Doesn't that sound easy? Now pay attention as you go through your day. Are you breathing? Maybe not. All of the anxiety that fills the world sometimes causes us to hold our breath. At the core of yoga is connecting with the breath. It keeps you present rather than leaving in your mind.
How often do we connect to our breath on a daily basis? For me, it was not very often prior to yoga. In fact, I had bouts of bronchitis all while growing up. It probably didn't help that I was raised in a home with several smokers. Eventually I developed asthma. I kept my inhaler by my side all the time. Since starting yoga, my inhaler travels with me, but is rarely used. I have increased my lung capacity through pranayama, or deep breathing. For so many years, I could not take a deep breath. Now, during pranayama in yoga class, I can feel the bottom lobes of my lungs as oxygen fills them. Something so simple, right?
Breathing and the Lungs (excerpt from Bikram Yoga, 2007, p. 80)
"Improving the function of the lungs is almost always the first repair that needs doing. That's why the first thing we practice is pranayama, a breathing exercise that increases your puny lung capacity. Don't feel bad; you and your lungs shouldn't take that personally. Most people spend their entire lives rarely using more than 50 percent of their total lung capacity. In the beginning your lungs will feel tight and small, which is perfectly normal. With each additional class, you will find that your breath becomes deeper and fuller. Your lungs are like balloons - they must be properly inflated and stretched to become more flexible and capable of holding and processing more oxygen with greater efficiency."
Improved breathing improves every part of your life. You will be able to exercise longer, feel more energized and awake, and oxygen will be delivered to all of your extremities more efficiently. Try it. Just breathe.
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