What is Qigong? Is it a breath exercise? A meditation? Exercise? A martial art? 

Qigong was originally intended and used as medicine for the internal organs and to build Qi, or the Life Force energy. Qi is an "energy" that exists in all living things, and even exists in the world as a whole. Qi seems mysterious, but it is very real, and almost anyone can learn to feel their own Qi with practice.  

Qigong is the older twin brother of Taiji or Tai Chi, which is more popularly known in the West. Taiji is a martial arts adaptation of Qigong. People say that Qigong is for building energy and Taiji is for moving it around, but really both do both things. Taiji and Qigong are two sides of the same thing. 

Qigong is extremely meditative. Often, people otherwise unaccustomed to meditating can find themselves in a deeply meditative state after 30 minutes of Qigong. Doing Qigong in groups seems to amplify this effect.

After I started practicing Qigong daily, I started noticing some changes in my body. My shoulders, which have always been stiff and which had impeded my martial arts practice, loosened up and relaxed. My knees loosened up dramatically. There have been other, spiritual effects as well.

It has been easier to find Qigong teachers in recent years, although you are probably still out of luck unless you are in a major city. If you can find a good teacher of Qigong or Tai Chi, you will find that practicing these arts is a worthwhile undertaking.