A guest article by Ines
Breath is life. Our earthly life begins and ends with it. The yogic full breathing, which I will show you instructions for today, supports your natural breathing, expands it and allows you to send your breath to all regions of your body. It can help you to be very aware of your breathing and teach you how to be more mindful of your breathing.
You can find out more about yogic full breathing, why the HOW – the quality of breathing – is crucial and which four phases make up our breathing in this post on my blog.
Before I show you how to use yogic full breathing, I would like to tell you to be attentive and mindful of yourself, your body and your breathing while you do it. You will notice that your breathing volume increases, but this is not a competition. The aim is not to dive into the depths with your next breath, but to find the framework that is accessible and beneficial for you and your body.
So let’s get started!
01 Sitting upright or lying on your back
You can choose to sit upright or lie on your back as your basic position. If you choose to sit upright, sit slightly higher on a block, meditation cushion or blanket. This will support your pelvis, let go of your hips, ground your ischial tuberosities and help your spine to become more straight. If you start lying on your back, place a blanket on your mat and/or on your body so that you don't get cold, or use it to support your head. You can also place a bolster under your knees so that your lower back can relax and reach the floor.
Your hands rest gently on your thighs or knees (sitting position) or long next to your body (supine position), with your palms facing upwards (openness, reception) or downwards (grounding, rooting).
Let your attention wander inwards, towards your breath. It flows in a natural rhythm. Take on the role of a silent observer and follow your breaths: your inhalation, the fresh and cool air and your exhalation, the warm air as it leaves your body. To keep the focus on your breathing, use a mantra, such as "I breathe in" - "I breathe out" or even shorter "In" with each inhalation and "Out" with each exhalation.
Stay here for about 1 minute. Take this time to calm your mind, settle in and prepare for the yogic full breathing.
02 Abdominal breathing
Place your hands gently on your lower abdomen, the area below your belly button. Concentrate on this area, direct your breathing right here. Breathe in deeply and notice how your stomach rises upwards. Breathe out and notice how your stomach sinks back inwards. Your core remains relaxed.
Try to make your breathing deeper with each breath. Breathe calmly and evenly into your stomach, then breathe out calmly and evenly.
Keep your attention on this deep abdominal breathing. Give it time. Stay here for a few more breaths. Deeply in, deeply out.
03 Flank breathing
Now move your hands and your attention a little further up, towards your lateral outer rib arches.
As with abdominal breathing, you now send each breath to this area. With each inhalation, your side ribs expand, you create space, and with each exhalation, the rib arches sink back towards the body. Only breathe as deeply as you feel relaxed and calm.
Stay here for a few breaths.
04 Decollete/ collarbone breathing
Your hands and attention now move to the third breath point.
Position your hands on your décolleté so that your fingertips touch your collarbone, your fingertips point upwards towards your face, and your palms rest gently on your décolleté.
Breathe specifically into your chest. As you breathe in, your chest, collarbones and upper ribs rise. Your shoulders remain loose and relaxed. As you breathe out, the air flows out of your nose and everything nestles back against your body.
Maintain this breathing for a few breaths.
05 All together: abdominal, flank and collarbone breathing
Bring your hands back to the starting position and place them relaxed on your thighs, knees or next to your body. After you have created awareness of the three areas of the stomach, flanks and collarbones, it is now time to connect them with each other.
If you do this exercise while sitting, straighten your spine upwards and relax your shoulders and face.
Breathe in and direct the fresh air first into your lower abdomen, then fill your sides and finally your chest rises.
When you exhale, take the opposite approach. First the chest sinks, then the flanks and finally the lower abdomen.
Stay with this breathing for a while, moving through your body in waves. Up and down, until it fills your body evenly and then leaves it again.
06 Back to the natural breathing rhythm and the here and now
Slowly reduce your breathing volume and mindfully return to your natural breathing. Stay here for a few breaths, relaxed and calm, just for you. How does your breathing feel now? How do you feel?
Sitting: When you feel ready, begin to gently open your eyes and bring your consciousness back into the room. You have been sitting for a long time now. Time for a balance: How about a few rounds of cow cat, pelvic circles and downward dog (Adho Mukkha Svanasana)?
Lying down: Begin to gently wake up your body with light movements in your hands and feet, stretch your arms back and your feet forward. Sit upright on your side, slowly open your eyes. Welcome back!
Through yogic full breathing and generally through pranayama you create an awareness of your breathing and the volume of your breathing. You train your attention, your ability to concentrate and your focus. Yogic full breathing can give you peace, relaxation, balance and help you achieve high-quality breathing.
Once you have established full breathing in a resting state, you can also integrate your breathing into your asana practice. If breath and movement flow together, you can achieve a relaxed, even meditative state in your practice and beyond that in your everyday life.
Wishing you lots of joy & easy breathing
Ines
Ines
Ines is a trained Vinyasa yoga teacher and lives in Berlin. It is a matter close to her heart to enable people to find their own approach to yoga. For Ines, yoga is a journey to oneself that involves mindfulness and respect for oneself and the environment. She wants to show how multifaceted yoga is and how it fits into everyone's everyday life.
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