Breathing exercises have been implemented in the field of yoga for thousands of years as an aid to calming the mind. While in deep states of meditation, yogis realized that the breathing rate diminished. As the yogi would wish to re-enter the deep mental state, one of the first steps was to slow the breathing. Hence, when teaching meditation to students, the yogi began by showing students how to breathe deeply.
Once, at a group meditation, I sat next to an older man—he was probably as old as I am now, but this was twenty years ago! He was sitting on a church pew, slightly hunched. While he was not very big, in the slouched position his stomach expanded and blocked his diaphragm from moving. Consequently, his breathing was very rapid and shallow, meaning that only the upper respiratory cavity moved (clavicle breathing). In addition, he breathed very quickly—roughly one to two seconds in and one to two seconds out—and overall his breath was quite forced and audible.
Breath and the Mind
“As the breath goes, so does the mind,” says the yogic oral tradition. The difficulty with breathing so rapidly is that the nervous system, as well as every other system of the body, is largely regulated by the breathing patterns. Breathe in a rapid fashion as if you are stressed, and your body will digest its food differently than if you breathe in a slow and deep fashion. The nervous system heightens when the breathing is shallow. You can play around with it on your own: breathe a few quick, shallow breaths and see if you can keep yourself from having an emotional reaction related to fear or anxiety!
As a younger graduate student at the time of observing this man, I was perplexed. He was a kind and deep-thinking person, yet his breath did not match his mind. I had no way of sharing this information, yet I still remember the event: this is how important deep breathing is. I was unable to help him, as unsolicited breathing advice is just not a culture norm; however, you can use this example to learn and reap all the benefits of deep breathing.
The moral of this short story is that the thoughts in our mind, which are so difficult to stop or slow down, are regulated by breathing patterns. While this book glosses over the hundreds of proven health benefits of deep breathing, the quieting of the mind is greatly enhanced by some deep breathing. I cannot prove this assertion scientifically without a large research study, but it is plausible that most of the physiological benefits resulting from meditation are related to the fact that breathing slows while meditating.
Students new to deep breathing often feel as though they are meditating for the first few weeks when performing the slower deep breathing exercises. During this chapter you are bound to slow down your thoughts and discover yet another key preparation for meditation—without which you would find it tough to quiet your mind.
A Few Key Reasons Why Deep Breathing
Is So Effective for Meditation
Diaphragm (belly) breathing is most important to include in your daily breathing because the majority of the lungs’ red blood cells are concentrated in the lowest areas of the lungs. This increases oxygen absorption, which leads to increased vitality and an altered mind. Meditation requires alertness in spite of it looking easy. Secondly, as the belly is moved by the diaphragm in and out, blood circulates throughout the body, and the heart relaxes. Try it: pull in the diaphragm as you exhale and expand the breath into the abdominal area for a few breaths to feel the circulatory effects.
While it may require time to maximize, breathing into the lateral area of the lungs by expanding the rib cage to the sides is an important part of a full breath. To be fully clear, this second facet of a deep breath is the sideways expansion of the lungs. The intercostals muscles, if not used on a regular basis, become stiff like any other muscle. As you open the lungs laterally, you further slow down the process of breathing. What may have been a quick two-second inhalation is immediately slowed by the diaphragm and intercostals movements. This slowing allows small balloon-shaped air sacs, the alveoli, to fully expand and thereby promote greater oxygen absorption. On an emotional level, the slow breath tells the nervous system that you are in a stable, safe environment. Breathing is paramount to the health of mind and body.
As the air travels from the bottom of the lungs upward, the final area to expand is the clavicle or upper chest area. While most people do breathe into this upper region, it is usually just the very front of the upper chest where your hand would rest comfortably on your breast plate. However, if you expand the upper chest area slowly and continue until you feel the air flow into the very top of the lungs, you will notice that rarely does anyone fill that top area. It may feel refreshing and it will take at least two seconds to completely expand this final region of the lungs. Remember, the alveoli sacs resemble balloons and they need to be given time to fully inflate, just like a real balloon.
