Home Exercises For Calm Breathing

Breathing is intimately linked to anxiety and physical health. When we are stressed, our chests tighten and our breathing becomes shallow and rapid. Poor posture, diseases, aging and exhaustion can also negatively affect the breath. By performing regular calm breathing exercises, however, we can help correct some of these problems. Slow, deep breathing will calm the mind, relax the body and help you recover from illness.

Preparation

Lie down on a comfortable flat surface such as a yoga mat or a firm mattress. Observe your chest and abdomen rise and fall as you breathe. Slowly draw your breath down into your abdomen. You should see your stomach rise and fall while your chest stays fairly still. This is called abdominal breathing. Keep doing this for 20 breaths, breathing slower and deeper as you do. Now, try chest breathing. Breathe so that your abdomen stays still while your chest rises and falls. Keep doing this for another 20 breaths, trying to breathe as calmly as possible.

The Full Breath

After you learn the abdominal and chest breathing, try putting them together into a full yoga breath. Breathe into your abdomen until it fills completely. Then continue to breathe in, filling your chest too. When your lungs are full, let your breath out by first emptying your chest and then your abdomen. Take 20 more full breaths, slowing and deepening your breathing as you do. You should be breathing very calmly by the time you are done.

Counting

Learning to time your breaths will help you make them more calm and controlled. Start by breathing in through your nose while counting. It doesn't matter how high you count. When you've completed your in breath, hold it for the same count. Finally, breathe out for the same count, but don't hold your breath out. Instead, immediately begin breathing in again to your count.

The 4-7-8 Exercise

Dr. Andrew Weil teaches a more advanced breath counting technique called the 4-7-8 Exercise. Place the tip of your tongue right behind your upper teeth and breathe in through your nose for a count of four. Then, hold your breath while counting to seven. Finally, breathe out through your mouth for another eight beats and repeat the sequence three more times. You can practice this several times a day to calm your mind and your breath.

Tags: your breath, your chest, your abdomen, through your, 4-7-8 Exercise, breathe through