Thankfully we all breathe.
But did you know that the way you breathe can either enhance your life force,
Your vitality,
And your health or it can deplete those things.
Just like we do physical exercises to strengthen our bodies and mental exercises to strengthen our minds,
We can do breathing exercises that will strengthen our lungs,
Our lung capacity,
And the life force that flows through us.
We can retrain the way that we breathe.
And in doing so,
We can live healthier and more fulfilled lives.
So let's get into a comfortable seat or lie down and we'll try it out.
Close your eyes if you're able and take a moment just to establish a longer,
Smoother breath.
Closing the lips gently or resting the tongue on the roof of the mouth encourages all the breath to flow in and out of your nose,
Which is the number one way to make your breath healthier.
The nose is meant for breathing.
When all the breath flows in and out of the nose,
It brings more nitric oxide into the bloodstream,
Which helps the blood to flow more freely and efficiently through the body.
So if you're a mouth breather,
This is the number one technique to begin to make your breath healthier.
Notice where you're feeling the breath entering and exiting your body.
So that might be the nose,
Might be in the throat.
You might even be able to feel it as it travels all the way into the lungs,
Feeling the chest rise and fall.
You might even be able to feel the rise and fall of the abdomen.
You might feel it all.
So often when the breath isn't as efficient as it could be,
We only feel it in the nose or in the upper chest.
To begin to retrain the breath in a healthier manner,
We want to begin to involve the diaphragm,
Which is the main breathing muscle.
So as you inhale next,
See if you can allow your belly to expand.
And as you exhale,
Allow the belly to just naturally draw back toward the spine.
Inhaling,
We allow the belly to rise.
Exhaling,
We gently let it drop back.
And continuing like this,
Training or retraining the diaphragm.
As the muscle of the diaphragm pulls down to expand those lungs as you inhale,
As you inhale,
The belly naturally protrudes.
And as the diaphragm releases,
The lungs shrink,
The air is pushed out,
And the belly naturally releases back.
And this type of breathing,
This diaphragmatic breathing,
Also beautifully relaxes the nervous system,
Brings us into a healthier state to be as full,
As comfortable,
And empty the breath as completely as is comfortable,
Without forcing,
Without straining.
And there's a gentle expansion and a gentle contraction as you release and soften.
Excellent work.
Let go of any effort,
Your body to breathe for you in any way that it wants.
In just a few minutes every day,
With practice,
You can retrain the way that you breathe on a day-to-day basis.
And as you do that,
Your own breath will keep you healthier,
Enhance your health,
And maintain your health,
Both physically and mentally.
So feel free to revisit this practice as often as you'd like.
It can only benefit you.
I hope you feel good.
I hope you continue to feel good.
I'll see you next time.
Namaste.
