Hello and welcome.
Today I'll be guiding you through the interrupted breath,
Also known as the Loma.
We will be interrupting the breath on the inhale.
When we focus on the inhale,
Either increasing the amount of time we spend here versus the exhale,
Or spending time in the retention on the inhale,
We are energizing the body,
Energizing the breath,
And bringing qualities of aliveness and vitality and awakeness to ourselves.
On the inverse,
When we focus on a longer exhale than inhale,
Or holding the breath at the bottom of the exhale,
We stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system,
Which brings calm and relaxation to the body.
So since our intention today is to energize and bring vitality to the body,
We will stick with the interruption on that inhale.
The Loma is also really good for helping our brains to quiet down,
Bring stillness and focus,
As it's a type of meditation in and of itself.
Because as you will see,
In order to be successful you need to stay in the moment,
Be really attuned to what's going on.
The Loma is a great building block,
As it helps you to build up the amount of time that you spend in a breath hold or a breath retention.
So if you're building your breath work practice,
This is a great place to be.
So how is this breath done?
The inhale happens in three parts.
The first part,
You're going to fill one third of the way up,
Hold the breath,
Then you'll fill another third of the way up and hold the breath,
And then you'll fill completely,
Completely,
So there's no more room for expansion,
And hold the breath here and then slowly exhale.
I like to visualize that I am filling up from the bottom to the top.
So the first breath fills from the bottom of the ribs to about a third of the way up the lungs,
Then from there we go another third,
And then the last breath goes all the way to the apex or the top of the lungs,
Thinking about filling air all the way up to your clavicles.
There is a breath count here,
So we will inhale for three counts,
Hold for two,
Inhale for two counts,
Hold for three,
Inhale for one count,
Hold at the very top for four,
And then exhale for five counts.
If you feel a little confused,
Don't worry,
I'm going to guide you every step of the way.
So let's prepare for practice.
Find a comfortable seat,
Allow your sits bones to root into the earth,
Allow your shoulders to fall away from the ears,
Relax your jaw,
Allow your gaze to settle in front of you,
Or gently close your eyes.
Take a big breath together,
And exhale.
Inhale a third of the way for three,
Two,
One,
Hold here two,
One,
Inhale another third of the way for two,
One,
Hold here for three,
Two,
One,
Inhale one all the way to the top,
Hold here for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
Gently exhale through the nose for five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One,
Inhale for three,
Two,
One,
Hold two,
One,
Inhale for two,
One,
Hold here for three,
Two,
One,
Inhale to the top,
And hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
Gently exhale for five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One,
Inhale for three,
Two,
One,
Hold two,
One,
Inhale two,
One,
Hold for three,
Two,
One,
Inhale to the top,
And hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
Exhale five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One,
Inhale three,
Two,
One,
Hold two,
One,
Inhale two,
One,
Hold three,
Two,
One,
Inhale all the way to the top,
And hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
Gently exhale for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
And inhale three,
Two,
One,
Hold two,
One,
Inhale two,
One,
Hold for three,
Two,
One,
Inhale all the way to the top,
And hold for four,
Three,
Two,
One,
Exhale five,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Allow your body to drop into its normal breathing pattern.
Allow yourself to settle and sink.
Notice any shifts,
Any changes.
You may choose to go back and repeat the practice.
Thank you so much for being here today,
For showing up for yourself,
And progressing on your breathwork journey.
I'll see you next time.
