Breathe in breathe out

While rushing through a typical day of endless 'busyness', I paused to think, and I realized that the average person hardly has time to breathe. For some reason we seem to have become so preoccupied with being always engaged that even breathing becomes secondary. You'd probably ask how in the world would we be still alive without breathing. Well, read on...

Scientists say that the human child is born with an innate ability to breathe correctly. Breathe correctly? you might ask. Yes. During the course of growing up we have become used to breathing in a shallow manner through our mouth but that's no way to breathe. The correct way to breathe is through our noses; that's where the hair in the nose comes into play and filters out dust and unwanted particles. And the focus of the breathing should not be the chest but the stomach. Vocal experts say that when a person breathes correctly one should be able to feel one's rib cage expand; this means that we are breathing with our diaphragm. And now exhale through the mouth.

Ok, but what's so important about breathing? you might ask. Think of it carefully, how long would you survive without air? They say a person can survive more than a week without food, about three days without water and- yes, barely three minutes without air, that too with practice! Air is what drives all the organs of our system, and most importantly what keeps our central nervous system working efficiently. So then do you still think that I've been making a mountain out of a mole hill?

It needs getting used to- breathing properly I mean. But what one can do is devote at least ten minutes to breathing properly before the start of the day. I assure you that you'll be feeling fresh and ready to face the day before you can say the words get go!

The simplest exercise would be to sit still, some recommend sitting cross legged but I say just be comfortable but keep your spine straight, and start breathing slowly but deliberately through your nose. Once your diaphragm feels full, hold the air and count till ten. Now slowly release it through the mouth. Do this for the next ten minutes and follow through with stretching exercises. This should be enough but in case you need other variations there are many sites on the web that will give you a quick guide; just Google for them:-) A wonderful tool, this Google! Remember though that it's not just a ten minute affair; it must become a lifestyle habit to become truly effective in our lives.

Well, I'll leave you with this this morning. I hope that y'all have a great day! Ciao'