Nashville Nutrition and Emotional Wellness
Breathing Exercises
How important is breathing! OK besides the obvious!!
A 20% reduction in oxygen blood levels may be caused by the aging process and normal breathing habits. Poor breathing robs energy and negatively affects mental alertness. Unless breathing is exercised, aging affects the respiratory system as follows:
Stiffness: The rib cage and surrounding muscle get stiff causing inhalation to become more difficult. Less elasticity and weak muscle leaves stale air in the tissues of the lungs and prevents fresh oxygen from reaching the blood stream.
Rapid, Shallow Breathing: This type of breathing, often caused by poor posture and weak or stiff muscles, leads to poor oxygen supply, respiratory disease, sluggishness, or heart disease.
Breathing exerciser's are one of the best defense against stress and anxiety. I will attempt to post a series of breathing exercise I hope you will find useful.
Belly Breath Exercises!
The following exercises are simple ways to deepen breathing and to cleanse the lungs. These exercises will also increase energy and decrease tension.
Lie flat on your back to get a proper sense of deep breathing. Have some small pillows available to reduce strain by tucking them under the neck and knees. The natural course of breathing in that position will create a slight rise in the stomach upon inhaling and a slight fall upon exhaling.
Place your hands plam down on your stomach at the base of the rib cage. Tthe lungs go that far down. What fills them deeper is the pushing down of the diaphragm. The diaphragm creates a suction which draws air into the lungs. The air is then expelledwhen the diaphragm pushes up. In this process, the life-giving oxygen fills the lungs and gets into the blood stream for distribution to the cells. Carbon dioxide is expelled fro the blood into the about-to-be exhaled breath, thus causing cleansing the body and blood of waste products. Lay the palms of your hands on your stomach just below the rib cage, middle finger barely touching each other, and take a slow deep breath. As the diaphragm pushes down, the stomach will slightly expand causing the fingertips to seperate somewhat.
This movement indicates full use of the lungs, resulting in a truly deep breath rather than the "puffe chest" breath experienced by many as the greatest lung capacity. Chest breathing fills the middle and upper parts of the lungs. Belly breathing is the most efficient method. Infants and small children use only this method until the chest matures. The Yoga breath or roll breathing combines belly and chest breathing.
For best results, practice this exercise for 5 minutes.
More to come, I hope you find this of value.
C'ya Bob
A 20% reduction in oxygen blood levels may be caused by the aging process and normal breathing habits. Poor breathing robs energy and negatively affects mental alertness. Unless breathing is exercised, aging affects the respiratory system as follows:
Stiffness: The rib cage and surrounding muscle get stiff causing inhalation to become more difficult. Less elasticity and weak muscle leaves stale air in the tissues of the lungs and prevents fresh oxygen from reaching the blood stream.
Rapid, Shallow Breathing: This type of breathing, often caused by poor posture and weak or stiff muscles, leads to poor oxygen supply, respiratory disease, sluggishness, or heart disease.
Breathing exerciser's are one of the best defense against stress and anxiety. I will attempt to post a series of breathing exercise I hope you will find useful.
Belly Breath Exercises!
The following exercises are simple ways to deepen breathing and to cleanse the lungs. These exercises will also increase energy and decrease tension.
Lie flat on your back to get a proper sense of deep breathing. Have some small pillows available to reduce strain by tucking them under the neck and knees. The natural course of breathing in that position will create a slight rise in the stomach upon inhaling and a slight fall upon exhaling.
Place your hands plam down on your stomach at the base of the rib cage. Tthe lungs go that far down. What fills them deeper is the pushing down of the diaphragm. The diaphragm creates a suction which draws air into the lungs. The air is then expelledwhen the diaphragm pushes up. In this process, the life-giving oxygen fills the lungs and gets into the blood stream for distribution to the cells. Carbon dioxide is expelled fro the blood into the about-to-be exhaled breath, thus causing cleansing the body and blood of waste products. Lay the palms of your hands on your stomach just below the rib cage, middle finger barely touching each other, and take a slow deep breath. As the diaphragm pushes down, the stomach will slightly expand causing the fingertips to seperate somewhat.
This movement indicates full use of the lungs, resulting in a truly deep breath rather than the "puffe chest" breath experienced by many as the greatest lung capacity. Chest breathing fills the middle and upper parts of the lungs. Belly breathing is the most efficient method. Infants and small children use only this method until the chest matures. The Yoga breath or roll breathing combines belly and chest breathing.
For best results, practice this exercise for 5 minutes.
More to come, I hope you find this of value.
C'ya Bob
Hey Bob,
This is great useful information…. Thank you… Our friend Scott always reminds us to breathe… So now our dear friend Bob helps us do that easier…. Now if I can just figure out how not to fall asleep when I lie flat and grab two small available pillows…LOL
You know I have heard about poor breathing habits robbing energy and negatively affecting mental alertness. When I get completely stressed out, when I think about this, my breathing patterns do change. Isn’t that wild. Seems like there are so many things we have to learn to take control of in these complex bodies of ours…
So, where you been lately Bob? Haven’t seen much of you lately….
