Breathing exercises may help you relax and unwind as your day comes to an end. Stress triggers your body's fight or flight response, elevating your heart rate, blood pressure and muscular tension. Breathing exercises help induce your relaxation response, which decreases your blood pressure, lowers your heart rate and relaxes your muscles. Deep breathing exercises help restore your oxygen consumption, may lower your stress levels and encourage relaxation before bed.
Deep Breathing Exercise
This simple deep breathing exercise increases the duration and depth of your breath. Your breathing become rapid and shallow when you experience a stressful or anxious situation. Help your breathing return to normal by sitting on a chair and positioning your uncrossed legs in front of you, feet resting on the ground. Straighten your back, close your eyes, inhale normally through your nose and exhale through your nose. Slow your inhalation and exhalation down with each breath. Once you reach your slowest breath, maintain this breathing pace for one minute.
Mindfulness Meditation
Mindfulness meditation is a meditative breathing exercise that focuses on inhalations, exhalations and the present moment. It helps clear your mind and relax your thoughts. Assume the same sitting position you did while doing the first deep breathing exercise. Lower your eyelids halfway and settle your gaze on something 3 feet in front of you. Focus on your breath and follow its movements as you inhale and exhale through your nose. If your mind wanders while doing this, acknowledge the distraction and refocus your attention on your breath.
This breathing exercise helps you notice your breathing patterns and the nasal breathing filters the air and encourages maximum oxygen consumption. The University of Maryland Medical Center reports some people that practice this form of meditation right before bed wake up in the middle of the night and feel too alert to fall back asleep. Do this exercise earlier in the evening if this happens to you.
Complete Breath Exercise
The complete breath exercise combines deep breathing and bodily awareness. Assume the same sitting position that you did during the previous two exercises. Close your eyes and relax your facial muscles. Exhale. Inhaling, relax your stomach and imagine filling it with air. After you stomach feels filled with air, continue your inhalation and imagine filling your chest and rib cage with air. After this feels complete, pause momentarily and then exhale as slowly as possible. Relax your chest and rib cage as you exhale. As you continue your exhalation, move down to your stomach and pull it in slowly as you finish your exhalation. Inhale and continue this pattern for five minutes.
