The Number One Form of Self Care

We can change our posture and health simply by changing the way we breath.

How to identify if you are using the right muscles when you breath:

-Locate the diaphragm by placing your hands lightly around the lower rib cage.
-Now take a big inhale

If you notice that you initiate your breath from your shoulders and they move up, more than your ribs expand out or you find that it is difficult to take a deep breath without initiating from your shoulders, then you are likely using secondary breathing muscles and your diaphragm could use some training and reeducation.

Other common symptoms of poor breathing pattern include but are not limited to head aches, tight neck and chest muscles, anxiety, depression, fatigue, sleep disorders and digestive problems.

Breathing is the foundation of all movement and functions of the body. When we are not breathing well, we are not living well. The breath goes through many adaptations a day. Some times the breath gets stuck and does not return to normal function. This is common when responsibilities pile up and the mind races, through repetitive activities or when we don’t let go of an emotional experience and stressful states. Because we have voluntary control of respiration, we can use it as a tool in our health care program to help restore healthy respiration. Different types of breathing styles facilitate different functions and activities.

Types of Breath Techniques and Applications:

1. Holding the Breath, is good for heavy load baring activities like lifting weights or quick movements because it creates a back pressure that supports the integrity of the spine. Holding a deep breath will also increase lung capacity and is used to train deep sea divers.

2. Directing the inhale or exhale, deliberately trains the capacity of the lungs and stretches and strengthens the diaphragm. This is commonly used in cardio training, child birth, lifting weight, regulating extreme emotions and pain control. It focuses the mind with a goal. Often this directed breathing is performed with a set count like 5 seconds of inhalation and 5 seconds for exhalation. The number seconds will vary based on needs, ability and practice.

3. Passive breathing, is the ability to allow the breath to move uninhibited and without directly trying to change it. This is the breath that we should use all day as well as for creating states of relaxation. It involves the ability to deepen the breath by moving out of the way and trying to release tension in the body so that the breath can fill the lungs fully with very little effort. The motto for this style is make the breath ‘long, smooth, slow, deep and even.

In the beginning brining attention to the breath is usually easier to practice in a comfortable quiet place or where you can focus easily. As you get more accustomed to breathing, practice it throughout the day. For example in the car at a stop light, in the grocery line, just before bed, during exercise. The more you practice the more you will restore your natural respiration and support a happy life.

Learning How to Relax

How much challenge is too much? How much emotional, physical or psychological stress can one handle?

The question is not how much challenge can we handle but how well can we recover and return to homeostasis after we have been challenged? One of the first questions I ask my clients is how do you relax. Most are taken back by the question because in the fitness industry, it is only recently that the value of relaxation has been recognized by medical health professionals to be directly related to our ability to have a healthy and happy life.

The ability to relax and recovery from a sympathetic nervous system stimulation varies from person to person and is influenced by a host of factors including but not limited to history, temperament, and type of challenge. What is stressful for one person may be difficult for another person to assimilate. Knowing what challenges you and tracking your reaction is key. Do this by listening to how your biology responds. Does your heart rate increase, can you sense tension in your body, is your breathing restricted?

Exercise: Practice a full body scan. Begin in a comfortable place where you can focus on your body like in your bed, chair, or lying on the floor. Start by tensing the muscle in your feet, then while maintaing the tension in your feet began to tense your entire leg. Then both legs are tense. Continue to systematically tensing the muscles in your body until your entire body is tense. Once every muscle is tightened, hold a few seconds, then all at once relax everything. Let go of all the tension more and more, breathing freely and deeply. Repeat the exercise until you feel a deep sense of release on the letting go phase of the exercise.

This exercise will help you to learn what tension feels like and what relaxation feels like. Practice checking in on your state of relaxation throughout your day. This is a good beginning in learning how to sense your body, feeling the contrast between contraction and release.