BREATHE EASY

It’s becoming quickly recognised that to get the most juice and productivity out of our days we need to take care of ourselves by creating gaps in our busy schedules to restore and replenish our energy stores. There is one ultimate restorative practice which is free and effective and that is conscious breathing.

Our breath is one of the few things we can easily access to shift us into a calmer relaxed state. Even one deep conscious breath can serve us as a mini meditation to help us to chill out before we burn out. Taking time throughout the day to just pause and take a few deep breaths allow us to enter into the next activity or interaction with fresh eyes, energy and enthusiasm. If the inevitable 3PM slump hits you- pause before you chug down the coffee, tea or chocolate bar & take a breather. Sitting up straight to breathe consciously only needs to happen for a few minutes each day to feel the benefits and it’s easy enough to do in your office chair! Here are some easy breathing exercises you can do at your desk.

Box Breathing or Navy SEAL Breathing

Box breathing is a technique used to calm yourself down with a simple 4 second rotation of breathing in, holding your breath, breathing out, holding your breath, and repeating.

1. Inhale for 4 seconds

2. Hold your lungs full for 4 seconds

3. Exhale for 4 seconds

4. Hold your lungs empty for 4 seconds

That’s it! Repeat for as many times as you need to calm down.

Deep Abdominal Breathing (Dan Tien Breathing)

Connect to your centre and re ground yourself.

  • Sit in a chair with the spine straight and bring both hands over the lower abdomen.

  • Breathe in and out through the nose.

  • Exhale all the way out to clear the lungs.

  • Then, inhale down into the lower abdomen so that the belly expands. This allows the diaphragm to relax and air to move into the deeper areas of the lungs.

  • Again, exhale and squeeze the air out from the lower abdomen.

  • Then, take in a full deep breath down into the lower abdomen. During this breathing exercise, keep the chest relaxed.

  • Visualize a golden ball of energy, like a small sun, growing in your lower Dan Tian.

  • With each breath see this light growing brighter and brighter. Practice for at least 3 to 5 minutes (10 minutes is ideal).

  • Throughout the day, take one or two Dan Tian breaths to recharge your internal energy.

Breathe into your Zen

You can feel instantly more calm by simply bringing your awareness to your breath. If you are in a situation throughout the day that starts to give rise to stress or panic, focus on your breath for a moment or two. As you breath in , push out your abdomen as though you were blowing up a balloon in your stomach, moving the chest as little as possible.

As you breathe out consciously drop your shoulders and squeeze all the air out of your abdomen as though you were squeezing water out of a sponge. Do this for just two complete breaths.

  • Inhale / Exhale Repeat.

  • Inhale count of 3

  • Exhale count of 5

  • Do 4 rounds continuously without breath retention then allow breathing to resume it’s natural rhythm

    By: Laura Drobiszewski - Yoga, Meditation & Mindfulness Instructor