Sounds kind of obvious, doesn’t it? After all you breath about 23,000 times every day—but it’s not whether you breathe that counts here, rather how you breathe.
Stress and pain cause most people to abandon the nice, deep, healthy breaths they should be taking, and replace them with shallow, tense respirations.
This is really ironic, as deep breaths can do so much for you.
What Happens When You Breathe
When you take a deep breath, several things occur:
- First, you deliver oxygen to tissues to provide energy for just about everything you do.
- Second, you mobilize your ribs and vertebrae—one of the simplest things you can do to relieve back and neck pain.
- Lastly, deep breaths activate a part of your lymphatic system called the thoracic duct, clearing all kinds of cellular waste products from your system.
All in all, a great opportunity to do something simple, free, and low effort, that will contribute to your well being.
I strongly encourage you to take a few moments, several times throughout your day to take a few deep, cleansing breaths.
How to Do It
- Standing with your feet slightly wider than your hips, shoulders back, take a slow deep breath, inhaling through your nose.
- Allow your rib cage to expand until you cannot take in any more air.
- Hold it for a few seconds, and then slowly blow out the air through slightly pursed lips until there is nothing left.
Take several of these breaths, and repeat this several times a day. You may be surprised great this can help you feel.
Andrew Kirschner, D.O., is a board-certified physician with a private practice in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania, and a consultancy in Miami, Florida. He specializes in treating individuals and couples with musculoskeletal and back pain. To learn more about his practice, please visit BackTogether.org.
From: Don’t Forget to Breathe! And How You Do It Matters (Whole Living Magazine)1 : The PranaMama | 5/21/10 at 1:54 pm
[...] Don’t Forget to Breathe! And How You Do It Matters from Whole Living, formerly, Body & Soul Magazine. [...]