You may not notice your breathing before you start yoga.
However, under the guidance of the yoga teacher, or just because of your new understanding of the body, you will see changes in breathing.
Is it quiet or noisy, heavy or soft? Where does it come from and how does it move in your body? Does it make you relaxed or nervous? Help or hinder your posture practice? Through yoga, we know that breathing can have a great impact on your body and mind.
For example, when you are nervous or alert, you may hold your breath first, and then take a quick and shallow breath.
Breathing is slower, softer, and more stable and even when relaxing.
This deep, slow, relaxed breathing style is commonly used in the corpse pose and other restorative yoga poses.
However, to provide oxygen to muscles through a series of exercises (such as the sun worship), we also need a faster deep breathing mode.
The most subtle is that breathing is a deep breathing with fine control.
For best results, all modes require open breathing space (ribs and abdomen) and good coordination of several muscle groups.
Understanding that your respiratory diaphragm is between your trunk and muscles is the key to establishing a breathing pattern.
The diaphragm stretches at the bottom of the chest like a tympanum, separating the upper heart and lungs from the abdominal cavity and lower digestive organs.
Then, the muscle fibers extend into the middle of the body and converge on the central tendons that do not attach to the bones.
When relaxed, the diaphragm will bend upward like a dome.
As it contracts, it shortens and flattens, pushing the lower digestive organs and lengthening the upper chest.
This expansion of the chest draws air into the lungs.
The lungs do not have the ability to expand or contract on their own.
They just react to the container, to the size and shape of the chest.
When it expands, the lungs expand and air rushes in to fill the vacuum.
As they contract, the lungs are compressed and air is pushed out.
To feel the diaphragm, lie on your back.
Fully relax your abdomen, place your hands on your abdomen, and feel the breath.
Breathe in gently while relaxing the diaphragm.
When the diaphragm relaxes, it will return to its dome shape, and when you exhale, your abdomen will fall gently.
In order to breathe fully, the diaphragm and some auxiliary muscles must work together to keep the ribs expanding in all directions.
Auxiliary muscles include the sternocleidomastoid muscle, which forms a V shape in the front of the neck, extending from the top of the sternum and clavicle to the bottom of the skull behind the ear.
It’s easy to see that they work.
Stand in front of the mirror, exposing your neck.
At the end of the deep inhalation, you will see the sternocleidomastoid muscle contract.
As the diaphragm lengthens the chest from below, they lift the ribs.
This expansion of the chest is also assisted by intercostals, which are three layers of small muscles that span adjacent ribs.
As they contract, they lift each rib up and away from the center of the body, providing vertical and lateral expansion of the chest.
You also need strong back muscles to help you breathe deeply.
The spine is a solid cylinder that supports the upward and outward expansion of the ribs.
The upright spine muscles extend up to both sides of the spine, supporting the spine and ribs as a stay wire.
When you bend down, head forward and chest collapses, your posture will severely limit your ability to breathe deeply.
The collapsed chest exerts pressure on the diaphragm, limiting the function of the diaphragm and hindering the expansion of the ribs.
Short, tight abdominal muscles also limit breathing.
In fact, most chronic or acute pain is accompanied by abnormal breathing patterns.
Yoga can help improve your breathing style, and a good breathing style can greatly improve the quality of yoga practice.
Whether you are practicing quiet, relaxed posture (such as forward bending), exciting posture (such as backward bending) or subtle breathing exercises, one of the most important steps to improve breathing is to release the diaphragm by opening the chest and upper limbs.
Since it is more challenging to open your chest when standing or sitting down, it is best to lie down.
Lie lengthwise on the cushion.
Your hips should be on the floor, with the end of the occipital bone supporting your lowest rear rib just above your waist.
The support of the mat will open space for the diaphragm without any contraction.
Place a folded blanket or sturdy pillow under your head to lower your chin a little bit than your forehead.
This head position will help guide the focus inward and focus your attention on breathing.
When you relax and firm on the pillow, please note that your breathing will become more and more slow and smooth.
Each time you breathe, your abdomen should rise and fall gently.
This relaxed, slow and smooth breathing quality indicates that the nervous system is relaxed.
You can use it to promote the release of muscle tension in stretching poses such as forward bends and backward bends.
With the joint action of diaphragm and intercostal muscles, you may feel the ribs expand upward and outward slightly each time you inhale.
Chest expansion is the main action required for breathing.
The abdomen should remain relaxed and most of the volume increase occurs in the ribs.
Most of us need months or years of practice to make this breathing pattern smooth and almost effortless.
Now, pay attention to exhaling.
During physical activity, the respiratory rate increases.
Air must be expelled from the lungs quickly to make room for more incoming air.
The abdomen and some intercostal muscles contract to help compress the chest and expel air.
However, during quiet, relaxed breathing, there is no need to squeeze.
As usual, we use muscle energy to expand our lungs.
All the muscles in the abdomen that help us breathe can be completely relaxed in the process of relaxing and exhaling.
As you become more relaxed and your breathing becomes quieter, check how hard it takes to inhale each time.
Until it becomes effortless to exhale in order to provide an opportunity for complete relaxation.
When breathing becomes relaxed and relaxed, you can start to spread the corpse, regulate breath or meditate…
