PRACTICEBreathing
Like the correlation between strength and relaxation, the
body and the breath share a similar link. This connection
is called vinyasa. If you’ve checked out any yoga classes
in your area, you might have found that they’ve described
them as vinyasa classes. This means they link the breath to
the movement. Almost all yoga practices do this in some
manner or another.
The breath is an extremely important part of the practice.
It helps heat the body and also calms the mind by giving it
something to focus on. However, breathing in yoga is differ-
ent than the breathing you’re probably doing right now as
you read this.
In yoga, you breathe in and out through your nose.
This is a specific method called Ujjayi Pranayama. It is not
required, but it certainly adds to the practice. It’s easy to
learn—in fact, you can try it right now.
- Place your lips together softly.
- Breathe in through your nose.
- Exhale out your nose.
How did that feel? Perhaps the breath you took was
pretty shallow. Maybe you felt like you needed a little more
air. Try it again.
- Concentrate as you breathe through your nose.
- Make your ribs expand by filling your lungs with air.
- Exhale slowly.