Hello listeners.
Today we're going to work on a little bit of belly breathing.
So breathing down toward the center of your body.
And as we start to move into late fall and early winter,
If you're with me here in Michigan,
You might notice that anxiousness or fear or even getting stuck in the mind is more prevalent.
And so breathing deep into the belly or deep into the center part of your beingness is a great way to feel rooted,
To feel grounded.
And so we're going to work on that a little bit today and I'd like to invite you into a seated position.
You can do this laying down,
But I feel like it's a little more accessible from that position of being seated.
If you need to grab a block or a pillow to sit underneath of your sit bones,
Then you can do that.
So prop yourself up so you have a lengthened spine,
So you feel a little extended in the spine.
You don't want to become too rigid because then you'll get really fatigued.
Instead,
Have a little bit of suppleness,
Have a little softness in the shoulders and especially through the belly.
We'll talk about that in a moment.
So find your seated position,
Whether your legs are outright and supported or maybe those crisscrossed ankles and knees bent might work best for you.
And then I just want you to take one hand and place it on your belly right underneath of your belly button is a great place to be.
And you might notice as you tune into your breath that there is some movement there automatically.
So some of us breathe heavily into the chest and shoulders and some naturally breathe into the belly.
The belly breath is a little more soothing and so often in times of relaxation or times that we feel safe,
We feel our breath going down into the belly.
Whereas if we feel a little anxious or we're experiencing fight or flight,
We might feel that breath more up in the chest into the shoulders.
And so at first here,
I just want you to notice where is your breath?
Where do you feel it?
Do you feel it underneath of your palm?
Do you feel it as it raises up your shoulders?
Do you feel it expanding and contracting in just the chest?
You might do this with a soft gaze or feel free to close the eyes.
I know for me that works better to shift my attention,
Attention internally.
And so we're going to do something that might feel a little unfamiliar.
We are functioning in a society where it always feels right to kind of pull the belly in instead of letting the belly flap out.
And we're going to relax the muscles here in the belly so it'll look like you're kind of having a pot belly or a pregnant belly.
And so the next time that you breathe in,
I want you to imagine that your belly is softening and that you could fill your belly up with a balloon on that in breath.
So take an inhale and feel the belly sort of press against the palm as it expands.
And then when you're ready to exhale,
Allow that belly to pull in naturally.
Don't feel like you have to pull it tightly in toward your spine.
Instead let it be a soft kind of retraction toward the spine.
And then try that again.
So as you breathe in,
Maybe through the nose,
You can draw the belly deep into the bottom parts of your lungs,
Which allows the belly to expand or makes the belly expand.
And then as you exhale,
Let the belly pull in as the breath goes out and the diaphragm sort of lifts up.
And then try that again.
On the inhale,
Think about a balloon belly,
Like filling up the balloon underneath of your palm.
And then as you exhale,
Like that balloon is slowly deflating,
Feel your palm draw closer in toward your spine.
Lengthen the breath,
Inhale,
Belly expands.
And then as you exhale,
Belly pulls in a little bit,
Palm closer in toward your spine.
I want you to try this a few times on your own.
As you inhale,
Let the belly get big.
And then as you exhale,
Let the belly pull in bit by bit.
And then the next time that you finish your exhale,
I just want you to drop your hand away from your belly on your thigh or your knee or even on the floor by your side.
And then just notice.
Once again,
Notice the breath,
Where it's at in the body.
Maybe notice the sensations of your body.
So notice if you feel lighter or more grounded or centered in the center of your body.
And then take a reset breath with me.
Go ahead and draw it in through the nose,
Big breath in.
And let it go out of the mouth.
We're going to try that again with the opposite hand.
So whatever hand wasn't on the belly,
Go ahead and bring it to the belly just underneath of the belly button.
And without much instruction here,
I want you to go right into the belly breathing so that as you inhale,
Feel the belly press against the palm,
Feel the belly expand and the belly muscles soften.
And then as you exhale,
Feel the belly come in,
The palm coming closer toward your spine.
Do that a few times,
The rhythm of your own breath,
Let the belly expand,
Let it take up space as you inhale and then exhale,
Let it draw inward.
Try that one more time,
A big inhale to fill the belly,
Let it fill up like a balloon.
And then the exhale like the balloon deflating.
And let the hand come away from the belly,
Find a nice relaxed position and just notice,
Again,
Notice the path of the breath,
Where you feel it most in your body,
Your shoulders,
Your chest,
Your belly,
Your back.
Notice any sensations there in the body.
This belly breathing is a great way to feel grounded.
It's a great way to come back to a much calmer state of mind if we feel a little panicked or anxious.
It's a way to pull ourselves or our attention or our awareness out of the mind and deep into the body,
Deep into the center of your beingness.
Do it with me once more,
Reset breath,
Nourishing breath all the way in,
Releasing it all the way out.
All again,
Namaste.
