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The big breath is a way to broaden and expand your knowledge and your respiratory awareness. Nothing new for those who breathe and meditate daily, but for those who are not familiar with this practice can immerse themselves in this new dimension.

As you well know, COVID-19 attacks the respiratory tract, making it inefficient and unable to properly oxygenate the entire body. Unfortunately, our culture has always given little space to the importance and great value of breathing. It took a pandemic to change our lives, our habits and overturn our certainties, to face this new situation head on.

Without the possibility of doing sports and movement in a group, taking advantage of the energy and positive vibrations that are generated by contact with other people, the battleship ANNAEGIO, wants to provide you with a series of effective tools to make you more aware, healthier and stronger. Hence the desire to expand our commitment like a great breath.

In the post “Put your nose in the breath” you have tried abdominal breathing, thoracic breathing and you have been able to observe the movement of the diaphragm that during inhalation descends while during exhalation it rises. The journey continues with 3 other exercises that will lead your great breath to be felt and perceived more clearly.

Exercise 3-3

Remember to wear comfortable clothing that does not bother you and above all does not hinder the movements you are going to make.

This type of breathing is suitable for situations of stress and anxiety, because it lowers the heart rate, oxygenates the body and mind, allowing you to better focus on post-exercise situations. If during the exercises it happens that your head starts to spin, don't be afraid, stop the exercise, recover by normalizing your breathing and then start again.

Let's see how to perform exercise 3-3

Starting position: Lie on the floor in a supine position. Bend your knees and keep them relaxed. Feet flat on the floor, hip-width apart. The spine maintains its natural curves. The arms are relaxed along the body. Shoulders away from the ears. With your gaze directed to the ceiling, align the spine and neck, lowering the chin. Place one hand on the abdomen above the navel. Relax and breathe calmly.

When you inhale, try to use the lower part of your chest, lifting the part of your abdomen on which your hand rests, as you did for abdominal breathing. If the thoracic part also intervenes a little during inhalation, don't worry, the important thing is to start with the abdominal part.

Now inhale through your nose for a duration of 3 seconds (1-2-3)

Now exhale through your mouth (lips parted with hiss) for a duration of 3 seconds (1-2-3)

Try not to force or tense up. Always use abdominal breathing. Lower the part of your abdomen on which your hand rests and raise your diaphragm in a controlled manner. Use your mouth the first few times, but then move your exhalation to your nose. Stay relaxed and repeat the exercise for at least 5 minutes.

You can also do this exercise sitting on a chair, taking care to keep your back straight, without leaning on the backrest. Keep your shoulders away from your ears and look straight ahead. Nothing stops you from doing it while walking or in other situations. The trick you need to take is to maintain good control over abdominal breathing and the correct movement of the diaphragm.

Exercise 3-6

The next step to achieve is to significantly increase the exhalation, so the moment when the diaphragm rises and the air out comes out of your body. In the post “You need a nose to breathe” You surely remember that through exhalation the parasympathetic autonomic nervous system is activated, the “rest and digest” system which unconsciously regulates the activities of the body at rest.

By prolonging the expiratory phase of the double, you act on the distension of the diaphragm, increasing its elasticity with consequent improvement in oxygenation. At the same time, you slow down the heart rate and consequently the blood pressure. You understand that the big breath is fundamental and very important to make the heart work better and more efficiently. Two minutes of breathing performed with this technique also improves decision-making processes.

Let's see how to do it.

Starting position: lie on the floor in a supine position. Bend your knees and keep them relaxed. Feet flat on the floor, hip width apart. The spine maintains its natural curves. The arms are relaxed along the body. The shoulders away from the ears. With your gaze directed to the ceiling, align the spine and neck, lowering the chin. Relax and breathe calmly.

When you inhale, try to use the lower part of your chest, as you did with abdominal breathing and in the previous exercise.

Now inhale through your nose for a duration of 3 seconds (1-2-3)

Exhale through your nose for a duration of 6 seconds (1-2-3-4-5-6)

Try not to force it. Always use abdominal breathing, raising the diaphragm in a controlled manner. Stay relaxed and repeat the exercise for at least 5 minutes. You can also do the exercise sitting on a chair, taking care to keep your back straight, without leaning on the backrest, your shoulders away from your ears and your gaze forward.

Exercise 3-6 with contraction and relaxation

I am sure that your breathing awareness is growing day by day. Now you are more attentive to how and how much you breathe. Breathing is no longer just an automatic and spontaneous mechanism, but also a process and a set of techniques to be perfected and increased.

The third exercise you will perform is similar to the previous one with the addition of contracting the fists of the hands during inhalation and relaxing during exhalation.

Starting position: sitting on the edge of the chair, back active and straight. Feet flat on the floor. Arms bent and hands resting on the thighs. Shoulders away from the ears and gaze forward. The eyes are free to be open or closed, as you prefer.

Now inhale through your nose for 3 seconds and at the same time clench your fists and contract your arm muscles (1-2-3)

Start exhaling through your nose and relax your hands and arms counting to 6 seconds (1-2-3-4-5-6)

Repeat the cycle again for 5 minutes, without tensing or straining. If your exhalation is shorter, don't worry, make it shorter, you will see that with practice you will be able to reach double the inhalation.

Once you have gained confidence and are able to perform this type of exercise without fatigue, you can safely move on to a more challenging pace such as 4-8 or 5-10. The idea is to always keep the exhalation twice as long as the inhalation.

These 3 exercises are the foundation for making the most of your breathing, which is not just a natural mechanical process, but a very powerful tool for keeping you strong and healthy.

A tip? – Breathe through your nose rather than your mouth during the day. I’ll explain why later…

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Kaizen!