DaisyI’m actually a certified Kripalu yoga teacher and while you wouldn’t know it from my teaching – thanks to my training I really value the importance of breathing. Next time you’re bored in front of the PC (hopefully *after* reading this blog post ;-) ) do some googling on the benefits of breathing, it’s amazing what you find out.

I’ve found that the simplest forms of breathing (pranayama) are the most powerful. And this is a boon for teachers – because they’re simple, it means you can stop yacking sooner and just do it. Here are my faves:

- 3 part or Complete Breath (Dirga Pranayama) - gets you centered before practice. A stress response requires shallow chest breathing, so the best way to start relaxing your body is to breath into your belly. Here’s how to start – get into a comfortable seated position, close your eyes, pull your spine straight and relax your shoulders and knees. Put your hands against your belly and completely relax it. Feel it soften into your hands. We normally suck in our belies to look svelte, but now it’s break-time. Fill that nice soft belly full of breath. When your belly has expanded into your hands, let your breath fill your ribs and then your chest. When you’ve completed a deep inhale, let the air go in one long smooth exhale. Take 10 more breaths like this focusing on the sensations that come with each breath. Allow your exhales to becomes longer and slower as your body becomes relaxed and filled with oxygen.

- Breath with Retention (kumbhaka) – this is a good one for centering, Savasana or those nights in bed when you just can’t quiet your mind enough to fall asleep. Here’s how it works – take 3 deep breaths, then hold the next inhale pause before letting the breath go. Do this 3 three times. In the next round move the pause to the end of your exhale. Do this 3 times. For the next round pause in both spots – when you’re full of breath and when you’re empty of breath. Start again. You may find your pauses naturally get longer as you go. Allow yourself to enjoy the gaps – known as a ‘perfectly peaceful pause’.

Bonus points – add rention to 3-part breathing.

- Ujjayi or Ocean breath - if you’re new to this one, one of the best ways to get the hang of Ocean breath is to breath onto your hand like you’re fogging up a mirror. Ujjayi breath uses the same throat position and produces the same sound. Then maintain that position with mouth closed and you’ve got it. The key is finding the right amount of relaxation in the throat. It’s like you’re getting so relaxed that you’re going to start snoring, but don’t quite get there. If you’re not sure, it helps to listen to someone else. Ujjayi breathing relaxes the body and the reason we do it during asana practice is to help keep us focused on the body. The sound and sensation of the breath helps keep us grounded in what’s happening on the mat so it’s harder for the mind to drift off.

Bonus points – add retention to a 3-part Ujjayi breath.

There are a plenty of forms of pranayama – heck there are a bjillion versions of the retention breath alone, where you add bandas and all kinds of fun things. These are just simple starters. CDs can be useful for your home practice. I have
Kripalu’s PRANAYAMA: Beginner Level Practice and it’s a good one (I don’t have experience buying from this vendor). But the bottom line is that you can get pretty relaxed and go pretty deep even with these simple breathing techniques. And they’re guaranteed to get you to sleep every time.