Oxygen saturation is the measure of how much oxygen your hemoglobin is carrying to your cells and tissues. Optimal oxygen saturation is 95 to 100 percent. To increase your oxygen saturation, improve your breathing techniques. Breathing exercises will help you expand your lungs and get fresh oxygen to the base of your lungs where it is absorbed into your blood.
Chinese Breathing Exercise
Take three short inhalations through your nose. On the first inhalation lift your arms straight out in front of you at shoulder level. On the second inhalation move your arms out to your sides, still keeping them at shoulder level. On the third inhalation, raise your arms up over your head, keep them parallel. Start exhaling slowly through your mouth. Move your arms back to your sides as you exhale. Repeat this exercise ten to twelve times. If you become dizzy or light-headed, stop and sit down until the sensation stops.
Complete Breath Exercises
Begin by sitting straight in a chair and exhale. Slowly, begin to inhale as you relax your abdominal muscles. Fill your abdomen with air, and then your chest and rib cage. Pause and hold your breath for a moment. Next, slowly exhale. Relax your chest and rib cage. Pull your stomach in to force the remaining air out at the end of your exhalation. Practice for five minutes.
Belly Breath Exercise
Lie flat on your back. Position a small pillow under your neck and knees for comfort. Place your hands on your stomach at the base of the rib cage. Your middle fingers are barely touching. Begin to inhale slowly, your fingers will move apart. As you inhale, the air will flow into the middle and lower lobes of your lungs. Pause and then exhale slowly. Your fingers will move back together over your stomach. Repeat this exercise for five minutes.
Three-Part Breathing
Begin by sitting comfortably in a chair. Close your mouth and exhale as deeply as possible through your nose. Imagine you are pouring your breath out of a container. First it pours out of the top of your chest, then the middle, and empties from your diaphragm. Pause and then slowly begin to breath in, filling up the container with your breath. Expand your diaphragm, middle chest and finally your upper lungs and chest. Pause for a count of two, and repeat. Perform this exercise five or ten times.
