Thursday, April 29, 2010

Falling Leaf Breath

Sit on a straight chair with your weight distributed evenly along the back of your thighs and your feet flat on the floor. To balance your spine and lungs correctly your tailbone should never touch the chair seat. Rest your palms on your knees and let your shoulders stay down and quiet during the entire exercise.

During each inhalation “float” your hands up in front of your shoulders and over your knees.

Float your arms down, returning palms to knees, as you breathe out. The outgoing air exits through an almost silent “shhhhhh” – so quiet that the person nearest you wouldn’t hear. The movement and the breathing are smooth and steady.

Lead upward with the backs of your wrists and down with the insides of your wrists. As always, first establish a comfortable natural breath cycle and only then match the movement to it. Think of the breathing as the music and the movement as the dance.

Continue only as long as you feel comfortable and can remain focused.

Be well. Breathe beautifully.