Do you have breathing-related issues, stress, acidity, muscle tightness, low levels of energy? Then learn how to breathe. We all breathe to live. However, do we explore how we breathe? Do you breathe from your mouth or nostrils during your day-to-day activities, when you are straining on your treadmill or stationary bike in the gym, or during your Rod pose Four limbs during Yoga, have you observed how you breathe?
The way you breathe can calm your nervous system, reduce stress hormones, still your mind, rebalance your inner energies and improve cardio fitness. Whether you want to deal with acid reflux, obesity, thyroid, hypertension, work stress or similar issues firstly learn to breath the correct way.
Start by counting how many times you breathe in a minute and note it down. As you start practicing breath control techniques (of which there are many) monitor your breathing rate per minute, it is a good indicator of inner stress, cardio fitness, and hormonal health. Here are four rules of breathing to remember.
Rule 1: Breath from your nostrils
Always breath from the nostrils and not from the mouth. Occasionally you may exhale from the mouth, especially if you are straining hard and there is a buildup of carbon dioxide. However, with practice, even this will not be necessary. Remember people who breathe from the mouth are prone to mental issues such as depression and anxiety
Rule 2: Practice Diaphragm breathing
Most people take shallow breaths by thoracic breathing or worst still inhaling through the mouth. Diaphragm breathing is done by inhaling through the nostrils to fill the stomach (not just the chest area), expanding the abdominal muscles, and then exhaling from the stomach by contracting the abdominal muscles. This technique can be taught to anyone at any age and will result in relaxation of shoulder, neck, abdominal, and lower back muscles and the nervous system
Rule 3: Do some high-intensity movements with nostril breathing
Improve your ability to do nostril breathing even under physical stress by gradually increasing the intensity of your exercise while doing entirely nostril breathing. Whether you are doing a sequence of Yoga asanas(postures) one after another rapidly or jogging in the park, increase the intensity gradually.
Do short duration (20 to 30 seconds) high-intensity activity with short breaks in between. Observe how long it takes for you to stop panting after a session of 30 seconds of high-intensity movement. The shorter the duration to stop panting, the fitter you are becoming. Some people may need 5 to 30 seconds, to stop panting while some people may need a few minutes to stop panting, depending on the level of fitness). In my yoga sessions be it for seniors or younger attendees I encourage all to do a few minutes of high-intensity movements using a sequence of poses. Remember high intensity is relative, you do not have to train like an athlete. The hormones to you generate during this activity will last you for a day or two and will help in your moods as well and physical fitness.
Rule 4: Practice Prana Yama
Learn the various Prana Yama techniques from an experienced teacher and practice them to experience a variety of benefits. There are techniques that are not suitable for everyone and then there are techniques that all can practice, irrespective of their age or physical condition. These practices balance your inner energies and provide several benefits for the mind, frontal cortex area of your brain, nervous system, hormonal system to name a few.
If you wish to know more about breathing, attend our Prana Yama workshop on 19th and 26th June 2021,
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Whether you ae looking for Beginners Yoga Sessions, Seniors Yoga, Yoga for experienced practitioners , Corporate Yoga for your employees, Yoga for Athletes in your sports team or on topics related to Health, Wellbeing and Nutrition, at Sanatana Yoga Academy we can formulate customised plans for you and deliver them as Live Yoga sessions or Online Yoga sessions and Online Workshops. Visit us on www.sanatanayoga.com.au or email me at sanatanayogaacademy@gmail.com or call our Founder Narendra on +61438496040. If you are overseas or interstate, you can call Narendra on Whatsapp to save call charges.