Exhaling offers a host of benefits as well. First of all, a proper exhale allows there to be a more complete removal of carbon dioxide or “dead air” from the lungs and therefore the potential for a deep inhalation to follow. First squeeze the upper chest, followed by pulling in the rib cage and finally squeezing your stomach back toward the spine. Now you are energized naturally!
After some time of regular practice for five minutes twice daily, along with periodic breathing observations during the day, your breathing cycle will slowly become deeper automatically.
Breath, Mind, and Sanity
“In-spirit-action” or inspiration means both the act of bringing air into the lungs and divine influence. The act of breathing is at once physical, biological, and tactile. The very act of breathing is our most vital of all life lines; without breath, no creature would be alive. Breathing connects all living creatures with the environment. One way of summarizing human suffering is isolation from the larger universe. Meanwhile, breathing is absolute evidence that human beings are not only dependent upon nature for existence but are intimately connected to nature with every breath. So to savor, honor, and revere breathing is akin to respecting the spiritual aspect of all beings.
The word “inspiration” is one of the key principles for meditation. In moments of silent reflection the human being is able to step outside of the humdrum of anthropocentric thinking and step into a larger awareness that begets spiritual fulfillment, joy, and meaning.
Exercise: Breathing Self-Evaluation
It is important to know where you are when first learning an activity akin to deep breathing. If you are a long-term meditator and understand your breathing pattern, please learn from this exercise as if you were a beginner observing breathing for the first time. Breathing alters our stress level and our state of mind, and it is literally a lifelong lifeline. Proper deep breathing is essentially the most important health choice we can actively make, as without breath for just four minutes, the human body ceases life-supporting function. Paradoxically, for all they do instruct, schools do not teach proper deep breathing to young students.
To learn the effects of improper breathing on your physique and mind, sit in a slumping posture that you know is a personal habit of yours. If you are unaware of a slouching position, imagine that you are sitting in front of a computer keyboard with your shoulders and upper body rounded and curved forward. Even though you know that this posture is incorrect, remain in the position and consider the questions that follow. This exercise is safe to use with children or friends, as you are only learning from observation. In fact, all of the breathing exercises below are intentionally simple and available to all fitness levels.
- What part of your lungs moves while you are in your slouched position? The areas to consider are the diaphragm (belly), rib cage, and upper chest (clavicle) regions.
- Which parts of the lungs are restricted in this posture? Consider the same areas as above.
- How many seconds do you inhale? How many seconds do you exhale? Is there a pause after inhalation, exhalation, or both?
- If you notice a pause at any point, how long did it last? What is the quality of the breathing? Some examples are: choppy, in stages like an elevator, starts fast and slows, starts slow and increases. Be creative in describing your unique breath pattern—the goal is observation, after all!
- How do you feel emotionally in this breath?
- To assist in emotional understanding, use your arms and hands to exaggerate the feeling associated with this breathing pattern and observe any accompanying facial expression(s).
- Keep your notes from these observations as we navigate through a series of exercises that will help to improve the quality of your breathing.
Posture Is First
During my first meditation experience in Japan my legs felt as though they had fallen off of my body. Never had my legs been asleep for so long, and never before had I sat on a zafu meditation cushion (let alone knowing that the cushion was called a zafu)! Before even considering meditation you must make sure that you know how to sit and why. In order to be successful with breathing, the spine needs to be erect and the arms and legs comfortable. No matter who you are, breathing begins with the physical positioning of the body. It is most important to keep in mind that if you feel any physical pain from sitting in meditation, reposition your body. Despite the common image of a monk sitting stone-still for hours in meditation, such rigid positioning not only shuts off body awareness but can also be detrimental to the cushioning mechanisms of your bones and muscles. Do not worry if others are in the room with you—the noise created by you moving is of little to no interference to them—but injured knees are a definite interference to your present and future practice.
