Strengthen the container

There are a huge variety of Qigong forms and approaches. They range from the atheletic to the etheric.
I've always focussed on the physical over the mystical when it comes to health Qigong practices.
The body acts as a vessel to contain consciousness (Shen). As it says in the Tao De Jing's chapter 11 "a pot's value comes from emptiness." Qi arises when consciousness fills the body - the result of the two inertacting with each other.
The body nourishes the Qi which in return enables the body to move. The consciousness attracts the Qi which in return enables the consciousness to experience emotions.
To build an awareness of Qi, you need to train the mind to permeate the vessel. But to build Qi, you need to enlarge & strengthen the vessel. And a physical element within a practice is central to this line of thinking. Both consciousness and the physical form are amazing and inter-linked. So self-cultivation should not focus solely on one at the expense of the other.