Yoga Insight On The Net

Conscious breathing will help your mind, and your body, relax and slow down. This article encourages you to try seeing your breathing education similar to practicing a sport. Improving your breathing works exactly the same way.

Harness the Power of Breathing

Many cultures see breath as the connection with the soul. Every one of us may be considered an expert in breathing – after all, we are doing it every day! However, this is a wrong assumption and many people never even see the hidden potential breathing incorporates.
 
The importance of breathing is obvious and we depend on it to sustain our lives. As human beings we have to eliminate the things that our body is no longer using, and breathing takes care of 70% of this process. Other than eliminating the air from your lungs, after it has been depleted of oxygen, breathing also takes out toxins from your body. You can also eliminate non-chemical items such as emotions or stress. By harnessing the immense power of breathing you can create a better connection with your inners self, preparing to efficiently combat outside stress factors.

By becoming more aware of your breathing you will be able to reduce any outside negative elements. Focus your attention on your breath and direct your mind to think only about it. The rhythmical sensation your breath produces will help your mind, and your body, relax and slow down. Thinking is responsible for most of the tensions and upsets we face, and this little exercise takes thinking into a harmonious and peaceful location.

Many of our thoughts are negative in nature. We often use or think about words like “won’t”, “can’t”, “shouldn’t”. Their negative connotations reflect on the way we feel, increasing nervousness and stress. Your brain processes millions of thoughts on a daily basis and focusing it on your breath gives it a much-deserved break. Temporarily lowering your mind’s activity gives you extra peace and helps relax both your brain and your body.

Try to see your breathing education similar to practicing a sport. In order to reach a goal you will need to improve certain skills. You can’t just be an Olympic athlete – you have to become one! This can be done by building up your strengths and stamina, as well as improving your techniques. Improving your breathing works exactly the same way. Right now you are at a low level, as you didn’t do any additional exercises to improve your breathing. Your subconscious mind usually takes care of this process, leaving your conscious mind to deal with other things.

However, this is the time to take things into your own hands, and consciously control your breathing for the duration of the exercises.

At first, try to analyze yourself every time you inhale and exhale. Do this until your mind gets used to the rhythmic tone of breaths and let your brain preoccupy itself only with your breathing. It might be hard at first, as you will get distracted by sounds or movements around you. In time, however, you will manage to ignore outside interference and sustain a prolonged period of clear focus. Regularly practicing with your breathing and you will soon begin to see some of the positive effects of better understanding and controlling one of the vital elements that keep us alive.

There are several medical conditions that can be improved by practicing yoga. It can be used to lessen the negative effects of infertility, lung disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis, insomnia, cancer, high blood pressure, and joint pain. The beneficial effects of yoga practices are well recognized not only by the yoga community but also by medical doctors.

One of the main elements that lead to an illness is stress. Being responsible for a huge number of sicknesses, this item, which we develop in our minds, can be reduced through a good usage of yoga techniques. Here are just some of the problems that are related to an over active stress response: depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, some types of diabetes mellitus, cardio-vascular disease, several autoimmune diseases, irritable bowel syndrome, colitis, reproductive problems, and an aggravated suppression of the immune system.

The response of the sympathetic nervous system can trigger stress in our metabolism. The reaction to various outside stimuli is also known as the “fight or flight” response – the mind and body, faced with an endangering or disturbing element, prepare for one of the two options. Physically, this is manifested through an instantaneous heart rate increase, together with a high ascent of blood pressure. Breathing gets shallow and the muscles tense in anticipation to the following action. Internally, this response reduces the blood flow to internal organs and processes that are not essential in that particular moment (such as digestion and elimination) are shut down.

This state of increased awareness and readiness is beneficial on a short term, preparing our body to react to the outside interventions and stimuli. Both in a “fight” and in a “flight” situation, the body is physically and mentally prepared to act. The problem arises when long-term exposure to similar stress takes place. This “fight or flight” response is only meant to help on short periods of time – the longer it is activated the less resources will the body have to function normally.

There is a natural countermeasure for the “fight or flight” response. It is called the parasympathetic nervous system or the “relaxation response.” It is automatically activated when the elements that caused the stress are gone but it is also possible to increase its effects by breathing deeply and relaxing your muscles. By increasing the length of this process we allow our body to recover faster, enabling it to eliminate the harmful effects of stress in a prompt and efficient manner.

Yoga highlights the idea that by using breathing and relaxation techniques you can reduce the harmful effects of stress factors on your body. A lessened “fight or flight” response can also be achieved by looking at adverse factors as challenges rather than threats. This approach allows your mind to focus on finding a solution, rather than creating an abrupt response. Another concept employed by this technique is that of acting versus reacting, of taking initiative versus responding to outside factors.

The positive effects of yoga during a healing process are undeniable. However, these techniques should only be used as a form of support and the healing shouldn’t rely solely on them. The best results are achieved by combining yoga with traditional and modern medicine and by addressing a problem both from a mental and physical point of view.