Let this point be reiterated: if you feel any physical pain from sitting in meditation, reposition your body!
Key Principles
• Lying down is not suitable for meditation; in spite of what people may say, lying down (supine position) is for relaxation. In this position sleep occurs for almost all people, even the most experienced meditator, within eight to twelve minutes.
• Keep the spine erect and the core upright, as this allows maximum blood flow to the brain—therefore keeping you alert and aware in your practice. In addition, an erect spine permits proper breathing; even a slight lean forward can compress the lungs and diaphragm, reducing breathing capacity.
• It has been shown that having a slight smile on your face can help facilitate relaxation of the entire body. Such a “half-grin” also helps settle the shoulders and calm the mind.
• Find a position that makes your legs as comfortable as possible. Remember that pain is to be avoided—sitting in a chair is permitted, if necessary.
• Be careful of your tailbone and coccyx, for improper sitting will compress the area at the base of the spine.
• Keep your pelvis tilted slightly forward (but not the torso) to use the skeleton to support the upper body. When someone sits with a rounded low back due to a pelvis that is tilted backwards, the low back will begin to ache in very short order. Sitting in a chair is best if this happens to be the case.
• While seated with the legs crossed in some fashion offers the idea of stillness and acceptance of one’s situation, the legs may be placed really in any comfortable position. Having the legs externally opened in a butterfly position or internally rotated in a kneeling position (with a blanket or bolster for support) are equally acceptable.
• If you do practice seated meditation, be sure to vary the posture so that you do not strain the body by sitting in one position all of the time.
• If you opt for using a cushion, sit close to the front edge of it and let your crossed legs rest on the floor in front of you. Make sure that you never sit way back on the cushion, as this will cause the front edge to press the underside of the thigh, cutting off circulation and leading you to a lot of leg pain.
• Be careful of the positioning and integrity of your knees in any seated posture. Be mindful of the position and compressive forces working on your lower back. Remember that you are always certainly permitted to meditate in a chair for better support and comfort.
Acceptable Poses for Meditation
The key principles above lend themselves to some of the most common postures suited for meditation. Please keep in mind that this is not an end-all list, and it is more important to listen to your own body than follow someone’s direct commands regarding a comfortable meditative posture. Comfort is predominantly subjective—so long as muscles and joints are not compromised—so use your own body’s intuition to find what works best for you. As the body can become stilled, so too will follow the mind. Finding your meditation pose (or poses) is the first step.
Easy Pose: Simply sit cross-legged on the floor. Use a pillow or a blanket to keep the pelvis tilted forward if necessary. Be careful of the positioning of the legs so that they do not put undue pressure on your ankles or knees. Please be aware that while this pose is named “easy,” you may find it to be quite challenging at first!
Lotus Pose: From easy pose, move your feet up into your lap. While this position is historically “the” meditation pose, be aware that it requires a good deal of flexibility as well as particular joint construction in the hips. If your hip joint anatomically cannot fully rotate externally, this position can be unreachable. For those who can physically get into the posture, it can cause great pressure on the knees. Be sure not to remain in this position beyond a few minutes and to alternate which shin is in front.
Half-Lotus Pose: From easy pose, instead of bringing both feet into the lap, only one foot is elevated. This tends to be easier than a full lotus position, as less flexibility and extreme external rotation of the hip is required. Like the full lotus position, however, it is advisable not to remain in this posture for too long and to alternate which foot is placed in the lap.
Adamant Pose: From a kneeling position, fold the legs and sit the bottom down onto the heels of the feet, keeping both the knees and feet together. This position requires an intense fold of the legs, which can be impeded by tight quadriceps or ankles. This position can also put excessive strain on the knee joint, so you may wish to use a meditation bench, bolster, or blanket to help support the thighs. Traditionally, the tops of the feet rest on the earth, but as mentioned above this can be difficult on the ankles. The toes can be flexed so that the ball of the foot rests on the earth instead. This can be taxing to the toes but also provides some elevation to ease the knees. With a support, this position usually can be held for a prolonged period of time, but without support it is not recommended to hold for too long.
