Breathing is often something we take for granted its easy right? Just breath in, out and repeat. Well on one level this is correct but on another level something as easy as breathing can indicate that your health is on the decline or give you significant health benefits.

For centuries ancient cultures have promoted breathing meditation exercises to enhance their health.

Qigong has been practiced in China and across Asia for more than 4000yrs. It coordinates slow-flowing movement with deep rhythmic breathing and visualisation and is used to calm the mind, meditate, improve health and martial arts training.

In India were yoga has been practiced for more than 5000yrs, Pranayama breathing is one of the 8 practices of yoga and has significant emotion and physical health benefits.

In Tibet the monks developed Tummo (Inner Fire) a breathing exercise combined with a visualisation to generate body heat in the icy caves of Tibet. You can see demonstrations today were Yogi’s who have mastered Tummo are capable of immersing themselves in icy lakes and 15 mins later producing visible steam rising from their robes.

In 1957, Ukrainian Dr. Konstantin Buteyko, observed and documented in hospital that there was a correlation between a patients respiration rate and their overall health. Dr Buteyko noticed that the breathing of unhealthy patients is often through the mouth using the upper chest and causes a respiratory rate and volume greater than normal.

Healthy people have regular, effortless and quiet breathing during rest. Their breathing is through the nose, driven by the diaphragm and with a normal respiratory rate and volume. More importantly Dr Buteyko found that when a patient changed their chest breathing to belly breathing their health improved.

You can use different breathing techniques to:

Reduce stress

Manage pain, particularly during childbirth

Unblock the sinus

Relieve asthma

Lower blood pressure

Relieve depression and improve how we feel.

Improve sleep

Reduce incontinence

Lift prolapsed organs ie. anus, cervix, uterus or bladder

Improve sleep

Improve circulation and warm the body.

Improve oxygen levels in the blood.

Changing how you breath may have health benefits for you too.

Here is a simple exercise that will help you to notice how you breath and if necessary change it to a healthy breathing habit

1.     Sit quietly with one hand on your chest and the other on your belly

2.     Breath normally for a few minutes,

3.     As you are breathing normally notice the movement in your belly and in your chest

4.     If you notice that you are breathing more into your chest than your belly then use the following steps to change this to belly breathing.

5.     Close your mouth and breath in and out through your nose

6.     Close your eyes and imagine your belly is a ballon, as you breath in through your nose imagine the ballon inflating, as you breath out through your nose imagine the balloon deflating.

7.     Continue with the visualisation until you notice your breath moving into your belly area.

Bring your awareness to your breath a few times a day and by simply breathing in and out through your nose all the time you should start to notice some health improvement.

 Amanda Roe is an Acupuncturist, Clinical hypnotherapist and Life & Health Coach to Book a FREE 15 min Consulatation with Amanda click here