Because breathing is an automatic action and necessary for the body to function, sometimes the attention to exercising the respiratory muscles is not the focus. As with any weakened muscles, eventually strain will exist on parts not intended to aid in the action of breathing making the body work that much harder. Breathing exercises prove important because our internal capacity to breathe deeper strengthens, tension is relieved and the overall body wellness improves.
Misconceptions
A common misconception states that the respiratory system only consists of the nose, nasal cavities and lungs when in fact the primary diaphragm, a dome shaped muscle located directly below the heart and bellows like a parachute, is responsible for 75 percent of all respiratory actions. According to Donna Farhi, the author of "The Breathing Book", the primary breathing muscles work over 22,000 times each day." Exercising the diaphragm strengthens its capacity to aid in the easiness of healthy, full breathing.
More Than One Diaphragm
A diaphragm includes any muscular, membranous, or ligamentous wall that divides two spaces in the body, and there are three diaphragms. The central diaphragm, the pelvic diaphragm and the vocal diaphragm all work in facilitating breathing.
The pelvic diaphragm sits at the base of the pelvis, carries the weight of the pelvic organs and dynamically closes the rectum. The vocal diaphragm is disc-shaped and sits between the base of the tongue and trachea. The three diaphragms need to work in tandem to achieve the fullest body breathing.
Breathing Basics
"According to "Yoga for Wellness" author Gary Kraftsow, inhalation and exhalation can be maximized by understanding the structural effects of breathing." When you inhale, the diaphragm and intercostal muscles, the muscles between your ribs, contract and expand the chest cavity. This expansion lowers the pressure in the chest cavity and oxygen flows through and inflates the lungs.
When you exhale, the diaphragm and intercostal muscles relax and the chest cavity gets smaller. Oxygen from the lungs flows out of the airways to the outside air. The cycle repeats with each breath.
Strained Breathing
The Breathing Book says, the secondary muscles higher up in the body grow tired very quickly which include the scalenus, pectoralis, sternocleidomastoid and upper trapezius. Examples of unhealthy breathing patterns that engage the secondary respiratory muscles include shallow breathing, hyperventilation and chest breathing due to holding your stomach. You may notice your voice becomes squeaky when you are nervous because subconsciously have narrowed the vocal diaphragm forcing breath only to the upper chest.
Try A Breathing Exercise
Feeling how breathing works proves a good way to realize the power of the three diaphragms working jointly, or sometimes working against one another. Sit on a chair with a tall spine and feet planted on the floor. Breathe and notice your belly expanding and contracting. Then hold your abdomen in as if sucking in your stomach and notice the diaphragm trying to descend. Since a blockage exists in the pelvic diaphragm, the secondary respiratory muscles will work to compensate. Then release your breath and tense the throat as if holding back tears and notice the strain on the diaphragm to ascend fully.
References
- "The Breathing Book"; Donna Farhi; 1996
- "Yoga for Wellness"; Gary Kraftsow; 1999
