We see our grandmothers go square dancing; young people retreat to gyms in every corner of the city. Is fitness in China therefore an import? 

我们看到我们的祖母跳广场舞；年轻人退到城市各个角落的健身房。 因此，在中國健身是重要的嗎？

Rather not.

宁可不。

Long ago, in the absence of gyms, people needed to improvise in order to improve their levels of fitness. Tao Kan is a good example, living to be 76 years old, and one of the sixty-four great generals of the time. It was all down to his fitness regime. Each morning, he would move a pile of bricks across his courtyard, to then move it back again in the evening.

很久以前，在没有健身房的情况下，人们需要即兴发挥来提高他们的健身水平。 Tao Kan就是一个很好的例子，活到了76岁，是当时64位伟大的将军之一。 这一切都归结于他的健身计划。 每天早上，他都会在院子里移动一堆砖头，然后晚上再把它搬回来。

On the whole, however, ancient fitness was more a matter of practicality. In the time of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors (more than 4,000 years ago), the war between Huang Di (黄帝), Yan Di (炎帝) and Chi You (蚩尤) was more a war of survival. The then aim of fitness was mainly to strengthen the body in order to fight the elements as well as the enemy. Therefore, physical fitness of the time came through labour, cutting wood, hunting or farming.

然而，总的来说，古老的健身更像是一个实用性问题。 在三皇五帝时代（4000多年前），黄帝、炎帝和蚩尤之间的战争更像是一场生存之战。 当时健身的目的主要是加强身体，以对抗元素和敌人。 因此，当时的身体素质是通过劳动、砍柴、打猎或耕种而来的。

It was during The Three Kingdoms period (circa 184 CE) at the end of the Han Dynasty that people really began to realise how to keep healthy and even how to treat disease through exercise. Physician, Hua Tuo (华佗), was known as the “master of surgery” due to his proficiency and the fact that he was the first person in China to employ anesthesia. He went on to be heralded as the third medical deity of the era (建安三神医), together with Zhang Zhongjing (张仲景) and Dong Feng (董奉). 

正是在汉朝末期的三国时期（约公元184年），人们真正开始意识到如何保持健康，甚至如何通过运动来治疗疾病。 医生华佗（华佗）因其熟练和中国第一个使用麻醉的人而被称为“外科大师”。 他与张仲景（张仲景）和董奉（董奉）一起被宣示为那个时代的第三位医神（建安三神医）。

However, many people do not realise that one of Hua’s inventions became the earliest fitness program in China.

然而，许多人没有意识到华的发明之一成为中国最早的健身项目。

“Wu Qin Xi” (五禽戏)

“吴琴溪”（五禽戏）

Young Hua had traveled abroad and along the way, he studied medicine and saved lives at the same time; never pursuing fame and fortune in his life, Hua’s medical ethics could be said to be very noble. After carefully observing the many kinds of animals he encountered along his travels, and combining such with the physiological characteristics of the human body, Hua was able to invent a set of aerobic exercises for the elderly and infirm; the Wu Qin Xi. The exercises are imitations of five kinds of animals’ posture and movements; tiger, deer, bear, ape and bird.

Young Hua出国旅行，一路走来，他学习医学，同时拯救了生命；他一生从未追求名利，Hua的医学道德可以说是非常高贵的。 在仔细观察他在旅行中遇到的多种动物，并将其与人体的生理特征相结合后，Hua能够为老年人和体弱者发明一套有氧运动；吴琴西。 這些練習模仿了五种动物的姿势和动作；老虎、鹿、熊、猿和鸟。

According to records, Wu Qin Xi was not only China’s first fitness program, but it was also the first practicing of “sports medical treatment”, being able to relax and stimulate blood circulation, muscles and bones, to achieve the effect of health. Furthermore, it is very possible to feel fatigued and stomach discomfort after a hard workout; after a quick Wu Qin Xi and an application of talcum powder, the body will feel light and ready for food!

根据记录，吴沁曦不仅是中国第一个健身项目，也是第一个练习“运动医疗”，能够放松和刺激血液循环、肌肉和骨骼，从而达到健康效果。 此外，在艰苦的锻炼后，很容易感到疲劳和胃部不适；在快速的五秦溪和施用滑石粉后，身体会感到轻盈，做好食物的準備！

Legend has it that one of Hua’s students tried out the exercises after a long period of exercise, leading to a somewhat spooky improvement in both hearing and eyesight. Little wonder therefore, that Hua’s creation is a precious treasure of traditional Chinese medicine culture that has been passed down for 4 millennia and practiced from generation to generation.

