Week 57: What Would Happen if We Breathed Better?

Quick!!!

Toddler asleep, tip toe downstairs, shut the basement door.

Drop your mat, find your blocks/strap/eye pillow.

Adjust the 17 year old TV so the DVD player will work.

You might have two hours or less to get things done you just CAN'T do with a toddler around.

And yoga is one of them. 


That pretty much sums up most of my yoga practice these days.

Hurry, rush...Breathe? Can I?

Now, don't get me wrong. The major life change of having a child is well worth it but over this time, I think to myself, how does my breath (and the associated human physiology) get affected?

This week's practice had me ponder my breath again. I started my practice with the same DVD set as last week, which was nice because it was already in the DVD player and it was still new to me. I didn't know what was coming and what did show up was exactly what I needed.

The new teacher focused solely on moving through each pose with the breath. If the breath was slow, the pose took time and I did it less times through; yet, if the breath was fast (which it was in the beginning), I rushed through the poses and finished many repetitions. It is so fascinating that the breath truly dictated how fast or slow I would move. Apparently, breathing is the only autonomic system of the body that can be controlled. This definitely is the merging of the mind, body and spirit of yoga.

With the rushing life of a toddler, it is in my yoga practice that I slow down and breathe (and maybe why I need to not just want to practice at least once every week). As a future teacher, I hope to provide the guidance and gift of breath work (as many teachers have done for me in the past).

My next big question this week is: how can I breathe better in every day activities?

It is a bit of a loaded question, but I think, as with everything, we must practice. 

So, when prompting my son to pee in the toilet for the umpteenth time, chasing him around the house to take off his shoes and cleaning up the mess which is every meal, I will breath. It will need to be conscious, likely, to start and maybe always will need to be. But one of the reasons to do yoga, is to learn and grow and be better so this will be my breathing challenge off the mat.

Take a big, long, slow breath, and go,
LW

Oh - and this song has always helped with my breathing. Love the chorus.