Establishing the Abdomen
In Taoism "correctness starts in the basement", meaning that strength, stability, harmony is established in the lower centers of the body - and things work up from there. Physical health is established as the foundation for spiritual work.
In the beginning levels of most Taoist systems (including the Healing Tao), energy is stored in the lower abdominal region, the "lower tan tien". This nourishment spreads to include the kidneys, as well as the nerve plexuses in the abdomen. Not only is energy stored in this region, but it's the area where much of alchemy occurs: the paqua - the alchemical cauldron - is set up there.
However, often the abdominal region has various obstructions, and this inhibits the easy storage and mixing of energy in the region, which puts a snafu on the whole crux of the system. There are a couple of main causes of stagnation in the abdominal area:
First, deep emotions. All of us have had times when we've felt emotions deep in our gut, sometimes of a righteous intuitive nature, other times when we feel strong emotional stress. Various deep patterns of the emotions and psyche originate from, and get stored in, the abdominal region.
Second, denser energy. The energies that reside in the body get progressively dense as you work your way down the centers of the body, from the crown down to the sexual region. Correspondingly, it doesn't take as much work to refine the higher, lighter energies. But, for instance, the sexual energy is very dense, viscous, and powerful. It takes a lot of refinement to get it to move easily and, if not sufficiently refined, it can easily get stuck in the lower regions - causing difficulty.
Additionally, there might be various other reasons for stagnation in the abdominal region, that pertain to each person individually.
For these reasons, it is very important to establish a healthy abdominal region early on - especially in a system that stores sexual energy and sets up an alchemical cauldron in the lower tan tien! Unfortunately, the Healing Tao's original progression of practices did not include a sufficiently comprehensive and safe set of practices to prepare the abdominal region. (The original Iron Shirt 1 packing was too aggressive [see this website's Iron Shirt section for gentler approaches], and the meditative approaches don't sufficiently address physical blockages.) Since that time the HT has come up with some additional practices that address the abdomen, but the new practices have still not taken their place in the formal sequence of practices.
So, one of the first (and on-going) steps should be: establishing the abdomen.
Essays, Resources
An important complement to working directly with the abdomen. In working with any of the following below methods, applying Distal Acupressure in conjunction (especially immediately before) will make the work a 1000 times easier.
Part of a short series of massage essays.
HoMedics PM-30BX self-hitting massage
Tao Yin: Exercising the Psoas Muscle
No essay planned; the video is so good that there is nothing more to say. Both the video (V69 - video highly recommended!!!) and the book (B07) are available online, the dvd is available through PacificTao.com. Tao Yin has several sections, one of which addresses the exercising of the psoas muscles, which connect to the 6 lower vertebrae, lay across the kidneys at the back of the abdominal region, go through the pelvic region, and connect to the tops of the femurs (thigh bones). The video contains specific, unusual, exercises for the psoas that increase strength, circulation, and general health in the deep abdominal region, essentially massaging the tan tien from the back, on the inside (!!!). Some emotions are felt "in the pit of the stomach"; the psoas muscles are the floor of that pit. The psoas are the "muscles of the soul of the belly".
Chi Nei Tsang is the HT system of abdominal massage. This self-help technique goes very deeply into the abdomen in a safe, gentle, non-invasive manner.
Books
Pilates (Psst... Want to super-duper turbo-charge your pilates / tao yin? -> Vibration Platform.)
The Pilates exercise called "the 100" produces an effect similar to the above Chi Nei Tsang Self-Help technique, in that a rhythmic wave is produced which massages the entire interior of the abdomen, front to back. "The 100" differs in that it also exercises the abdominal muscles and includes a specific breathing method. Very innovative and effective.
To view "the 100" to youtube.com and search for "pilates hundred" or "pilates 100".
Tips:
1. The arms are extended so that there is comfortably-stretched connection from finger-tips through to torso. This, with the "water slapping" motion creates a wave that goes through the lower abdomen (front~back) while you're doing the exercise.
2. Inhale and exhale steadily, smoothly, count of 5 for each.
3. Its important that your lower back is flat to the floor. This is easier with the knees bent; legs straight is more advanced.
The Pilates system is a gold-mine of innovative postures and movements that work your core from every conceivable angle .. but the emphasis is not on outer brute force (though it is rigorous exercise). The movements are poised, moderate, balanced, with an emphasis on centered lower tan tien breathing throughout. This has the effect of circulating blood, jing, making the tissues supple, increasing the relationship between the belly and the spine, opening the channels,.. in short: developing the lower tan tien. It is so Taoist! The pilates system simply doesn't have the terminology to market directly to Taoists - so it usually gets marketed to women who want to tone up. However, I think that if the Taoist community ever really gets a taste of what pilates is, they'll be showing up to classes in droves.
The Fabulous Four - root and core: as the inner heals, the outer relaxes.
The abdomen tends to bind up around various, often long past, traumas & instabilities.
As one develops comfortable root, earth~legs~tan tien, stability gradually returns from the inner - and, as a result, outer layers of tissue that before just wouldn't let go (that were holding on to provide stability), relax, tensions resolve. ... Root.
The other inner to this is to gradually, gently, open the core vessel - learn to connect and process into the powerful and profound energetics that are naturally present in your own deep-center. Again, as the inner-most is opened, resolved, enlivened, filled, stabilized, then the outer layers (musculature, etc.) naturally and spontaneously relax. ... Core.
The Fabulous Four develop root and core using a simple, profound, and harmonious quartet.
This stretch does wonders for opening up the belly and lower ab.
Dealing with the Force: Lower Abdominal Muscles
Processing the strong muscular force of jing.
Lower Tan Tien Breathing while in a Bridge
Very helpful for opening up the belly. Some guys really consider this a staple for opening up ren (the front channel of the orbit) and for loosening bound up sexual tension from the lower tan tien. btw, I think that some of the above innovative core exercises (such as pilates and tao yin) can be a healthy complement to the extreme opening of bridging.
Umbilicus exercises
I suspect that the ability to deliberately move, activate, meditate, feel the umbilicus is probably an important area, for obvious reasons. While all of the above might be helpful, I'd bet that there are systems that teach attention and muscular exercises having directly to do with the umbilicus, and probably one of the results is the sensation of pumping blood in the umbilical region.
Various other resources exist, in this website and - of course - else where, for establishing the abdomen. Its a topic that cultivators are quietly attentive to learning about, over the long term.