Ever
wonder why people who sleep on their side always sleep on their RIGHT
side?
It's
because
lying on your right side encourages left nostril
breathing, which
activates the right side of the brain and helps you relax.
Don't believe me? Take a
survey of everyone at your work, and you'll
see it's
true.
Breathing Exercise: How to Chill
Out
Our goal today is to learn how to cool the body (generally we're
talking about
internal inflammation from stress and lame food), relax the body, and
find some
focus.
So let's get started:
Belly
Breathing
1 - Lie down on the floor, flat on your back, arms at your sides, palms
facing
up.
2 - Take your right hand at put it over your belly button. Relax
completely.
3 - Inhale completely but don't breathe into your chest... instead let
your
abdomen fill up as much as possible (this is difficult at first).
4 - Now exhale, allowing your belly to hollow out completely.
5 - Once you're comfortable with this motion (chest stays still, belly
fills
like a balloon, then empties completely), now we'll count the breaths.
6 - Inhale to the count of 1-2-3-4 *PAUSE* at the top. Now exhale to
the count
of 8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1. Again, inhale 1-2-3-4... *pause*... exhale
8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.
Do 10 rounds and then rest.
Chest
Breathing
1 - Lie down on the floor, flat on your back, arms at your sides, palms
facing
up.
2 - Take your right hand at put it over your belly button. Relax
completely.
3 - Inhale completely don't let your belly move, instead your chest
fills and
rises up toward your chin (this is usually easier than the previous
exercise).
4 - Now exhale, allowing your chest to fall toward the floor.
5 - Once you're comfortable with this motion (belly still, chest
inflating and
deflating), now we'll count the breaths.
6 - Inhale to the count of 1-2-3-4 *PAUSE* at the top, chest bulging.
Now
exhale to the count of 8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.
Again, inhale 1-2-3-4... *pause*... exhale 8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.
Do 10 rounds and then rest.
How This Works
A handful of scientists (and a boatload of yogis) have studied this
1-to-2
ratio breathing pattern (here we did 4 to 8 – same ratio), and what
they've
discovered is that by simply extending the exhale, it stimulates that
vagus
nerve and immediately has a calming effect on the body.
Is there more to learn?
Of course, but these two simple exercises take about 5 minutes to learn
and you
can do them anytime, anywhere (as long as your boss doesn't catch you
lying on
the floor under your cubicle with your finger under your nose – that
would be a
tough one to explain).
Stay
bendy,
Lucas
.
YOGABODY
NATURALS
P.S.
Ideally, breathing is done on an
empty stomach. Right after you wake up or right before bed are ideal
times. Ten
rounds of each practice will take you 10-15 minutes and you'll feel the
shift,
energetically, right away (at night, it's great for knocking yourself
out too).
