Hello.
Take a comfortable seat.
It's time for a short practice.
As you settle into your seat,
Permission for your comfortable seat to be subjective.
Create a seat that you can be in effortlessly.
Perhaps supporting your hips with a block or a blanket.
Or supporting your spine with a wall.
Or maybe you prefer to lie down for the next few moments.
And if your eyes are still open,
Let them scan the room around you.
Gaining a sense of the ceiling,
The walls,
The floor.
And as you feel steady and stable in your surroundings,
Allow your eyes to close.
Or maybe they simply fix some one object of interest.
Take your gaze inward,
Scanning your body from head to heel,
Noticing how you feel physically.
Take any adjustments for more ease and less effort in your seat.
Notice your breath that's available here and now.
Tuning into your inhale.
And exhale.
Paying attention to where your breath feels easy.
And also noticing the ways that the breath feels challenged or incomplete.
Take a little peek inside your mind,
Noticing whatever thoughts are rolling or scrolling past.
Paying attention to not only the quantity of your thoughts,
But also the quality.
And come right back to your breath.
Just like that,
Go from thinking to breathing.
Allowing yourself to fall into a rhythm,
A pattern of breath.
Maybe you're able to find a balanced breath.
Perhaps breathing in to the count of three,
Two,
One.
Breathing out to match the pattern of three,
Two,
One.
Repeat this pattern.
And maybe three is the right number count for you.
Or maybe your breath feels a little easier and four in and four out.
Maybe two in and two out feels just right for you.
Maybe counting your breath takes you out completely,
Then you can ignore that piece.
Falling into a rhythm,
A balance,
A pattern of inhale and exhale.
And now see if it's possible to lengthen your inhale just a little bit.
So if you're breathing in and out comfortably for three,
Try breathing in for four.
Slowing it down,
Three,
Two,
One.
And the exhale remains right as it was.
Three,
Two,
One.
Repeat,
Breathing in a little longer.
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Breathing out for three,
Two,
One.
And repeat this a few more times,
Slightly increasing the length of your inhale.
Bringing in a little more energy,
A little more oxygen into your system.
And then keep the exhale steady right where it was.
And maybe you're able to breathe just a little longer on the inhale.
Breathing in for five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Breathing out steady for three.
Again,
Inhaling just a little longer.
Five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Breathing out steady as you go.
Maybe you're able to breathe in a little longer.
Breathing in slow and steady for six,
Five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Breathing out for three,
Two,
One.
And keep this going,
Trying to breathe twice as long in your inhale as your exhale.
So maybe that's breathing in for six,
Out for three.
Maybe that's breathing in for four,
Out for two.
Maybe that's breathing in for 20,
Out for 10.
The numbers aren't important.
Just the ratio giving your body more time to breathe in,
To expand,
To receive.
Noticing if you find it difficult to receive a little more.
Not trying to analyze what any of that means.
Just sitting with any difficulties or eases that may come up in this breath work.
Just a few more rounds.
Release your control of your breath,
Allowing yourself to return to a normal state.
Noticing what you notice.
Slowly allowing your eyes to open and take back in your surroundings.
Give yourself one more gift of a breath in.
Long,
Slow a breath out.
Thanks for breathing with me,
Friends.
Enjoy your day.