Butterfly Pose: From being seated on the ground, bring the soles of the feet together and let the knees fall out and apart. Like the lotus pose, the ease of even getting into this posture is dependent on the structure of the hip joint and flexibility in the groin. The knees may never reach the ground even in the most flexible individual if the hip joint does not allow for full external rotation. The use of folded blankets or blocks beneath each knee can help alleviate any holding in the legs. Unlike the other seated positions, it is very easy to round the low back sitting in this manner. The placement of a blanket beneath your bottom can help facilitate an easy tilt of the pelvis forward, thus relieving undue compression in the low back.
Sitting in a Chair: As cannot be stressed enough, sitting on the floor may just not be good for you, so you are always permitted to use a chair instead. When choosing a chair, ensure that it has a level seat, a straight back, and no arms. It is best to situate yourself in such a way that your back does not lean against the chair’s back. Also, it is very important that the front of the seat not dig into the underside of your thighs, as this can cut off circulation to your lower legs. Once situated on the chair seat, bring your legs together and place your feet flat on the floor to maintain a neutral pelvis.
Standing Prayer Pose: Believe it or not, you can meditate standing! There are inherent challenges with this position, namely falling over, so ensure that the area around you is safe and clear of items. Standing comfortably, bring the feet together; if your balance is weak, it is acceptable to place the feet a few inches apart. Bring your hands up to your heart with the palms together, letting the elbows relax. You are not so much pressing the hands strongly together (which would raise the elbows) as letting them rest on your chest so that the elbows are heavy with gravity. Keep your posture as upright as possible and slowly begin to close your eyes as you move toward quieting the mind.
Simple Breathing Exercises for Meditation
In this section you will learn a series of breathing exercises, of which only the last will be used as a preparation for even formal observance in meditation. The first three exercises are introduced merely to begin opening the lungs and gain awareness of your full respiratory potential. These exercises may be performed by anyone with any health condition except, of course, any injury that could impede the movement of the lungs. Please note that the purpose of these exercises is simply to develop a slow inhalation and exhalation. The amount of time for the breath will vary; however, each area of the lungs will be in operation with practice and attention.
The exercises to follow, though listed sequentially, are not exercises that are to be “mastered” before moving on to the next. This is not to say that I do not recommend following them in the order they are listed, moving on to the exercises to follow only when you feel comfortable with the current breathing activity. Recall the concept of beginner’s mind—each of these exercises are just as powerful to the regular practitioner as they are to the novice for the awareness that can be applied and continually cultivated.
Exercise: Diaphragm Breathing (Part 1 of 3)
Breathing with the large diaphragm muscle in the center of your body is the first stage for the full yogic three-part deep breath. It is imperative to learn awareness and control of this essential muscle, for the fullest potential of your breath is impossible without utilizing it. This type of breath is also recommended for emotional control—especially anger—because it gives you the time and space to become quiet, increasing internal awareness and emotional integration.
1: Lie comfortably on your back (supine position) and pull the knees up, placing the feet near your buttocks.
2: Place your right hand on your abdomen and see if you can breathe only by moving the diaphragm up and down (your right hand should rise and fall with the breath).
3: Place your left hand on the upper chest area and see if you can keep the left hand from rising and falling as you continue to breathe. A neat fact: watch a baby sometime and you will see that they breathe in this fashion naturally! It is only with age that we forget this completely normal breath pattern.
4: Keep the breath to a steady rhythm, starting with a three-second count in and a three-second count out. You may increase the count as comfortable to a maximum of ten seconds in and out.
5: Perform ten rounds; one inhale and exhale cycle is considered a round.
