Jason: September 21, 2019, 12:42pm
I suspect this is like asking for a definition of internal and external, but when assessing fat and skinny, I often
wonder how Toby’s teacher (what is his name?) would have thought about it. In the US, today, I am probably
considered height/weight proportionate. But in east Asia, at least until recently, I might have been considered fat.
Similarly, when I meet an adult who never put on weight after 30, but has healthy, buoyant flesh… they would be
seen as skinny here and now, but maybe normal in some other time and place.
My tentative answer is to try to intuit what may be excessive for an individual, but that’s not a far cry from
guessing. Thoughts?
Edited to add: I’ve been getting good results supplementing LI on myself, but if my doppelganger walked in, it
would likely be 3rd or 4th on my list, at best.
Daniel: September 21, 2019, 1:11pm
I think at the core of this matter is the quality and nature of the ‘Earth flesh’ – firm, flaccid, flabby, robust, springy –
I certainly have ‘large patients’ whose ‘Earth flesh’, while plentiful and abundant, is robust, somewhat firm – and
then others whose ‘Earth flesh’ is like sinking my hands into a bowl of Jello – soooooo Damp.
Jason: September 21, 2019, 7:31pm
Yeah, that’s my perspective too. But it seems this Sa’am method really emphasizes body type.
Daniel: September 21, 2019, 8:47pm
I have heard it said repeatedly that Toby’s teacher would not be nailed down on matters pertaining to internal and
external dampness and dryness.
Jason: September 21, 2019, 8:48pm
You’re right. I wish we knew his name though!16/01/2024, 12:31Defining fat and skinny – Qiological Community
https://forum.qiological.com/t/defining-fat-and-skinny/625/print2/3
KristinWisgirda: September 22, 2019, 6:09pm
Jason:
it seems this Sa’am method really emphasizes body type.
The differentiation is not fat/skinny but
damp/dry, for the metal/earth channels
and dense/light, for Liver/SJ .
Quality of tissues is just as important as quantity. I have plenty of borderline underweight patients with a layer of
“fog” under their skin or a squishy belly, both indicating some damp.
Start feeling the flesh AND muscles of all of your patients. I have a found a couple of patients and a friend that are
my standards of normal- not too damp/dry or dense/light.
Jason: September 23, 2019, 5:04pm
I went back to check where I was getting the language about fat/skinny. It was from the JCM article. In the class
notes, it evolved to int/ext damp/dry. I want to be careful about projecting prior training into Sa’am, but it seems
that in this case the language is symbolic. Thanks for clarifying.
michaelmax: September 24, 2019, 2:40am
Jason:
Yeah, that’s my perspective too. But it seems this Sa’am method really emphasizes body type.
For metal and earth. Yes.
But I’ve also discovered that sometimes the way people act… how they see themselves can be just as important. So
for example, I have an Lung excess body type patient, but she behaves and thinks like a Lg Intestine excess type.
Treating +SP on her brings powerful results. +ST… meh.
My sense is that we have these ever shifting parameters and it is our job to see how they fit in any given situation.
It is not paint by numbers… (well actually sometimes it is)
It’s really about learning to attune our perception to how the organs and channels present and speak to us. And our
being able to “decode” it.
As @KristinWisgirda points out. There are skinny people with fog under the skin. If you look at skinny=dry,
you’ll miss the dampness. These things are usually not cut and dried. But as you work with it, patterns do emerge.16/01/2024, 12:31Defining fat and skinny – Qiological Community
https://forum.qiological.com/t/defining-fat-and-skinny/625/print3/3
It’s a fluid system. And that is its strength, beauty and frustration.