From the ancient schools of yogis and Taoist sages to the halls of Western hospitals, deep breathing is widely acknowledged as an essential tool for healing. Therapeutically beneficial for patients trying to wean themselves from ventilator use or recovering from any illness, deep breathing training also benefits anyone seeking to release stress, improve cognition or achieve peak performance.
Features
The main focus of deep breathing exercises is to improve the function of the diaphragm, the sheet of muscle that separates your digestive organs from your lungs and heart. Like any other muscle, the diaphragm weakens if you don't use it. In many patients who are recovering from respiratory illnesses, deep abdominal breathing exercises can retrain the diaphragm for strength and endurance, say Craig Scanlan, professor of health sciences at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, and Roy Mekaru, director of clinical education at El Camino College in Los Angeles, in their chapter on respiratory support in "Certified Respiratory Therapist Review Guide."
Types
In Western breathing exercises, like those practiced in hospitals, a therapist might use his hand to push lightly on a patient's abdomen while she tries to use an inhalation to push the hand away, according to Scanlan and Mekaru. Yogic breathing techniques include deep belly breathing with breathing fully into the chest. Each inhalation fills the abdomen, then the chest, and each exhalation empties the chest, then the abdomen, according to the website Health and Yoga. In the ancient Chinese practice of qigong, slow movement and meditation combines with deep, even and slow breaths to calm the mind and body.
Peak Performance
Deep breathing can help you achieve new heights of physical fitness and concentration, according to martial arts instructor and sports science expert Sang H. Kim in his book "Power Breathing." Because deep breathing increases your lung capacity, practicing it will help you develop greater endurance in all of your physical activities, says Kim. He also says that the increased oxygen in your blood stream helps boost concentration any time of day, and can harmonize your mind and body, easing stress and helping you stay in the moment.
Research
Deep yogic breathing has positive effects on depression, stress, post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety, according to a 2009 study published in "Annals of the New York Academy of Science" by Richard P. Brown and Patricia L. Gerbarg, professors of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University Medical Center, and New York Medical College, respectively. Brown and Gerbarg argue that deep breathing positively affects longevity, and can work with meditation to help you become more resilient to stress whenever it arises.
Breath Counting
To slow your breath and experience the full meditative effects of deep breathing training, try breath counting, an exercise recommended by natural health pioneer Andrew Weil on his website. Sit comfortably in a chair with your spine straight. Close your eyes and breathe deeply and slowly for a few breaths. Once you're ready to begin counting, breathe naturally and observe yourself inhaling. As you exhale, count "1." On the next exhale, count "2," and so on, until you reach "5." After "5," start again on "1," continuing to count only the exhalations. This is an exercise in focused attention, as much as it is a breathing exercise. If you find your mind wandering, start again at "1."
References
- "Certified Respiratory Therapist Review Guide"; Albert J. Heuer, Craig L. Scanlan and Louis M. Sinopoli, eds.; 2009
- Health and Yoga: Learn Breathing...The Yoga Way
- "Power Breathing: Breathe Your Way to Inner Power, Stress Reduction, Performance Enhancement, Optimum Health & Fitness"; Sang H. Kim; 2008
- "Annals of the New York Academy of Science"; Yoga Breathing, Meditation, and Longevity; R.P. Brown and P.L. Gerbarg; August 2009
- Dr. Weil: Breathing---Three Exercises
