The study
The operator's professional training is one of the essential conditions to achieve important results. Such training surely includes the study of TCM, to be able to do a careful energetic evaluation of the person to be treated, and keeps on with the studying, the practicing and the perfectioning of the various massaging manoeuvres, whose execution must be impeccable. We must furthermore know the effect that each techique causes on the persons's energy circulatione, to choose the manoeuvres to use and their sequence, to give the organism the right information. If the person's energetic evaluation is right, the chosen tuina treatment sequence corresponds to this evaluation and the points to use, together with the appropriate manoeuvres, are correct, the tuina massage gives sound and lasting results, very important to improve one's health. The tuina training courses are usually biennial or (better) triennial, and include the study of chinese traditional medicine and tui na. To have an idea of the best Italian tuina schools you can visit the site of OTTO association, free association of tuina-qigong operators, in the "schools" section.
Taking care of one's Qi
But the tuina operator's training, at this point, is not finished, yet. As a technique acting mainly at the energetic level of the person treated it is mostly important that the tui na operator itself has gone along the way of growth and improvement of his/her internal energy; this goal is usually achieved practicing Qi Gong; its practice must go along with the operator's life and become his/her daily exercise. No good Tui Na can be practiced otherwise.
Listening, interior attitude and purpose
Essential condition for the practice is in fact the research of interior void and silence, that enables to reach a situation of listening, understanding and relationship with the receiver. Only this way it will be possible to feel, with the hands' touch, the signals arriving from the person we are treating, to perceive the effect of the techniques we are using. An ininterrupted feedback, with continuous modification of our intervention, sometimes more energic, sometimes softer, but always considering the possibilities offered by each point or body area. As the tuina operator is instrument of investigation and evaluation of the energy of the receiving person, it is essential that this instrument is kept with the best care; as the other person is observed with the lens of our personality, it is obvious that this lens will always have to be clean, to detect each needing of the treated person. The ability of understanding and relating with the other will improve along with the development of our ability in understanding and relating with our self. Only our constant mental presence and awareness will enable us to use our intention to address the energy, that is so rebalanced and spurred, with notable effects on the phisical, energetic and emotional level.

The posture
When doing the tuina manoeuvres it is essential to keep a right posture; in particular, alignment of the spinal column (to ease the Qi circulation within the operator) and grounding, studied in the Qi Gong practice. The joints must be free, the wrists nimble and all the body relaxed; only this way it will be possible to use our own energy properly and to do an effective massage. The mental and phisical relax of the operator during the treatments shall preserve he/she from troubles, like tendons inflammation, often occurring when stressing the joints for a long time.
The postures used during the massage are the same we see when studying Qi Gong and Taiji Quan, to reaffirm the continuous relationship between these disciplines and Tui Na, between working on ourselves or on other persons.

…to be continued in the TuiNa videocourse. Click here!