Beginner's Guide To Yoga Breathing Exercises
By Susan Masters
Yoga breathing exercises have are the basic premise for a successful relaxation and meditation session. If you are a beginner in this domain, here are the basic things you need to know about yoga breathing exercises.
How Can I Start? The first thing you need to know is that yoga breathing exercises are also known under the name of Pranayama and they can be applied in combination with certain yoga postures or with regular relaxation and meditation positions. So, even if you are just starting to get familiar with the yoga practices, you can start applying these easy to follow breathing techniques. Find a suitable, peaceful and, if possible, natural location, sit in a comfortable position and you are ready to go!
What Is the Purpose of the Yoga Breathing Exercises? The main role of yoga breathing exercises is to eliminate the toxins or the unwanted elements from the body - mainly carbon dioxide. At the same time, breathing helps you inspire the pure, beneficial element, namely the oxygen. But even more, relaxation and meditation are strictly dependent on breathing and a successful, fulfilling meditation session is based on correct breathing exercises.
Are There Different Types of Yoga Breathing Exercises? There are different yoga breathing exercises and techniques, but three of them are essential when it comes to yoga relaxation and meditation. These three Pranayama exercises are: Dirgha, Ujjayi and Nadi Shodhana.
Dirgha is one of most complex yoga breathing exercises, because it focuses on all three chambers of the human lungs - due to this fact, this type of yoga breathing exercises improves the capacity of your lungs, your breathing in general and oxygenates the blood. What should you do? First of all, it is advisable to lie down on a comfortable surface and begin with long and slow breaths through your nose. The most important thing is to concentrate on your belly when you are doing the breathing exercise: fill it with pure air and lead this purity towards your lungs. When you are exhaling, release the air in your belly slowly, just like you are releasing the air from a balloon. At the same time, try to expand your chest, in order to allow the air get inside you.
Ujjayi techniques are very innovative yoga breathing exercises that you can perform when you want to improve your focus and attention. At the same time, you can use Ujjayi right before your yoga meditation session. Ujjayi has numerous beneficial effects and the most important one is that it improves the concentration and accelerates the mind processes, including memory and attention. What should you do? First of all, you have to sit down comfortably, but maintain your spine erect. Start with the same long and slow breaths through your nose. Then, try to contract the muscles of your throat in order to obtain a gentle hissing noise. Extend both your inhalation and exhalation, without creating too much effort for your body.
Nadi Shodhana is an alternate nostril form of breathing that is perfect for you, as a beginner. You can perform these yoga breathing exercises when you want to calm down, when you feel tensioned, since they have the benefit of reducing anxiety and stress. All you have to do is to gently press your left nostril and inhale through your right one, then press your right nostril and exhale through the left one. At the same time, make sure you are breathing slowly - repeat the same exercise up to ten times and enjoy your relaxation.
As you can see, there are many kinds of yoga breathing exercises, so you should try more and select the one that suits you best, the one that helps you relax best and enjoy your meditation session.
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I wish you all the best on your yoga adventure!
To your health,
Thomas T :)
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