Deep Breathing - A powerful tool to healthy living

Table of contents 

•What is deep breathing?

•Types of deep breathing 

•Health benefits of deep breathing 

•How to do deep breathing?

Deep Breathing - A powerful tool to healthy living

Everybody knows that breathing is a natural and vital process of our body that is controlled by the respiratory center of our brain. It starts when the foetus is in the  womb of the mother and ends only when we die. Breathing continues throughout our lifetime nonstop. 

Even though it is an automatic process we can control and use it for our benefit. Scientific research suggests that deep breathing has a number of benefits on our health. It reduces stress, anxiety, hyper tension, blood pressure and helps you stay calm. 

There are different types of breathing we might knowingly or unknowingly follow. 

Types of breathing 

•Eupnea (quiet breathing): this is the type of breathing we are often involved in. When we are unaware of our breath this is how we breathe. Here both diaphragm and external intercostal muscles contracts.

•Costal breathing(shallow breathing): it uses intercoastal muscles (muscles between ribs). These muscles relaxes when air leaves the lungs.

•Diaphragmatic breathing: here diaphragm muscles contracts. Deep breathing incorporate this type of breathing. 

•Hyperpnea: here active inhalation and exhalation occurs due to muscle contractions. 

It is best to breath from your belly. Long inhalation and long exhalation is always recommended. It helps you relax in a panic situation within five minutes of practice. Before stepping on the stage for your presentation practice deep breathing for 5 minutes and see how relaxed and confident you feel . 

Try this excercise now. See how it felt before and after deep breathing. Your experience of positive change will make you do it again and again effortlessly. 

Deep breathing has many health benefits 

Deep breathing let's you inhale more amount of oxygen which is good for brain, blood and all other parts of the body. Have you ever wondered why we yawn? We yawn to take in more oxygen as we take to shallow breathing while we are tired. This reduces the oxygen supply. It is a way of our intelligent body to inhale more oxygen. 

Slow breathing activates our parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest) system. This system is responsible to save energy needed for urination and digestion. It also activates vagus nerve. It takes care of the bodily functions like stress, emotions, heart rate and digestion. 

Deep breathing helps you with

•Stress, anxiety, depression 

•Improves your focus 

•Helps you sleep better

•Boosts your immunity 

•Improves your lungs capacity 

How to engage in deep breathing?

• Sit in relaxed position with your spine comfortably erect. Place your one hand on the belly initially to feel contractions and explanations. 

•Inhale slowly from your belly. Your belly would expand with air. 

•Hold your breath there for atleast 10- 16 seconds. Keep counting. 

•Now slowly exhale through mouth. Feel the contraction of your lungs. 

•Repeate this process for atleast 10 breaths in one go. 

There are few more tips and tricks that can be followed when you a beginner to this process. 

Make it a routine work: you must practice deep breathing for atleast 10- 15 minutes per day. Everyone should. This will have a number of benefits on our health. Include this in your morning routine. It is best as the freshness in the morning makes you feel even better. 

Deep breathe before a performance: whenever you think that you are about to face a stressful situation you should deep breathe for atleast 5 times. It will instantly calm you down and let you perform well or handle a situation with maturity. Panics would reduce and you would respond to the situation rather then reacting. 

One can do it anywhere anytime without anyone knowing that you are doing something. While breathing in or out be careful to do it as slowly as possible. It is said that your exhalation should be so quite calm and slow that if a feather is kept under your nostril it should not move. 

Do you know this fact that a tortoise life span is around 80-200 years while that of a dog is 10-15 years. A tortoise breathes only 4 times a minute while that a dog breathes 15-35 times in one minute while at rest. This example clearly tells us about the importance of slow breathing. 

Read more: How to avoid Procrastination - what are the 5 ways to avoid Procrastination

FAQs: 

Q.1.What is the 4-7-8 breathing technique for?

It is breathing technique where you count to 4 while inhalation then hold your breath upto 7 counts and then slowly releases the air counting until 8. It helps you deep breathe properly.

Q.2.What is the correct way to breathe?

Start breathing from your nose slowly engaging your stomach in the process where your diaphragm contracts and belly expands filling up your lungs with air. This is the best way to breathe.

Q.3.What causes weak lungs?

Pneumonia , pulmonary embolism , cystic fibrosis, COPD( chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) are conditions where our lungs get affected. These conditions are symbolic of weak health of lungs.