Exercise: Intercostal Breathing (Part 2 of 3)
Breathing laterally into the rib cage is perhaps the most difficult part of the breath to learn as it is quite challenging to isolate this region. In addition, the intercostal muscles that lie between the ribs are usually so unused that they tend to “lock” and further prevent conscious control. Using the following exercise, however, freedom of motion can be achieved. To begin to cultivate awareness of this region, we start with a simple preparatory exercise.
1: Sit comfortably on the floor or in a chair and lean forward with the torso ever so slightly.
2: Carefully arch the mid-back to engage the intercostals for support and opening of the lungs. As you breathe, be careful to avoid breathing into the upper lungs as this actually restricts lateral movement.
As you learn to notice these muscles, you can proceed to the formal exercise.
1: Sit or stand erect with your feet shoulder-width apart.
2: Place your hands on the lower portion of the rib cage, just below the chest.
3: As you inhale fully and expand laterally, try to use only your intercostal muscles. The hands should ever so slightly and slowly grow away from each other.
4: Exhale when inhalation is complete, relaxing the intercostals and letting the hands on your ribs come back toward the midline.
5: The emphasis is to try not to use the diaphragm or muscles of the upper chest but to concentrate solely on the lower rib cage area.
6: If you find yourself having trouble with this isolation, try this alternative:
- Sit comfortably, as you did in the preparatory exercise, and this time lean the torso slightly forward.
- Place the hands on the lower ribs, as we did above, and draw the chin comfortably into the chest.
- In this shape, the bent torso restricts the diaphragm while the chin-to-chest helps hold back the upper chest.
7: As you build awareness and are comfortable, start with a three-second count in and out, maintaining an equal breathing rhythm, and gradually increase to five to ten seconds.
8: Ten rounds (one round is one inhale and exhale cycle) is recommended.
Exercise: Clavicle Breathing (Part 3 of 3)
Most people these days are quite capable of breathing into the upper chest—in fact, for many that is the only area of the lungs they use! As you perform this exercise of isolating the upper chest region, note that this is still, in fact, one aspect of a deep breath. However, this region can have a far greater level of control when used slowly and deliberately as opposed to the automatic, rapid, and shallow breath most of us experience throughout the day. This exercise aims to isolate the set of muscles that controls the upper lungs for practice purposes only, and not to further the habit of only breathing in the upper chest.
1: Place one hand on your upper chest between your collarbones. Inhale by moving only the clavicle muscles of this region and keeping the intercostals and diaphragm still as best you can.
2: Concentrate on the area below the armpits while keeping an equal count of breaths in and out.
3: To deepen the magnitude of this breath, inhale slowly and when you feel full continue for 2 more seconds, giving the alveoli of the lungs time to expand. You should be able to feel the tops of the lungs (near the base of the throat and neck) completely fill.
4: Release the breath and exhale, breathing out a few seconds longer than you think you possibly can so that the clavicle area is concave and emptied. It may help to cough gently to expel the air.
5: As you mature in the practice, there should be no pauses between inhale and exhale, even with these deeper breaths.
6: Use a count of 2 seconds in and out at first, and gradually increase the count to 5–10 seconds over time.
7: Do ten rounds, again maintaining an equal count for inhalation and exhalation.
Exercise: Three-Part Yogic Breathing
For this exercise we simply use each of the three parts of the breathing process described above in a coordinated, fluid manner, using all the muscles of the lungs for a deep, rhythmic breath. Inhale first into the base of the lungs (diaphragm) and then fill the intercostals area to the sides, finishing with the upper clavicle area. Without pausing, exhale from the clavicle area first, then draw the intercostals in second, and finish by pulling the navel to the spine as the diaphragm expels the entirety of the breath.
