Welcome.
I'm Jess,
And this is my go-to morning breathwork practice.
A practice I enjoy almost every morning,
And one I really wanted to share with you.
It's a great way to set yourself up for a calm and balanced day,
And only takes about 15 minutes.
Now don't worry if you've not done any breathwork practices before.
I'll walk you through every step,
And there'll be a few different techniques.
We'll expand the body and the breath.
We'll do some box breathing to really help calm and regulate our nervous system,
And some alternate nostril breath to give us that deep sense of balance.
Let's go ahead and get started.
Find yourself in a nice,
Comfortable seat.
If you need a roll of the shoulders,
A shake of the hands,
Or a couple of big breaths,
Go ahead and do that now so that you're really comfortable.
Then take a big breath in through the nose.
Open the mouth and gently let it all go.
Let's do that again.
Expand from the belly,
Into the ribs,
Into the chest.
Softly open the mouth.
Let the breath go.
One more.
Breathe all the way in through the nose.
Notice the little pause at the top.
Open the mouth.
Gently sigh it all out.
Let the breath now settle back into its natural rhythm and take a moment just to pause and to notice how you're feeling in this space.
Notice if the mind is perhaps a little busy,
Knowing that that's okay.
You don't have to try and change anything just yet.
Hopefully the breath and the practice will help soften that.
Notice how the body feels.
If you can soften maybe the jaw,
The neck,
The shoulders,
And the hands.
And then gently turning your awareness to your breath,
Without trying to manipulate or change it just yet.
Just notice how it feels in its natural state.
Is it fast or slow?
Does the breath come in and out with ease or is there a little challenge there?
Now it doesn't matter the answers to any of these questions.
We're just noticing.
Notice the body as you breathe in.
And you breathe out.
Starting to find a gentle sense of rhythm.
I'll give us some guidance of breath throughout the practice,
But of course if my breath doesn't work for you,
Then you can go ahead and just tune me out and settle into a rhythm and a pattern that feels better in your body today.
Now the first technique is a 360 breath.
The very next time you inhale,
Imagine the breath is moving in 360 degrees.
The breath moves top to bottom,
Front to back,
Side to side.
And then as you exhale,
Everything softens.
Good.
Again,
Breathe all the way in,
Expand,
Grow.
Feel everything soften as you breathe out.
Good.
Again,
This time trying to breathe in and out through the nose if you can.
Feeling everything expand and then soften.
Good.
One more,
Just like that.
Breathe in,
Fill up,
Get big.
And feel everything soften as you exhale.
Let the breath settle again into its natural rhythm and just notice how you feel.
Nothing has to have changed,
But if it has,
Just notice.
And in a moment,
Not just yet,
We're going to move into our box breath.
We're going to inhale for a count of four.
Hold the breath for four.
Exhale for four.
And then hold again for four.
Now don't worry,
I'll be with you every step of the way.
I'll count us through so you can just listen to my voice.
But as I mentioned,
If the count doesn't work for you,
Find something that feels better in your body.
Let's take a breath to begin all the way in.
All the way out.
Good.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Hold.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Hold.
You're doing so well.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Hold.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Hold.
Amazing,
We're halfway.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Hold.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Hold.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Hold.
Last round.
Inhale.
Hold.
Exhale.
Hold.
Good job,
Let that breath pattern go.
If you want a recovery breath,
Breathe all the way in.
Open the mouth,
Breathe all the way out.
And again,
Just pause.
Take this moment to notice how you feel through the mind,
The body,
And the breath.
Again,
Without any judgment.
Just give yourself a little bit of space and time to just be here.
Well done.
And in a moment,
Not just yet,
We're going to move to our alternate nostril breath.
With your right hand,
Take the index finger and middle finger and gently place it between the eyebrows.
In a moment,
We will use our thumb to block the right nostril and breathe in through the left.
I'll say switch.
Use your ring finger to block your left nostril and open the right.
Breathe out.
Breathe back in the right.
Switch.
Cover the right nostril,
Open the left.
Breathe out.
That's one round.
I'll take us through a few.
And again,
If you get muddled up or lost,
Don't worry about it.
Just continue when you're ready.
And go at your own pace if you need.
Let's begin.
Take a breath to start.
In.
And out.
Get your right hand ready.
Close the right nostril.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Breathe back up the right.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Good job.
Inhale through the left.
Switch.
Exhale.
Inhale through the right.
Switch.
Exhale.
Good job.
Breathe in through the left.
Switch.
Breathe out.
Breathe in through the right.
Switch.
Breathe out.
Good.
Getting the hang of it.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Amazing.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Inhale.
You're nearly there.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Good.
Two more rounds.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Last round.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Inhale.
Switch.
Exhale.
Let it go.
Recovery breath if you need.
Breathe all the way in.
Breathe all the way out.
And again,
Pause.
Take this moment to notice.
Maybe in that alternate nostril breath,
You found it easier to breathe in and out through one nostril more than the other.
Maybe as we did a few rounds,
You noticed that even out.
Perhaps now,
You feel a little bit more balanced.
A little calmer.
Feel free to stay exactly as you are if you'd like to move into a meditation.
Otherwise,
Take a few more breaths.
Just here.
In your own space.
Setting yourself up for a great day ahead.
If you're feeling ready to head back into your day,
You can start to deepen the breath.
Maybe wiggle the fingers and toes.
Take a big old stretch.
And when you're ready,
Softly open your eyes.
Thank you so much for joining me.
My name's Jess,
And I hope to practice with you again very soon.
