Breathing the mind-body connection

As some people are going to start or take few classes, and because it is good for all of us to review ideas and concepts, we will return to talk about the importance of conscious breathing in the practice of yoga and in life in general.

For a first contact with this subject we usually start breathing deeply, through the nose whenever possible, and observing. Paying attention to the sensations provoked by this breathing, feeling how our trunk moves with each inhalation and exhalation. We begin to become more aware of our own breathing, that of that moment.

Then we usually work the breathing in parts, the abdominal, thoracic and clavicular. This serves to improve body consciousness, to improve the mind-body connection in terms of knowing how to move what I want to move. Believe me, it's not always as simple as it might seem.

We work with tranquility, placing our hands in the different areas of the trunk to feel better the movement we seek.

At the same time we observe the different sensations produced by each of these breaths.

Finally we practice complete or yogic breathing, feeling how we can be able to expand our lungs from bottom to top and how we can empty them from top to bottom, putting all our attention on each gesture.

Yogic breathing is the most complete we can consciously perform but we cannot keep it in unconscious breathing, the natural one. To ensure a good oxygenation in our day to day we have to observe that our abdomen moves when breathing, this means that we breathe with the diaphragm, muscle that moves the lungs from below and makes us use the full length of them to introduce air into them.

Once we have seen how we breathe and how we can improve our unconscious breathing we go on to perform a small test.

It is a very simple practice that says a lot about what our lung capacity is like in the present moment.

To perform this practice we will begin by taking a few deep breaths and continue inhaling naturally, retaining the air inside the lungs (counting mentally to two) and exhaling more slowly. We will repeat this a few times to get used to this rhythm. From an indication I will give you will have to start counting each complete breath you take (inhale, hold and release). To count you will be able to help from the fingers of your hands. This practice is maintained for five minutes and once finished we move on to talk about the result.

The resulting figure is not decisive, it is only information that we have to use and receive objectively, without seeking comparisons or judgments. The idea is that the number of breaths has to be low, as long as we have done them in a comfortable and relaxing way, without forcing.

This practice serves to be aware of our lung capacity, whether we have relaxed when doing it or not, if it has been difficult to maintain concentration when counting or not, and so on.

And it is that a wide and fluid breathing is key to have good health, good emotional balance, etc.etc..

As added information I usually mention why it is important to have a good lung capacity. The lungs serve as a "second pump" for our heart. This means that if we have a large lung capacity we are also putting large amounts of blood into the lungs to perform the exchange of gases. When we exhale and the oxygen-laden blood is directed to the heart so that the heart has to make less effort to pump it to the rest of the body. The heart is a muscle that needs to be cared for. Since it works automatically, it is good to understand that we can manage the effort it has to make to keep us alive every day through our unconscious breathing. So it is a good reason to observe the quality of our breathing.

After the nasal respiration takes place the internal breathing, which the cells perform, the greater our lung capacity, the more oxygen will reach them, so that their functioning will be more efficient. Everyone knows that the cells do whatever it takes to survive, if they do not receive enough oxygen they seek life to continue to do its job, mutate to be able to live with the carbon dioxide that we accumulate in our bad breath. This triggers many diseases. To keep in mind.

In addition to these data I have collected some curiosities about our respiratory system. I think that knowing these known but forgotten data, or simply those that we have not paid attention to, will help to know our body better, to have more respect and affection for the work it does for us every day.

Did you know that the average lung capacity in an adult person is three litres of air and that in one minute we move from five to six litres. If I remember correctly, Miguel Induráin, in his time as a professional cyclist, had a capacity of five litres! At rest!

Another curiosity, in our daily breathing we lose almost half of the water we ingested that day. We only see our mist when it's cold, because of condensation, but that happens all the time. This is another fact that reminds us of the importance of being well hydrated from the inside.

We will also talk about why you should inhale and exhale through your nose, whenever possible. The nose is designed to breathe, has the hairs that act as filters, is further away than the mouth from the lungs and has a mucous membrane, both details allow the air to get warmer to the lungs. The mouth is an escape route, it helps the nose when it is not enough, without more. Breathing continuously through the mouth makes the air less filtered (more likelihood of contagious diseases), less hot, the throat dries out, etc..

Something that properly breathing is also very important is because it allows us to connect with our nervous system. A slow and deep breath connects us with the parasympathetic nervous system, which is activated when we go to sleep and responsible for regenerating our body.

When we are tired, altered, sad, ... our breathing is shorter and faster. When we are calm, relaxed, happy, ... our breathing is deeper and calmer.

Well, imagine being able to consciously manage our breathing in certain situations of life a little more stressful for whatever reason. It would be nice to be aware that we are accelerating and be able to start doing a breathing job that would allow us not to act without thinking and thus be able to make more thoughtful decisions and not so impulsive and automatic, right?

There are people who live in a constant state of stress and are not aware of it. This means that they are taking their nervous system to the limit, with the possible consequences that this may have. It is also worth reflecting on.