Find a comfortable position.
Maybe sitting down or laying down.
Whatever feels good.
Find a nice straight spine and a relaxed body.
Close the eyes or find a nice soft gaze.
Perhaps set an intention for your practice.
Something like I am calm.
Maybe I release anxiety.
Or I am presence.
You may revisit this intention anytime as we move along throughout the practice.
The first part of our session will be diaphragmatic breathing or belly breathing.
To begin,
We'll place one hand on the chest and the other on the belly.
As we inhale deeply through the nose,
Allowing the belly to rise while keeping the chest relatively still.
Exhaling slowly through the mouth,
Feeling the belly fall.
Repeat this process for 5 rounds or so.
Inhaling,
Feeling the belly rise.
Exhaling,
Noticing how the belly falls.
Inhale.
Exhale.
Exhale.
At your own pace.
One more round wherever you are.
Pausing.
Coming back to your natural breath.
Our next breathing technique will be the 4-7-8 breath.
We'll inhale quietly through our nose for a mental count of 4,
Holding the breath at the top for a count of 7,
Before exhaling completely for a count of 8.
Repeating this cycle for 4 rounds of breath,
Increasing gradually for 8 rounds as we become more comfortable.
Let's begin.
Inhale.
1,
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7.
Exhale.
2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8.
Again.
Inhale.
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7.
Exhale.
2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8.
2 rounds on your own,
At your own pace.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Nice.
Let's take a few rounds of breath here,
Breathing naturally,
Before starting our next exercise,
Which will be box breathing,
Or sometimes called square breathing.
During this breath,
We'll inhale for a count of 4,
Hold for a count of 4,
Exhale for a count of 4,
Hold for a count of 4,
And repeat.
Here we go.
Inhale.
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
2,
3,
4.
Exhale.
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
2,
3,
4.
If it helps,
Maybe with your index finger,
Draw a box as we go along.
Let's go.
Inhale.
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
2,
3,
4.
Exhale.
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
2,
3,
4.
Two more,
On your own.
Inhale.
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
2,
3,
4.
Exhale.
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
2,
3,
4.
Inhale.
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
2,
3,
4.
Exhale.
2,
3,
4.
Hold.
And begin to breathe naturally.
You can repeat this box breathing for as many rounds as you'd like.
Maybe change up the numbers if you'd like to adjust to a longer hold or a shorter hold.
Our next breathing exercise will be alternate nostril breathing,
Also known as Nadi Shodhana.
We'll begin this exercise by using our right thumb to close off our right nostril,
Inhaling deeply through our left nostril,
Followed by closing the left nostril with our ring finger,
Releasing the right,
Exhaling through the right nostril,
Inhaling through the right nostril,
Right nostril,
Closing off the right nostril,
Releasing the left nostril,
Exhale through the left,
And continuing this pattern for 5-10 cycles.
Let's begin by taking a nice big inhale,
Filling up the lungs,
And exhaling everything out.
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If the eyes are closed you can flutter them back open slowly begin to become aware of your surroundings take a few moments just to notice how you feel express gratitude for taking this time for yourself maybe gently stretch the arms the legs thank you so much for sharing this brief pranayama practice with me may you carry this sense of calm and relaxation with you as you go about your day namaste
