Good morning.
This is Larissa Hall-Carlson with a mindful breathing technique you can do while still in bed.
I do this almost every morning.
It's a simple,
Effective way to refresh the body and wake up gradually.
To begin,
Find a steady,
Comfortable position.
If lying on your back,
Take a few moments to even out the weight in your shoulders and hips.
If your back is feeling a little tender this morning,
You might prop up the legs on pillows or bend the knees and place the soles of the feet on the bed.
Lengthen the back of the neck,
Tucking the chin slightly.
Place the hands comfortably on the low belly.
Allow the eyes to soften or close.
Start breathing in and out through the nose if that's comfortable.
Welcoming in the fresh morning air.
And as the body settles and the breath deepens,
Notice how you're feeling on this brand new day.
Let's begin exploring these brand new breaths.
With the hands resting comfortably on the belly,
Anchor the mind's attention and begin to deepen the breath there.
Each inhalation,
Let the belly expand and widen,
Rising up into the hands.
And on each exhalation,
Gently deflate the balloon of the belly,
Squeezing out the stale air.
Inhale down towards the belly,
Let the belly puff and rise and stretch with breath.
Each exhalation,
Deflate the belly,
Drawing the belly button back towards the spine.
Something like this,
Deep belly breaths or diaphragmatic breaths.
A beautiful practice for massaging the internal organs,
Helping to stimulate and aid digestion.
A wonderful way to wake the body through the breath.
At the end of the next exhalation,
Release the belly breathing,
Slide the hands up to the rib cage,
Let the elbows go out wide.
And begin to breathe into the rib cage.
On each inhalation,
Invite the ribs to stretch and expand like the gills of a fish.
On each exhalation,
Deflate the rib cage.
Inhale let the ribs open,
Widen,
Stretch with breath.
On each exhalation,
Deflate the rib cage.
Continue like this,
Smooth steady breaths right into the ribs.
Invite the ribs to stretch and open in all directions.
The side ribs stretch and open,
The front and back ribs loosen and widen,
Airing out the lungs.
On the next exhalation,
Release this rib cage breath and slide the hands to the collar bones,
To the upper chest.
Begin to deepen the breath there.
On each inhalation,
Let the upper chest stretch and rise into the hands.
Begin on each exhalation,
Soften and relax,
Letting the chest deflate,
The shoulders loosen and soften.
Each inhalation,
Let the collar bones rise and broaden with breath.
Each exhalation,
Soften,
Relax and loosen.
Continue here breathing into the upper lobes of the lungs.
Inviting good exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide,
Flushing and flooding the lungs with fresh energy.
And on the next exhalation,
Release that breath in the upper chest.
Return the hands back down to the belly and we'll put it all together,
Coming into the three part breath.
On the next inhalation,
Breathe down towards the belly,
Let the belly puff and expand like a balloon.
Then slide the hands to the ribs,
Sip in more breath,
Flare the ribs open with breath.
Slide the hands now to the collar bones,
To the upper chest,
Sip in a little more air,
Filling the upper lungs with breath.
Then exhale,
Exhale,
Exhale it all out.
And start again,
Breathe down towards the belly,
Sip in more breath,
Breathe out into the ribs,
Sip in more breath,
Breathe up into the chest and shoulders.
Don't strain,
Never force.
And then exhale,
Exhale,
Exhale empty.
Continue like this,
The three part breath,
Inhaling into the belly,
Expanding the breath into the ribs,
Filling to the collar bones and shoulders.
Let the breath be more fluid,
Like a loosening,
Massaging,
Awakening wave.
Inviting openness throughout the torso,
Drawing deep,
Fresh,
Rejuvenating air into the lungs.
Hearing out congestion,
Bringing brightness and alertness to the mind.
And at the end of the next exhalation,
Release the three part breath,
Allow the natural breath to return,
Soften everything.
Begin the whole torso,
Feeling the effects of this morning breath.
Mindfully roll over to one side and begin to breathe,
Breathe and stretch the back side of the body,
Letting the back ribs open easily with the breath.
Noticing if the back side of the body feels warm or cool right now.
Finally sit up,
Taking a few moments to readjust to this new vertical alignment.
Smooth out and deepen the breath here.
And with all that fresh energy and oxygen flowing through the system,
Set one positive intention for the day ahead.
Wishing you the very best.
