Deep Breathing Exercises
1. Lymphatic Breaths
This breathing exercise gets your lymphatic system pumping and fills your lungs and system with high levels of oxygen.
By activating your lymphatic system you are assisting your body to optimize it's own capabilities in removing toxins, and filling your body with huge amounts of Oxygen which is super important. This is an excellent breathing exercise to start each day with. Perform 10 cycles 3 times a day.
The Breathing Ratio is 1:4:2
e.g.
Breathe in for a count of 4.
Hold for a count of 16.
Exhale for a count of 8.
You inhale through your nose, deep into the lower abdomen first, filling your lungs from the bottom to the top.
Avoid shallow breaths into the top of your lungs. Make the breaths deep into the abdomen. Place your hands on your lower belly and feel your belly expand when inhaling. This is a good practice if you are not used to breathing like this, so that you can get use to how it feels.
This is how we are supposed to breathe. Most people, when breathing throughout the day, breathe very shallow and when asked to take a deep breath you will see their shoulders rise first. This is WRONG! It is because they are only breathing into the tops of their lungs. The lower part of your lungs are larger and obviously you absorb more oxygen when you breathe with your lower abdomen.
Do the same when exhaling. empty the lower abdomen of oxygen first, by contracting the lower belly with the exhale of breath through the mouth.
Repeat this breath in & out 10 times.
2. Deep Abdomen Breaths.
Slow, Deep & Even Relaxed Breaths. Inhale through your nose, deep into your lower abdomen first, then into the tops of your lungs. Slowly, without any pressure or force. Exhale through the mouth slowly, emptying the lower part of your lungs first and finally the top of you lungs.
Ratio 1:1
e.g. I inhale for a count of 4 and exhale for a count of four. Slowly, evenly and deeply.
Do this breathing exercise regularly throughout the day, as much as possible. When sitting on the bus, train or driving to work. When your walking down the street or through the park or wherever it is your walking. When your lying in bed before going to sleep or when you first wake up, Conscious breathing is going to be your best friend.
These are just like your normal breathes that you take all day long without even thinking about them, every day of your life. It's just that we're now going to be conscious of them and make them COUNT!
You may get a little light headed or dizzy when you first start doing these exercises. This is your body's way of saying thank you for giving it Oxygen.
Be aware of how you breathe throughout the day and correct your breathing whenever you can. Your body will quickly respond and you will start to breath like this naturally very soon without even thinking.
Extra Advice:
The FIRST most important thing to do in the morning is to rehydrate. After a nights sleep your body is dehydrated. Your body is made up of around 75% water. So drink a BIG glass of water (preferably filtered water) as soon as possible upon waking.
I also recommend that you clean yr. mouth before this. Whilst you have been asleep all night toxins have been building up in your mouth. You need to cleanse your tongue, teeth etc so that you don't swallow these toxins back into your system. I use a tongue scraper. But you can also use a spoon (don't be to rough on your tongue, this is a cleanse not an attack!). Some new toothbrushes have a cleaner on the back of the bristled part of the toothbrush for cleaning the insides of your cheeks, this works well on your tongue too. Remember, Be Gentle. There's no point in making your tongue all raw or causing yourself to gag. I also recommend cleaning your teeth after you've done this. Follow this by rinsing out your mouth.
Then you rehydrate by drinking a BIG glass of WATER!
The SECOND most important thing your body needs is Oxygen! So now it's time to do some deep breathing exercises and get your body filled with as much Oxygen as possible. I recommend the Lymphatic Breaths as this really gets your whole system pumping.
So now that we've rehydrated and Oxygenated our system, have your Anti-Oxidant Drink (New Visions Mind), either 1 or 2 ounces (30 or 60 ml).
Now get on with your own morning routine, be it showering, exercising, breakfast, whatever your routine is. If you're just giving up smoking It's a good idea to mix up your morning routine, change what you can and do things in a different order or come up with a completely new routine which is even better.
Smoking is a habit, so by changing some of your most basic habits really does give you strength. It's working on your subconscious and this is the real power you want to tap into to give you that extra edge to succeed in your quitting smoking efforts.
Now I'm the type of person who loves change and is real happy going full throttle on mixing up my own routines. We are all different so if your the type of person who loves consistency and finds it difficult if not near impossible to change your routines then don't beat yourself up, just change a few things and do your best.
Remember to congratulate yourself and celebrate your success no matter how BIG or SMALL!
Giving up smoking cigarettes is all about getting healthy. So be kind to your Mind, Body & Soul. You'll get better results. We're trying to reduce any stress levels and live in optimal health. So relax, this isn't a fight, it's a dance.
It is said we live in the moment between the IN and the OUT Breath. This is a great mental focus when you're using these exercises.