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Breathing Exercises
DEEP ABDOMINAL BREATHING
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A) Lie on your back with
your hand on your stomach, between your navel and the bottom of
your breastbone.
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B) Inhale through your nose and
push your stomach out so that you can feel your hand rise. (Do to
a count of 4)
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C) Exhale through your mouth so
you can feel your hand on your stomach drop as your diaphragm
displaces the air in your lungs. (Do to a count of 8)
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D) Continue at your own rate for
5-10 minutes to begin with. Gradually over time work up to 15-30
minutes per day.
Mastering this basic technique
is critical to receiving the maximum benefit of the more complex
exercises to come.
 Deep
abdominal breathing is also called Diaphragmatic breathing. This
is differentiated from Thoracic (chest) breathing. Using the
diaphragm to breathe uses significantly less energy than using
chest and rib muscles and allows more blood to be oxygenated in
less time. If you use only the top third of the lungs you are
oxygenating only about 1 tablespoon (15 ml) per second, if you use
the top two-thirds of the lungs you are oxygenating about a pint
(16 oz.) (960 ml.) Per second, if you now include the lower third
of the lungs you are oxygenating over a quart at least (32 oz.)
(1920ml) per second.
When your breathing becomes
short and shallow you are creating an oxygen deficit. You may feel
light headed, dizzy, anxious and nervous as experienced earlier.
This lack of oxygen affects reflex time, hand and eye
coordination, visual acuity, balance, movement and judgment. As
stressors build we sometimes slip out of deep abdominal breathing,
which only serves to complicate the situation. We seemed to have
been trained out of abdominal breathing. How many times have we
heard “chest out, stomach in” when we were growing up. This looks
nice but what we did not realize of course is that we were also
changing the way we breathe.
CURLED TONGUE BREATHING
Here is another breathing exercise:
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A) Sit or lie in a comfortable
position, close your eyes, relax and place your hands in your lap
or at your sides.
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B) Extend your tongue out of
your mouth and roll it into a "U" shape so as to almost make a
tube. (If you cannot roll your tongue into a "U" shape, do the
inhale through the nose).
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C) Inhale through the rolled
tongue in eight separate movements. (At about 2 movements per
second) (You will really feel this in your diaphragm)
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D) Now exhale through the nose
in eight separate movements. (At about 2 movements per second)
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E) Repeat the sequence and
continue for about 5 minutes. You will notice some very
interesting internal changes taking place. (This exercise releases
tension, stimulates metabolism and increases energy level and
healing)
ALTERNATE NOSTRIL BREATHING
This balances brain hemispheres, produces relaxation and
centeredness. Produces clearer prospective and may help with
angina pain.
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A) Sit or lie in a comfortable
position. Keep the spine straight.
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B) Close your eyes and focus on
the point where your nose and eyebrows intersect.
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C) With your left hand in your
lap or at your side, place the thumb of your right hand so that it
closes your right nostril.
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D) Inhale for a count of four
through your open left nostril.
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E) Remove; your thumb and close
your left nostril with middle finger of your right hand. Now
exhale through your open right nostril for a count of eight.
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F) After the count of eight and
continuing to keep the left nostril closed, inhale for a count of
four through your open right nostril.
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G) Close the right nostril again
and exhale through the now open left nostril for a count of eight.
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H) Continue this pattern for
three to five minutes initially. Gradually work up to ten or
twelve minutes. Stop if you begin to feel dizzy.
(Hint - the pattern is: inhale left nostril, exhale right nostril,
inhale right nostril, exhale left, inhale left and back to exhale
right, etc. The nostril change is always on the exhale.)
BREATHING FOR ENERGY
This exercise increases energy and reduces sluggishness.
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A) Stand erect but relaxed, with
your hands at your sides.
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B) Simultaneously begin a slow
steady inhalation through your nose and at the same time raise
your arms out to your side, with the palms facing down. Raise your
arms until they reach shoulder height.
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C) Continuing to inhale, move
your arms forward until your thumbs meet out in front of your
chest. The arms extended and still at shoulder height.
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D) Raise your arms vertically
until your fingers are pointing straight up, directly over your
head. Hold your breath momentarily.
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E) While leaving your hands
above your head, exhale through your mouth while dropping your
head, neck and shoulders down and slightly forward.
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F) Do ten repetitions of this
exercise. Coordinate your breathing and arm movements so they are
done at a smooth pace.
The more your practice these exercises, the faster you will
achieve the desired mental, emotional or physical state you
desire. The nervous system, like muscles, becomes more efficient
at producing the desired results over time with spaced repetition.
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