Fight the Hump

We begin life in a curled-up fetal position and as the decades fly by, our bodies begin to drift back into that initial pose. As long as the vertebrae are balanced more or less one atop the other, gravity’s pull is straight down through the center of the stack. But when you slouch (either unavoidably or carelessly) you lose the bone-over-bone balance. When there is no longer a strong bony stack under your heavy head and shoulders, you are losing the tug-of-war with gravity. Once your head is no longer balanced over your tailbone you are heading for a heap of trouble.

Fortunately, scientists have come a long way in understanding the part osteoporosis plays in our posture. We are learning the importance of monitoring the intake of calcium and vitamin D, of resistance exercise, of bone-density testing, of the role of strong and flexible support muscles. Prevention and awareness are your most effective weapons. Don’t wait till your spine is riddled with tiny fractures and atrophied discs.

Remember that ideal breathing springs in part from an open, flexible, relaxed, erect ribcage. The ribcage should be balanced directly above the pelvis. Deep lung tissue is devoted to oxygen deliver and it relies on ribcage muscles and the diaphragm to do the pumping and squeezing to actually move the air. It is a daily battle to retain your height and good posture as you age but the battle is important. A compressed warped ribcage leaves you with compressed warped breathing.

Be well. Breathe beautifully.

Small Star

Small Star is one of those meditation-in-motion exercises that are useful when you feel too fragmented to move directly from a crazy busy day into a subtle quiet deep breathing exercise.

1. Bring palms together in front of your breastbone with your elbows resting against your sides. Keep your shoulders down and relaxed and your eyes open. Breathe through your nose.
2. With palms and fingers still together (as in a gesture of respect) fan your joined fingers apart about an inch (thumbs and index fingers moving toward your chest and little fingers moving forward, away from you).
3. During each inhalation, slowly pull the heels of your hands apart about four inches. Pull the length of your fingers apart also but the fingertips stay glued together.
4. As you breathe out, gradually press your palms together again. Keep your movement and breathing smooth, quiet and easy. As always, breathing leads and movement follows.

Be well. Breathe beautifully.

Breathing Trumps Movement

When you are practicing a breathing exercise that involves physical movement (such as the Shoulder Lift) BREATHING GUIDES MOVEMENT, not the other way around. The average person tends to concentrate on setting up a graceful movement and then hopes that their breathing will eventually keep pace (if they think about their breathing at all). Remember that BREATHING IS ALWAYS THE FIRST HORSE OUT OF THE GATE!

Always establish a comfortable breathing pattern FIRST and THEN build the movement on that breathing pattern. In other words, breathing is the music. Movement is the dance. That is often more difficult than it sounds because we are a visual species and the internal stuff demands a sharper focus.

The timing and rhythm of your breathing is calculated and automatically adjusted for you by your beautiful brain. Your brain takes into account gender, posture, medication, hormone levels, age, weight, state of mind, content and location of your last meal, ambient air temperature, fitness and very likely a dozen subtle things that man has yet to discover. Our responsibility is to be aware and respectful of the process! Start breathing and THEN move.

Be well. Breathe beautifully.

Oxygen Delivery: Where the Teeny Meets the Tiny

Your blood vessels, as they descend into your chest, get smaller and smaller until they are so narrow that blood molecules are forced to squeeze through one molecule at a time!

In the meantime your air tubes have also been getting smaller and smaller until they reach the end of the road where tiny bunches of air sacs (the alveoli) hang together like clusters of microscopic grapes.

In the very deepest part of the lungs, the tiny air sacs and the narrow blood vessels are so tightly woven together that they more or less share common walls. A blood molecule has only a fraction of a second to offload its oxygen, pick up its spent load of carbon dioxide and continue along its way. This exchange through the walls of the alveoli is what keeps you alive and kicking.

The gas exchange at this exact point in your chest is incredibly delicate and complicated. This is not an area that was designed to defend itself well. That would be like expecting a brilliant brain surgeon to do security duty at the front desk at the same time he is operating on a patient.

Remember that you have wonderful defense systems further “upstream.” Do your best to keep the bad stuff from getting past the defenses of your nose, throat and upper chest into your sanctum sanctorum.

Be well. Breathe beautifully.

Soft Palate Stretch

1. The Soft Palate Stretch builds on our Practice Yawn. Make a typical yawn (vertical oval). Remember that even thinking about a yawn may be enough to trigger the actual yawn. Once you have your oval in place, open it further into a circle.
   
   
2. While you are experiencing the widest part of the yawn, simply lift your upper jaw a bit further and flatten down the back of your tongue. These are small and subtle movements and should not be forced or prolonged. Once or twice is enough.

Be well. Breathe beautifully.

Coping with Unscheduled Stress: First Response

A stressful event pops up like a shark in your guppy tank without any advanced warning. It is possible, however, to practice in advance how to best handle this “shark” so that you handle the situation as well as humanly possible.

Remember that THE WORSE THE SITUATION IS, THE MORE IMPORTANT YOUR BREATHING BECOMES. Repeat after me! THE WORSE THE SITUATION IS, THE MORE IMPORTANT YOUR BREATHING BECOMES. This is not the time for you to be holding your breath or shallow breathing. Practice First Response until you can react without thinking, without hesitation, as if you were handling your car in a skid. Your body may not have time to phone your brain for instructions.

First Response

1. In the first split-second of a real or perceived crisis (physical, emotional or intellectual) immediately BREATHE OUT. Release as much air as is comfortable. Relax your shoulder as you exhale, letting go of all surface tension. When you grab a big gulp of air without exhaling first, you force the incoming air down on top of stale air, air that was already used up and waiting to be exhaled which leaves you with an expanded chest but not enough oxygen.
2. After that first release, assume normal slow and deep breathing. You are focused. You are clear. You are ready. Remember that your breathing bridges mind, body and spirit so it is a quick way to pull yourself together in a hurry.

Be well. Breathe beautifully.

The Blind Nose

Advertisers have done a terrific job convincing the public that laundry, carpets and draperies cannot possibly be clean unless they reek with a company’s cheap perfume. Repeat anything long enough and consumers will believe it.

Pity your poor nose because it is bombarded every hour of every day with heavily scented capert cleaner, room freshener, furniture polish, scented toilet paper, kitty litter, hand soap, perfume, after-shave, deodorant, hair spray, foot powder, moth balls, candles and always – the laundry. Your pulmonary system was not designed for any of this and will eventually be on overload.

This is not 17th century France where perfume was designed and refined to mask horrific odors that would curdle our modern senses. Remember your nose goes “blind” a few seconds after you splash on that half-cup of after-shave. You quickly lose any sense of how you smell but others do not.

A great purple cloud of fragrance that continues to hover around you is rarely appreciated and can trigger allergies in defenseless bystanders, especially young children. It is easy to offend the pulmonary senses of friends and co-workers who never complain for fear of hurting your feelings. Ask a friend if they think you need to cut back a bit.

Scent is not a sin. Nor should it become a mindless indulgence. Another person should be able to register your particular fragrance only when they are close enough to hug you. We wish you many hugs.

Be well. Breathe beautifully.