3 Ways [Re]learning to breathe correctly can change your life.
When it comes to Functional Fitness, is there anything more functional than the thing you do 23,000 times per day? …
Unfortunately for many, we’re doing that thing, 23,000 times a day, WRONG…
Our breathing pattern may be a source of tremendous dysfunction and it impacts our health and well-being in more ways than you might think.
Your breath is EVERYTHING and EVERYTHING about you is affected by it!
We were born nasal breathers, using our diaphragm, [Re]learning this skill can do more for your overall health and well being than any other single intervention.
Here’s just 3 of the many ways breathing how you were born to breathe can change your life.
Click HERE for an Example of Diaphragmatic Breathing.
1. Chronic Low Back Pain
Relief of Chronic low back pain could be as simple as changing the way you breath.
The diaphragm is your primary spinal stabilizer. One of its several jobs is to provide protection (in the way of stability) to the spine.
When the diaphragm is properly used, your deep core stabilizers (the transverse abdominis, pelvic floor, psoas, multifidi) are activated as well. The brain gets the signal that the spine is safe and knowing that your spine is safe, it will let other muscles do their primary jobs.
When our spinal stabilizers are not being engaged,the brain sends a message to our nervous system and many times that message involves movement restriction and Pain.
Breathing with your diaphragm stimulates all of your deep core stabilizers and is the first step in making your nervous system feel safe and alleviating pain and movement limitations.
Click HERE for an Example of Diaphragmatic Breathing.
2. Weight loss
If you’re struggling to lose pounds , the problem might be how you’re breathing.
“Cortisol belly” a rather new term is weight gain in the abdominal area, sometimes referred to as abdominal obesity, caused by an excess of the stress hormone cortisol and it can happen to anyone experiencing prolonged stress.
If you are breathing shallow mouth breaths for the majority of your day, you’re activating your Flight or Fight response.
Shallow breathing into the emergency breathing muscles of the upper chest and lungs tells the brain and Nervous system that we are not safe…for all it knows , you’re being chased by a lion and unfortunately many people spend their entire lives in this heightened state of stress.
When the body is stressed, rather real or imagined or indicated by the way you’re breathing, cortisol is released. Cortisol , a stress hormone, designed to help us get out of danger, will shut down fat metabolism, leading directly to weight gain or the inability to lose unwanted pounds.
Elevated cortisol is great…If you are in fact running for your life. If you’re not, keeping your body in Rest and Digest mode as much as possible through deep nasal breathing will create the optimal environment for fat loss.
In the Natural State of “rest and digest” aka parasympathetic nervous system, the body will be much more efficient at utilizing and burning excess calories instead of storing them.
Shallow breathing is STRESS Breathing. Practice deep breathing to lower your cortisol and lower your waistline!
3.Restoring and Increasing your mobility and flexibility.
If you have tight hamstrings, a tight low back , tight shoulders, all the stretching in the world probably isn’t helping as much as you thought it would.
Once again , the way we breathe will determine what your body will grant you the ability to do.
If the brain is getting the message “I’m not safe” because of a lack of stability, the body, in it’s infinite wisdom will make certain muscles tight as a means of protection.
Also, the body will recruit muscles that are made to move a joint and will task them with stabilizing the joint instead…
Tight hamstrings are a classic example. Hamstrings are made to move your hip and knee joints, when they’re “tight” it's usually because they are now acting as stabilizers and putting the brakes on because your core and spinal stabilizers are not working well.
Stimulating your core and spinal stabilizers by simply practicing nasal breathing with your diaphragm can help to take the brakes off so you can move freely again.
If you want to regain your flexibility and mobility , breathe, and the body will grant you access to it!
Spending just a few minutes a day intentionally breathing with your diagphram, keeping your tongue on the roof of your mouth and breathing in and out through your nose can make a huge impact on how you feel, how you move and even how you see the world.
It’s how we were designed to breathe, and restoring your natural breath has tremendous value!
At Edge of Strength, you’ll learn how to unlock the power of breath and experience the benefits of a properly functioning diaphragm. It plays an integral role in whole body strength, health and vitality.
Don’t wait , start breathing better so you can start feeling and moving better TODAY!
~ Coach Q.
