming, music, calligraphy and painting, walking, and activities. Sunbathing is one of them. Gao Tongxuan, a painter in the Qing Dynasty, also proposed the "Ten Joys of Life", namely the joy of farming, the joy of holding a broom, the joy of educating children, the joy of being content, the joy of living in peace, the joy of talking freely, the joy of strolling, the joy of bathing, the joy of lying high, and the joy of exposing the back. Sunbathing is also one of them. It can be seen that sunbathing can not only bring us happiness, but also is a very important way to maintain health.

The solar terms have been integrated into the lives of each of us. Following the solar terms to maintain health will make life full of hope and fun.

Author: Cao Yue, Xuchang University