Breathwork to Build Your Mental Fitness
Adelaide Wilkinson
Breathwork is a simple and natural tool to build your mental fitness. Empower yourself with one of the most accessible tools there is - The Breath. Build your emotional muscle and resilience for a mentally healthier life.
It can start with taking 5 deep breaths through your stomach.
Why does breath matter? You might ask.
Breathing is an automatic function of the body that is controlled by the respiratory centre of the brain. When we feel stressed, our breathing rate and pattern changes as part of the ‘fight-or flight response’.
Stressed-out individuals have an increased heart rate, higher blood pressure and take short, shallow breaths without even realising it. Shallow over-breathing, or hyperventilation, can prolong the feelings of anxiety by making the physical symptoms of stress worse.
Deep breathing, on the other hand, increases focus and lowers your heart rate while also inducing a sense of calm and control.
The parasympathetic nervous system controls your rest, relaxation, and digestion response. When the parasympathetic system is dominant, your breathing slows, your heart rate drops, your blood pressure lowers, and your body is guided back into a state of calm and healing.
Through the intentional control of the breath you are able to guide the body back from your flight or fight stress response into this natural state of calm.
Stress is a natural part of life but if we don’t know how to de-stress then it can accumulate in the body and can show up as conditions such as insomnia, high blood pressure, anxiety and obesity to name a few.
There are simple and easy breathing techniques that can be learnt to relax and restore a sense of calm. These tools can be practiced anywhere, anytime enabling you to manage stress and anxiety on a day-today basis.
Studies reveal that just one session of mindful breathing and as little as five minutes can have a positive effect on anxiety and depression, emotional regulation, memory and focus.
Step out of your comfort zone and try something new.
Try this calm-inducing breathing technique “3-part breath”
Take a comfortable seated position. Close your eyes and begin breathing through your nose.
Inhale for the count of 3,
Hold your breath in for the count of 3,
Exhale for the count of 3.
Keep your focus on the breath and the count. Keep your breathing even and smooth. If 3 counts feel too short, try increasing the breath lengths to 6 or 8 counts. If longer breaths create any anxiety, there is no need to push yourself. The most important thing is that you keep your breath soft and smooth
Practice this technique for at least 5 minutes to see a difference in how you feel.
This technique can be practiced in moments of stress to calm down and is also great to be incorporated as part of your self-care routine to destress. A great technique to practice at the end of the day before bed to induce a restful night's sleep.
This technique is designed to have a calming and relaxing effect on the body whilst drawing the attention away from the mental chatter of the mind into the body. Activating your natural relaxation response within the body, the parasympathetic nervous system.
Adelaide Wilkinson is a breathwork facilitator, certified life coach and yoga teacher with over 500 hours of teacher training . Adelaide is a courageous woman devoted to living a life true to herself. She brings a lightness of being to her offerings that will encourage you to show up with complete sincerity; challenging you to expand and grow. Adelaide will support you to express yourself authentically, courageously and wholeheartedly in the world. To find out more about Adelaide visit the True To Self website.