Calming Yoga Breathing

In Yoga, breathing techniques are called pranayama. One type of pranayama is the alternate nostril breathing which I will guide in this session. It improves focus and clarity, calms your mind and emotions, improves sleep and is an excellent preparation before any meditation practice. After only a few minutes of alternate nostril breathing, you may feel and notice a difference as to how you feel.

Transcript

Alternate nostril breathing is an ancient yogic breathing technique. It's calming and it helps your body to switch from the stress response into a relaxation response. Whenever you feel stressed try and practice a few rounds of alternate nostril breathing. Maybe you can practice it before your mindful yoga or any time during the day when you need to calm down and to relax. It's also a great practice to be practiced after work or before bedtime. So let us start. Sit comfortable with your shoulders relaxed. You might like to close your eyes or if you prefer you can keep your eyes open with a gentle gaze. If you can try and breathe with your belly. When you inhale your belly moves out and when you exhale your belly moves back down. And then to start the alternate nostril breathing you bring the right hand up to your nose. Close off your right nostril with your thumb and inhale through your left nostril. Then close off the left nostril with your ring finger and breathe out on your right nostril. Then inhale to your right nostril close it with your thumb and out to your left. Inhale to your left side close it with your ring finger and breathe out to your right side. Breathing in to the right side closing and out to your left. In to your left closing breathing out to your right. Continue like this for another moment. In to one side closing out to the other. When you have practiced this for a while then you could also start counting. Breathing in counting to four and holding the breath counting to twelve for sixteen and breathing out counting to eight. If these numbers don't work for you don't worry. Find your own numbers. Just make sure that the exhale is always longer than your inhale. Do this practice as many rounds as you like being sure to exhale through the left nostril to complete your last cycle. And then when you are ready bringing this to an end or continue if you would like to continue. After you finish just try and sit quietly and just notice how you are feeling. Has anything changed? Is your mind feeling calmer? Is maybe your body feeling different? How do you feel right now? Please have patience. With mindfulness and yoga we need a lot of patience. Thank you for practicing with me. I wish you a really nice day.

Reviews

Helped me to calm down after a confrontation. Will practise this again. Thank you 🙏

I felt a difference. My breathing feels much more unrestricted.

Lovely and calming, thank you!! 🙏🏻😊