"When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive - to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love."
Marcus Aurelius quotes (Roman emperor, best known for his Meditations on Stoic philosophy, AD 121-180)

Breathing

We all breathe to live. It is a natural habit for all living things. However, there are times when we hold our breaths and forget to breathe.

Breathing can ease a stressed out moment. Breathing can soothe a painful experience. Breathing brings in oxygen which our bodies need to function in daily life. Breathing is definitely an essential ingredient in exercising.

People tend to take breathing for granted because breathing is involuntary. However, we can purposely acquire breathing techniques in certain situations and it would help you pass through the process easily and comfortably.

In weight-training, we all know that you breathe out on exertion to help transfer oxygen into desired working muscle group and to help expand the muscle tissues. In response, the expanded muscle tissue allows blood (the nutrient carrier) to pass through and blood will deliver nutrients such as oxygen to help replenish the consumed energy due to exercising.

In stretching, breathing in to the muscles that you are stretching out would help lengthen the muscle tissues. Hence, it releases the tension that has been accumulated in that particular muscle group when working out and when that group of muscles is being contracted.

In yoga, different types of pranayama (yoga breathing) are practiced to create inner-calm within our body and soul. For example, Ujjayi breathing in Vinayasa brings peacefulness within ourselves. It is just like when we close our eyes and listen to waves coming to shore. In Ujjayi breathing, the length of inhalation and exhalation should be steady and even.
"When the Breath wanders, the mind is unsteady, but when the Breath is still, so is the mind still." Hatha Yoga Pradipika

In pilates, breathing are used to accommodate different types of movements. For example, when you lie on the floor and practice abdominal breathing, you breathe in and expand your abdominals, feel your rib cage moving upward towards your head and your hip bone pulling downward towards your feet. And when you breathe out, the rib cage and hip bone are pulling closer.

Most importantly is to BREATHE whenever. Wherever you are going, whatever you are doing and however you do it.
Relax and take a deep breath NOW. Do you feel better already?

Danny Pui-Lung Lau
R.Y.T., B.A., P.T.S., M.B.S.
Winter 2005/2006

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