16 benefits of practicing deep breathing
1. Improves your cardiovascular system. Your heart is a muscle and, like any other muscle in your body, it can be developed through practice.
2. Removes stale air from your lungs.
3. Helps you heal faster by directing the breathe into areas of the body where there are injuries and illnesses.
4. Reduces your cardiovascular warm up at the start of your workout.
5. Reducing your recovery period after a workout.
6. Helps detoxify your body.
7. Helps you let go of tension in your body when you are tense, angry, scared or stressed, when your body constricts.
8. Relaxes the mind and brings clarity, focus, allows room for more creativity and productivity.
9. Relieves emotional struggles, calms you down in moments of panic and anxiety.
10. Strengthens the immune system. Oxygen travels through your bloodstream enriching your body to metabolise nutrients and vitamins.
11. Encourages good posture. When you slouch notice how your body closes up and your breathing becomes shallow. Then you take a deep breath, your chest comes out and your body naturally straightens.
12. Strengthens the lungs, they become healthy and powerful, a good tool to prevent respiratory problems.
13. Assists in weight control. More oxygen to your tissues burns up the excess fat more efficiently.
14. Boosts energy levels and improves stamina.
15. Improves cellular regeneration.
16. For runners, it helps you run faster, stronger and for longer
Here are 2 breathing exercises to get you started
Step 1. Make sure you breathe correctly, that means when you breathe in you make your stomach big, when you breathe out you pull your stomach in.
Step 2. Breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth
Step 3. The exercise. Let’s take 4 seconds as count for breathing in, out and holds. You can adjust them to fit your level:
Linear breathing technique
I use this as a warm up for the others.
– BREATHE IN through your nose on a count of 4
– BREATHE OUT through your nose on a count of 4.
– Repeat
Triangle breathing technique
Imagine an equilateral triangle. It has 3 equal sides
– BREATHE IN through your nose on a count of 4.
– HOLD on a count of 4.
– BREATHE OUT through your nose on a count of 4.
– No hold after this one. Repeat
Adjust the in breathe, out breathe and holds according to your level.
More advances breathing techniques are square, rectangle, therapeutic breathing.
If you’d like to learn more please download my free eBook “15 Healthy Habits For The Body” or book a free consultation with me.
Indeed Tamsin, it is under rater, such a small action for so many benefits
I am glad I could enrich your knowledge. Which ones were new for you Sarah?
Great info – and a most under rated activity!
Great post, Alexandra. I truly believe in the power of the breath too and learnt some benefits that I didn't know before, thank you!