The breathing exercises in yoga can help unite the body and mind. What’s more, this type of exercise changes the way you feel about your body and supports the functioning of your organs.
The breath is the only thing that stays with you from the moment you are born until you disappear from the world. If you think seriously, you will see that the breath plays a very important role and this is most evident in yoga.
Even when it first appeared, yoga only consisted of breathing exercises and meditation, not any postures. Today, practicing yoga poses is just a way to practice breathing techniques. Why are breathing exercises in yoga so important? Let’s see the sharing below with LEEP to understand more.
Breathing is not only important in yoga practice but also a key element of life. You may not eat for a few weeks, not drink for a few days, but only a few minutes without breathing, you will face countless dangerous situations.
However, most of us do not understand the meaning of breath as well as how to breathe properly. Stemming from that fact, breathing exercises in yoga were born and play a very important role. Here are some benefits that you can get from practicing breathing exercises in yoga regularly:
Reduce physiological stress
Deep breathing stimulates the vagus nerve. This is the main component of the parasympathetic nervous system that has a calming effect on the body, reducing stress.
The vagus nerve controls and measures the functioning of many internal organs. When stimulated, it helps to soothe the entire body through muscle relaxation, lowering blood pressure, etc.
When these physiological changes occur, the vagus nerve also sends signals to the brain so the brain can relax. When your body is relaxed, your mind will also be at peace, and everything will work better.
Improves blood circulation and enhances the function of organs
When the blood in the body circulates well, oxygen will also be fully supplied to the organs. This will help the heart and other vital organs work more efficiently.
Almost every system in the body requires oxygen to function. Breathing exercises in yoga will help carry oxygen throughout the body, thereby building and strengthening cells, helping to increase resistance to protect the body against the attack of viruses and harmful bacteria.
Breathing exercises in yoga help improve concentration, attention and mental clarity
Improve concentration and mental clarity
When you focus on breathing properly, you won’t think about anything else. In addition, when you practice deep breathing, you can also see the thoughts that are existing inside.
From there, the practitioner can observe and remove them when necessary. This will give you focus, relieve stress and have a clear mind to focus on work.
Reduce mental stress and increase happiness
Stress and fear can activate the sympathetic nervous system, causing the body to release more stress hormones (such as adrenaline and cortisol). Deep breathing exercises can cause your body to stop releasing these hormones.
Do not think that only great pressures and stress can be detrimental to the body. It’s the little things in everyday life like bills, traffic, assignments, etc. can also create stress and fatigue for the body, especially when you can’t find a solution.
Breathing can also change emotions. There have been many studies that prove this. When you practice yoga breathing exercises regularly, you will find these exercises to be very effective in reducing stress and increasing feelings of happiness.
Limit injury while exercising
Muscles often tense up when you are scared to protect your body. However, despite the protective effect this still causes damage.
When you take a deep breath, you’re signaling to your body that you’re in a safe space, so your muscles won’t stretch. This will help free up the poses and create a safer pose.
While performing the poses, take deep breaths to relax your body. Also, exhale before doing twisting poses to protect the spine.
Detoxify
When you breathe shallowly, you’re not giving off as much carbon dioxide as possible. As a result, other organs will experience stress as they try to metabolize the excess carbon dioxide that remains.
Breathing exercises in yoga will help you practice deep breathing techniques, thereby improving your ability to remove carbon dioxide. Breathing exercises in yoga can also be applied in daily life to reduce stress on the brain and other organs in the body.
Breathing exercises also help calm feelings of anxiety (when you’re entering a competition or when you have to make an important presentation), relieve stress (after a long day), and help you sleep better and deeper. Experts recommend that you practice breathing exercises in yoga at least 3 times a day to reduce physical and mental stress.
Through the above sharing, you must have understood more about breathing exercises in yoga, right? Breathing exercises really play a very important role. Therefore, do not neglect to skip these exercises.
If you are still wondering if you are practicing correctly, do not hesitate to download easyhealthylive.com immediately and connect with our yoga instructor.
Reference source
Why Breathing is Important in Yoga https://yogarove.com/why-is-breathing-important-in-yoga/ Access date: April 8, 2020
John Alen was born in 1971 and is a doctor in the healthcare and psychology fields with many years of experience. He is currently working at easyhealthylive.com, a leading health and psychology blog. Having studied at Y1 National Medical University named after IM Sechenov, John Alen is using his knowledge and experience to help improve the physical and mental health of people in the United States.
