Hua Tuo was a physician and pharmacologist in the late Eastern Han Dynasty. He is not only proficient in medical skills, but also good at treating diseases and saving lives, with special emphasis on the importance of physical exercise. In order to encourage people to keep fit, he invented "Five Birds Play"-a set of gymnastics imitating five animal postures.

Wuqinxi, also known as Wuqincao, Wuqinqigong and Baibuhan Opera, mainly imitates the movements of five animals to exercise. Exercise methods that imitate animal movements have a long history in China. As early as the Warring States period, the philosopher Zhuangzi said in his article: "Breathe, get rid of the old and get new, and make a bird's contribution, just for longevity." Here, the saying that "bears borrow birds" means that people can prolong their life by imitating the actions of bears climbing trees and birds stretching their feet.

The "Guide Map" unearthed from Mawangdui No.3 Han Tomb is also a set of maps explaining physical exercise movements, with more than 40 postures painted on it, some of which seem to imitate the movements of animals. Hua tuo summed up the achievements of these predecessors and sorted out a set of systematic routines. The earliest records of "Wuqinxi" are The History of the Later Han Dynasty and The History of the Three Kingdoms, but there is no specific exercise method. During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, Tao Hongjing recorded the movements of Wuqinxi in the Book of Health Preservation.

There are 54 movements in Hua Tuo's Five Animals Play, which are divided into five sets: one set is a tiger play, which imitates the tiger's movements, such as shaking his head, wagging his tail, flapping his press and turning over his bucket, so as to exercise his limbs;

The second is the deer play, which imitates the deer's movements, such as leaning, leaning back, running and turning around. To exercise the neck and stretch your bones;

The third is bear play, which imitates the movements of bears, such as shaking, resisting leaning and walking. Exercise the lumbar spine to enhance physical strength;

The fourth is ape play, which imitates the movements of monkeys, such as jumping over mountain streams, climbing trees and branches, picking peaches and offering fruits. Exercise joints to make limbs more flexible;

The fifth is the crane play, which imitates the movements of cranes, such as bright wings, light flying and falling geese. , used to exercise the chest and enhance cardiopulmonary function.

Conclusion: By imitating the posture of these five animals, people's back, waist, limbs and joints can be stretched and the whole body can be exercised. Regular practice of wuqinxi will get the effect of strengthening the body.

It is said that Hua Tuo's disciple, Wu Pu, was originally an official's child, unable to carry his shoulders or raise his hand, and was weak, so Hua Tuo taught him five-animal play. Upp insisted on following the teacher's method for decades, and when he was nearly 90 years old, he was still hale and hearty. After more than two thousand years of inheritance and improvement, Wuqinxi has become a popular fitness gymnastics, which is widely circulated among the people.