Once the rhythmic breath is achieved, begin to concentrate on a smooth transition from inhalation to exhalation and vice versa. Starting out, though it may be somewhat frightening at times, avoid the tendency to start each exchange quickly. Usually, a person breathes in too quickly for the first few seconds, as there is a desire to get the air in; likewise, when beginning to exhale there is a tendency to expel the air forcefully. Attempt to breathe to the best of your capability in a smooth, even fashion. In time and with practice, you may work up a count to help equalize the length of the inhalation and exhalation. This even, balanced breath is geared toward being the breathing pattern for meditation. A slow, steady breath keeps the thoughts slow and steady as well.
Exercise: Equal Breathing
Once established in the three-part yogic breathing, the next step is to work on lengthening the breath and controlling the smooth transition when the breath changes from inhalation to exhalation and vice versa. A helpful tool to facilitate this is counting the breath length.
1: Periodically time your breathing rhythm as you breathe in and out of the nose. Fill each of the three areas of the lungs for an equal number of seconds, keeping it the same for inhalation and exhalation.
For example: Someone might start working at a count of two; two seconds into the diaphragm, two seconds into the intercostals, and two seconds into the clavicle. The exhale would have the same pattern.
2: Over time you may begin to work toward breathing in five seconds per each area of the lungs. This gives a fifteen-second inhalation and then a fifteen-second exhalation. After six months of practice, this is the level recommended for each person.
Please note: Those with athletic or musical backgrounds may notice the breathing patterns reaching thirty seconds in and out. This is a natural side effect of these other talents, but the key is to eventually reach fifteen seconds.
While there are numerous health benefits to a slow, steady breath, there are also mind-quieting effects of slow breathing. This exercise may be practiced for the duration of your life! To make things even better, larger quantities of carbon dioxide waste are eliminated from the lungs. This improves diaphragmatic functioning and ventilation effectiveness, allowing for a deeper, more nourishing inbreath.
Remember, smooth breathing is graceful. The lungs move in a fluid fashion while they slowly open. As the lungs expand, the atmosphere encourages air to enter the lungs. If the lungs move in a jerky or tense fashion, the air enters abruptly and not to the fullest capacity. Pay attention to the flow of air into the lungs as a first step, then notice the transition of air after the inhalation and exhalation. Some may hold the breath after inhaling while others may drop the chest and suddenly force the air out of the lungs. After exhaling, the abrupt tendencies are sudden inhalation and a pause followed by a gulping breath—both of which greatly decrease the efficiency of respiration.
Exercise: Breathing in Daily Life
Once you learn deep breathing via meditation, it is a helpful tool to use whenever you feel stressed. Simply pause to center, then begin expanding all of the areas of your lungs as you enjoy a deep breath. Simultaneously consider a new perspective in the time that you are breathing and discover a healthy way of dealing with the stressful situation.
You can even practice breathing while moving. As an exercise, practice walking very slowly while you concentrate on your breathing rhythm. Many meditation traditions perform meditative walking in between longer meditation sittings. Simply take very slow steps with keen awareness of your breath and each micro-movement you make on your walk. Remain very aware of your actions and breath, as well as the thoughts that arise. As you might imagine, you may apply this conscious approach to living to any activity in your daily life: cooking, walking, exercise, repetitive tasks…the list is really endless. Your breath is with you always, from the moment you exist until you take your last—and this very simple exercise allows you to use that to your advantage and growth.
Summary (and Meditative Humor)
Please continue to breathe!
Kristen Butera
, MDiv, PhD, has studied meditation and yoga since 1984. He founded the YogaLife Institute of Devon, Pennsylvania, where he trains yoga instructors and publishes Yoga Living Magazine. His advanced degrees are from the Yoga Institute of Mumbai, India; Earlham School of Religion; and California Institute of Integral Studies. YogaLife has trained over 1,000 yoga teachers in programs in Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, and Ontario. He is the author of The Pure Heart of Yoga: Ten Essential Steps for Personal Transformation, Meditation for Your Life: Creating a Plan That Suits Your Style, and Yoga Therapy for Stress and Anxiety. For more information, visit YogaLifeInstitute.com.
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