Breathing isn't as easy as it seems! But its your best tool for healing your body!

Breathe in, breathe out...it always seemed so simple. But without intention our breath can become lazy and ineffective. A few years ago I attended the Elevate Cochrane event and had the privilege of participating in Jackie Caiones session about osteopathy. One of the exercises she had us do was to breathe with our diaphragm. My initial thought was "well this will be easy, this is what I teach my clients on a daily basis." Well, it wasn't as easy as I thought.

The exercise itself was simple. Inhale with the diaphragm for a count of 10- hold for a count of 2- and exhale for a count of 10. Well the first round I inhaled to 8, held for 2, then on the exhale started to panic around 7 as I felt like I was drowning. What was that? I was relieved to discover that I wasn't the only one in a room full of yoga practitioners that was a little dismayed to find breathing hard!

Why couldn't we all breathe better? Well, LIFE! Stress, bad eating habits, that time we fell skiing in our 20's and hurt our back, pregnancy, lack of sleep. It's all connected.

Optimal breathing has a significant (and often overlooked) role in our bodies. Stabilization! The diaphragm supports our respiration and our posture! As a Pilates teacher I have always been aware of the link of the diapraghm to the pelvic floor. You see, everything in your body is interconnected in this giant web of fascia. As we inhale and the diaphragm moves down so too does the pelvic floor. Then as the diaphragm lifts with the exhale so too should the pelvic floor. This cool little relationship is so important to our inter abdominal pressure. And thats important for a whole variety of reasons.

Healthy inter abdominal pressure is crucial for our body. When things go awry with it we experience incontinence, non-optimal movement habits (think tight hips), GI issues, and even breathing problems. So what do we do about it?

Well, the exercise Jackie Caione taught us at Elevate is a great starting point. Place your hands near your diaphragm (think underneath the breastbone) and inhale for a count of 10- hold for 2- then exhale for a count of 10. Don't worry if you can't get to 10 the first few times. Then lay on your back with your knees held into your chest wrapping your arms around your lower legs. Repeat the exercise focusing on breathing into the sides, back, and lower lobes of your lungs. This will help open up the tissues that were restricting your breath. After a few rounds this way unfold the knees and repeat the first exercise. You will be pleasantly surprised to find it will be easier. Over time work up to 20-2-20 and beyond.

I have been practicing breathing this way throughout the day and can see and feel the results in my body. Most interesting for me is that I no longer have to cue my pelvic floor on the exhale, I can actually feel the natural lift during the exhale.

The body is an amazing creation that has the ability to heal itself. We just need to slow down, listen, and treat it like it belongs to somebody we love. And that healing process starts with the breath!