传说中，华的一名学生在长时间锻炼后尝试了这些练习，导致听力和视力都略显诡异。 因此，难怪华的创作是中国传统医学文化的宝贵财富，传承了4千年，代代相传。

“Qi Gong” (气功)

“气功”（气功）

In order to pursue longevity, ancient Chinese peoples also paid special attention to physical exercise. Chinese Qi Gong likely also dates from the era of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors.

为了追求长寿，中国古代人民也特别注重体育锻炼。 中国的气功可能也可以追溯到三皇五皇时代。

Huang Di (黄帝), or the Yellow Emperor (2,717-2,599 BCE), is largely credited with deriving the first form of Qi Gong. Although the concept first appears in the book, “Huang Di Nei Jing” (黄帝内经; The Yellow Emperor’s Book of Internal Medicine), the work was in fact ghost written by later generations, who chose not to replace the name out of simple respect for the “ancestors of the humanities”.

黄帝，或黄帝（公元前2,717-2,599年），在很大程度上被认为衍生了第一种形式的气功。 虽然这个概念首次出现在《黄帝内经》（黄帝内经；黄帝的内科之书）一书中，但事实上，这部作品是后代人写的，他们选择不取代这个名字，只是出于对“人文祖先”的尊重。

Huang lived to be 118, at that time when life expectancy was just 30 or 40. It is largely thought today that he lived so long on account of his fitness and general health, through a regular practicing of Qi Gong.

黄活到了118岁，当时预期寿命只有30或40岁。 今天，人普遍认为，通过定期练习气功，他活了这么久，因为他的体能和整体健康。

“Long Whispers” (长啸)

“长长的低语”（长啸）

Prominent poet of the southern song dynasty (1,127 CE), Lu You (陆游), grew up physically weak, but lived to be 85. His secret was the Long Whisper discipline in Qi Gong, a continuous production of high-pitched sounds made by controlling one’s breathing. Over time, the technique not only increases lung capacity and removes waste gas from the body, but also relaxes the body and mind.

南宋（公元1,127年）的著名诗人陆游（陆游）从小就虚弱，但活到了85岁。 他的秘诀是气功中的长语纪律，通过控制呼吸不断产生高音。 随着时间的推移，该技术不仅能增加肺活量并清除体内的废气，还能放松身心。

“Swing” (秋千)

“秋千”（秋千）

Many other famous people in ancient China created their own sport for fitness, such as the swing master; Liu Che (刘彻). Not only was he an emperor of the Han dynasty, but he also developed the “swing” fitness concept. Originally known as “Qian Qiu” (千秋; a thousand years of Autumn), it did not become popular until the era of emperor Wu Di (汉武帝), who swapped the characters around in order to avoid the taboo of the eternal life for which he begged. Qiu Qian, or swing, quickly became popular among the people, and for good reasons. 

中国古代还有许多其他名人创造了自己的健身运动，比如挥杆大师刘彻。 他不仅是汉朝皇帝，还发展了“秋千”健身理念。 它最初被称为“千秋”（千年之秋），直到汉武帝时代才流行起来，他为了避免他乞求的永生禁忌而交换了角色。 秋千，或秋千，迅速在人们中流行起来，这是有充分理由的。

As the body swings back and forth, direction, speed and height from the ground are constantly changing; the resulting increase and decrease in gravitational forces upon the body are good for maintaining a coordinated balance. The swing is also great for strengthening the waist and abdomen; with the body’s swinging, there follows a rhythmic expansion and contraction of muscles. As a pressure and tension reliever, the swing excels, while it can also help relax the nervous, cardiovascular and respiratory systems.

当身体来回摆动时，地面的方向、速度和高度都在不断变化；由此产生的对身体的引力的增减对保持协调平衡有好处。 摆动也非常适合加强腰部和腹部；随着身体的摆动，肌肉会有节奏的扩张和收缩。 作为压力和紧张的缓解剂，秋千非常出色，同时它也可以帮助放松神经系统、心血管和呼吸系统。

In a nutshell, the swing is China’s magical fitness equipment. No wonder the ancients were convinced of its importance, breaking records through fitness that even people today could perhaps not surpass.

简而言之，秋千是中国神奇的健身器材。 难怪古人相信它的重要性，透過健身打破了即使是今天的人也可能無法超越的記錄。