How little do we know about an action that keeps us alive every day and what can we learn about it to make a point out of it each day? Here are some interesting facts about breathing that may make you appreciate and tune into your instrument a bit more!
Breathing is influenced by your posture
A study (Zafar et al., 2018) found that the position of your head and neck affects the breathing quality. With a more upright posture, our diaphragm is not compressed therefore it is able to take deeper breaths. With mobile phones being such a strong element of our every day, we normalise a shallow breathing for our body. The benefits of slow (and therefore deeper breathing - with 6 breaths per minute; an average adult takes 12-20 breaths per minute) have been reported to help healing processes in our body, leading to better health and better quality of life. The more open, relaxed and upright the posture, the easier it is to breathe. Practices such as Alexander Technique (technique that uses movement to address posture, alignment and aid body relaxation) has been known as a tool in helping people with asthma restore their breathing patterns (Dennis and Cates, 2019).
Graphic sourced from: PosturePro
Now, create space in your spine, raise up, take that deep breath and enjoy the volume of it!
2. Your nostrils can tell you about your nervous system
Our nervous system relies on 2 major systems - sympathetic and parasympathehic. Sympathetic generally speaks to the arousal, alertness, physical activity, stress responses and readiness for activities. Parasympathehic system is resposible for digestion and relaxation state of the body. Steming from Yogi practice, our nostrils can tell us what state of the nervous system we are currently in. Check it by simply putting your finger underneath your nose and feel which nostril the air is coming out from more. Your right nostril responds to sympathehic system (you are in the arousal state). Your left nostril suggests the parasympathetic system (you are in stress alleviating state).
Breathing through different nostril has not shown to regulate or activate specific nervous system as deep slow breathing naturally activates parasympathetic nervous response regardless of the nosrtil used to do so (Malhotra et al., 2022). However, it can still be a quiet indicator of where you are at allowing yourself to tune into your body a bit more.
Graphic sourced from: Medium
Now, place the finger under your nose and check with yourself what state you are currently in.
3. Not just your chest and upper belly!
Breathing is coordinated by at least 9 muscle groups: sternocleidomastoid, scalenes, internal and external intercostals, pectoralis minor, diapraghm, rectus abdominis, external obligues and other corresponding muscles. When working on your breathing capacity, addressing the tension in the above mentioned muscles can lead to significant improvements in breathing patterns, resulting in providing your body and brain with more oxygen which will positively impact your well-being (Trayhurn, 2019).
Graphic sourced from: Quora
Now, give your neck, upper shoulders, space between your ribs and lower abdomen a gentle massage and stretch, then take a deep breath and enjoy the natural flow you created.
4. Breathing influences your psychological responses
Already mentioned in the points above, deep slow breathing assists in switching to parasympathetic nervous system. It is a system in which our body enters a state of relaxation as the energy is required in other involuntary important tasks; such as digestion. Anxiety is associated with sympathetic reponses of the body, therefore, from the physiological and physical stand point, in order to address your anxiety, a part of coping mechanism should include practicing deep breathing and concentration on relaxing body tension.
Graphic sourced from: VeryWell Health
Now, take couple of deep breaths in and try to spot the body area's of tension. WIth every exhale relax that part more and more. Enjoy the state of relaxation for a little while.
5. Regulate your body temperature by breathing
If your first thought is - WIM HOF! We are on the same page! Imagine reaching ice-cold, snow-covered mountain peaks in shorts and no top on! With exposure to cold, meditation and BREATHING, Wim Hof became a groundbreaking practitioner who was able to improve his immune system, heal the body from excessive inflammation and control the body's temperature in the most extreme conditions.
Another example in which we use the breath to regulate body's temperature is the contrary - ever saw a dog in the heat with its tongue sticking out taking loads of quick breaths? Regulation through transpiration protects our brain from overheating. Increased respiration can aid in heat regulation in our body.
Now, take that one more deep breath as you finish reading the article, exhale gratitude for all the breaths you are able to take today!
With Love,
Angie
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