[Rising Phoenix's note: We are including brief excerpts from this open, publicly available article, and the link to the full article below, with gratitude to the NYT for carrying such an important medical breakthrough!]

It’s all connected

Excerpts from the article:

We’ve long known about two systems in the human body that circulate fluids… the lymphatic system, which removes excess fluid from tissues, …and the cardiovascular system, which pumps blood through our arteries, veins and capillaries…

Now, scientists think they may have come across a third. In 2021, after examining the skin of people with tattoos, researchers saw in their biopsies that ink particles had traveled deeper into the body than they expected, through the skin into an interstitial space beneath it — and from that space into the fascia, the connective material below…

The discovery — a hidden pathway between two layers of tissue not known to connect in this way — was a surprise. It has far-reaching implications for our understanding of the human body and for our health. Because that interstitial space doesn’t just exist between the skin and the fascia, researchers discovered. There are spaces like it throughout the body, forming pathways between organs and allowing fluids, cells and molecules to move between them before re-entering the lymphatic and cardiovascular systems.

Scientists call this large interconnected network the interstitium. It’s the subject of an incredible story in The New York Times Magazine by Avraham Z. Cooper, an associate professor of medicine at Ohio State University…     

West meets East

…Traditional Chinese medicine holds that acupuncture is a way to balance the flow of energy — known as chi — through one of the body’s 12 main meridians. Acupuncturists insert thin needles into specific points along those meridians to enhance the flow of chi.

Those specific acupuncture points are within the same areas of connective tissue where fluid flows through the interstitium, researchers found. And when they injected dye into acupuncture points on the forearms of volunteers, it slowly migrated up the arm along a meridian.

“This pathway doesn’t go in the veins, it doesn’t go superficially,” one researcher said. Instead, he told Cooper, it flows through the interstitium between the muscles: “When I saw that, I said: ‘We’re onto something...’…

The future is past

… Please read the whole story here.  

[Rising Phoenix's note: I encourage you all to read this article! You might have to register to read it, but you do not need a subscription. I am grateful this is an open article, everyone will benefit from what has been discovered!]

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/05/11/magazine/interstitium-anatomy-acupuncture-medicine.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20260511&instance_id=175410&nl=the-morning&regi_id=220853845&segment_id=219669&user_id=9fea3ea6c374fe8762408d63353c0ad9

Here is an important article regarding an area of your body you can work on to help with movement ease, balance, and  longevity! Your gluteus muscles are very important for mobility, even for just standing from a sitting position. T'ai Chi and Qi Gong include many movements which enhance the strength of the glutes, even the simple "Tai Chi stance" requires action in the glutes!

This is an “open” article from the NYT, so you do not have to be a subscriber to read it. As such, I have included an excerpt or two here as well, with my notes in [brackets]. To Your Health!

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/25/well/move/strong-glutes-health-longevity.html?unlocked_article_code=1.X1A.hwPT.MY9HxHaxBmxY&smid=em-share

Building your butt muscles will help you stay injury free and independent in midlife and beyond.

… experts are increasingly finding that having a powerful posterior isn’t just about looking good in jeans. The glutes are the largest muscles in our body and are closely tied to stability, balance and aging well. They act like shock absorbers when we walk or climb stairs, and building a strong butt can help prevent and manage back pain at any age and reduce the risk of falling for older adults.

…“Glutes are so important” for independent living, said Theresa Marko, a physical therapist in New York and adjunct professor of physical therapy at Touro University. “Do you want to get off the subway? Do you want to get off the toilet?”

…The key to building powerful glutes for strength and stability is finding exercises that require them to work alongside the hamstrings, quads, lower back in a natural way, Dr. Dorgo said. [TC and QG do this!]

Rising Phoenix T'ai Chi / Shoulders Down, Inc. 
 

You Are the Motion 

By Cate Morrill 

A white crane spreads its wings, a snake creeps down in the grass. 

A golden rooster stands on one leg, a jade phoenix nods its head. 

But you are not the observer, standing idly by, watching these beautiful movements in nature. 

You are performing them, creating them, feeling their energy, your “inner-chi.” 

You are taking in each breath with purpose, intention, 

filling yourself with a lightness, 

while opening your energy paths so the chi will flow freely. 

* 

You are finding relaxation in powerful movements, 

and strength in yielding. 

You are experiencing the invigorating balance of Yin and Yang, the fluidity of balanced motion,

the peacefulness of a still mind,

and the joy of newly discovered sensations. 

 You are the instrument of this choreography, 

and the benefactor as well. 

You are also often laughing, shaking like a snake and 

mimicking a monkey. 

You are connected to the universe with the 

Golden Thread. 

You are in T’ai Chi class. 

* 

Somewhere near, a 

Phoenix Rises

Here is a very important article for you!

New research from Edith Cowan University (ECU) has revealed that training one arm can improve strength and decrease muscle loss in the other arm — without even moving it. 

The findings could help to address the muscle wastage and loss of strength often experienced in an immobilized arm, such as after injury, by using eccentric exercise on the opposing arm. 

In eccentric exercises, the contracting muscle is lengthening, such as when lowering a dumbbell in bicep curls, sitting on a chair slowly or walking downstairs. Previous research has shown these exercises are more effective at growing muscle than concentric exercises, in which muscle are shortening such as when lifting a dumbbell or walking up stairs.

Full article - https://scitechdaily.com/new-research-reveals-exercising-one-arm-has-twice-the-benefits/

https://healthandwealthbulletin.com/how-to-prevent-one-of-the-greatest-dangers-to-the-elderly/

So happy to share with you!