Have you ever stopped at thought about the way you breathe? Did you know that a majority of us breathe wrong? At some point in time, we picked up bad breathing habits. Whether that is from
a coach, an activity (swimming in particular), an illness, or any number of reasons, we tend to not breathe right.
Have you ever watched a newborn breathe? They naturally breathe through the nose and their belly expands with every inhalation. It is the healthiest way to breathe, and no air is not going into your stomach when your belly expands. The diaphragm is the biggest and primary muscle of breathing. It contracts to give the lungs more space for air. It contracts downward pushing the abdomen outwards. Breathing this way also helps to control pain.
One of the biggest culprits for us to not use our nose and belly is sitting. The belly gets constricted with bent over posture. If you’ve ever heard me talk about posture with people, the poor habits begin as early as kindergarten when we first start sitting at a desk all day. Try to sit forward with a hunched posture and breathe. The lungs struggle to expand. Now try to sit up tall and breathe? Notice a difference?
We can all be better breathers. Take 10-15 minutes per day to work on breathing in and out through your nose and with your belly expanding on every inhalation. You can do this laying down on your back, sitting up tall, or standing.
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