Welcome.
So this is a breathe light practice.
You're going to learn how to breathe less air than usual on purpose and get comfortable with the slight hunger that comes with that,
The air hunger that comes with that.
And a lot of people over breathe without knowing it.
And our urge to breathe is driven mainly by carbon dioxide,
Not a lack of oxygen.
So when you're very sensitive to carbon dioxide,
You feel breathless sooner,
Under stress and in training.
So when we practice gentle air hunger,
Little and often,
It can make you less reactive to it over time.
So for athletes,
That can mean less breathlessness at the same effort.
For everyone else,
A calmer response when things get tense.
A couple of safety points before we begin,
Never practice this in or near water or while driving.
Keep the air hunger mild.
If you're pregnant,
Have a heart condition or have panic attacks,
Keep it very gentle or check with your doctor first.
And if you feel panicky at any point,
Simply go back to normal breathing.
So let's sit comfortably and upraise.
The mouth closed.
Place one hand on your chest and one on your belly.
And just breathe normally through the nose for a few breaths.
As you breathe,
Just notice how much your hands move.
The technique is simple on each breath.
Just take a little less air than you want.
So a smaller,
Softer inhale.
And then let the next exhale be relaxed and slow,
Like a gentle sigh.
And we're aiming to reduce the breathing by about a third.
And after a while,
You'll feel a little hunger for air,
A tolerable need to breathe more.
And that's what we're looking for,
Not a struggle.
If you get strong,
Just take a normal breath and then go back to breathing light.
And we'll do three blocks of about 90 seconds with a short spell of normal breathing in between.
So let's begin.
Small soft breath in.
Long relaxed breath out.
Small soft breath in.
Long relaxed breath out.
As you do this,
Let the hand under your belly move less and less.
Calming the breathing down from the inside.
Imagine the air barely reaching the tip of your nose.
You might notice a little air hunger arriving now.
Staying relaxed around it,
Soft shoulders,
Soft belly.
Keep it light.
If it's too much,
Just take a normal breath and go back.
And now just coming back to breathing normally through the nose,
Don't gulp,
Just let it come back naturally and gradually.
In a few moments we'll come back into our second block.
So you can begin to soften the breath again.
A little less air coming in and a gentle sigh out.
You might notice your body start to feel a bit warmer,
Your hands,
Your face.
That's a good sign.
You might also notice more saliva in your mouth.
And staying with the air hunger.
It's information,
Not danger.
Relax the muscles around the ribs and let the breath stay small.
And just coming back to your normal breath.
Again,
Gradually not gulping.
And just settling into that regular breath again.
Now coming into our last block,
We're going to breathe light again,
So small and soft breaths.
See if you can sit in the air hunger with a little more ease this time.
So same feeling but less reaction.
Nearly there is things softer.
And let go,
Just breathing normally now through your nose again,
Gradually.
Transitioning back to your natural breath.
And let the breath settle for a few moments.
And just notice how you feel.
Maybe calm or warm or a little more spacious.
This is a practice that you build over weeks,
Not just in one session.
A couple of rounds a day can do a lot.
You can also do this whilst you're out walking,
Once you're comfortable doing it seated.
Slowly when you feel ready,
I invite you to open your eyes.
