Challenge 4: Deep Belly Breathing
CHALLENGE #4 of the Clean Life Challenge is Deep Belly Breathing. Breathing as a challenge? Yep! I ask that you work on this every day, several times a day for at least a week. Taking deep breaths slows the body, which signals the brain to slow down and relax. In turn, your brain signals the body to do the same. This action and reaction makes deep breathing one of the best things you can do for stress management… making a big impact on your health both body and mind!
Back in early 2019, stress kept popping up as one of the biggest things holding me back from healing. My doctor said I needed to learn to control my stress and the first thing he recommended was to learn how to breath.
Did you know most of us don’t breath properly? Hmm, doesn’t everyone do this everyday... breath in and breathe out. Well, in the fast paced world we live in, many of us have become very shallow breathers, breathing from the chest and never getting a full deep breath.
That was definitely me and I never realized it until it was pointed out. I started to pay attention and noticed I never really took a full deep breath. Oddly enough, Initially, deep belly breathing was pretty difficult for me… ha!
Fortunately, with enough time and practice, this type of breathing is something I do every day, multiple times a day and sometimes find myself doing it in times of stress when I don't even think about it (like watching the news). Deep belly breathing is probably one of the most simple things I have implemented that has made the biggest impact on my health!
What is Deep Belly Breathing?
Deep Belly Breathing is a type of diaphragmatic breathing or deep breathing that allows you to fully fill your lungs, strengthen your diaphragm, take in more oxygen and get your body to relax.
Benefits of Deep Belly Breathing
Reduce Stress and Increase Calmness - When you take deep breaths you reduce blood pressure, slowing your heart rate and signaling your body to calm down.
Improves Digestion - By taking deep breaths before eating, you slow your body down switching your body from the stressful sympathetic “fight or flight” state to the relaxed parasympathetic “rest and digest” state. Your body has to be in a relaxed state to properly break down and digest food. When you are in a hurry or stressed while eating, your body isn't going to do its job.
Increase Energy - Deep breathing allows you to take in more oxygen which in turn provides more energy.
Increase Lung Capacity - Practicing deep breathing allows your lungs to expand and fill with more air. The more you do this, the more your lungs will expand and hold more air, thus increasing your lung capacity.
Meditation - Because you spend time focusing your mind, this counts as a form of mediation. Frankly, I have the hardest time with mediation but I can do this!
How to do deep belly breathing
Sit or Lie Down in a Comfortable Position.
Place Hands - Place one hand over your heart and one hand over your upper abdomen, just under your ribs. This will help you feel where the air is filling and guide you in deep belly breathing. Once you get used to breathing this way, you only need to place your hands if you choose.
Breathe In Through your Nose - Slowly breath in through your nose filing your stomach with air. You should feel the hand over your abdomen rise and the hand over your chest stay still. Let your stomach expand as much as possible but don't force it. This may feel very strange at first as most of us fill our chest with air while contracting our stomach. Do not do that.
Breathe Out Through your Mouth - Slightly open your mouth and push the air out. You will feel your hand over your abdomen drop in as you release the air.
Repeat
When to use deep belly breathing?
These are the 3 ways that I implement it the most:
Before eating to help digest food - when you sit down to eat, take 3 slow deep belly breaths before you begin eating. This will help significantly with digestion by slowing your body and switching to a rest and digest state. While I know this, I still struggle with this step. Why? Because I am always in a hurry, which is even more of a reason to do it… ha!
Before going to bed to help with sleep - as you lay in bed, practice deep belly breathing to calm your body and help you drift into a deep sleep. This will also take your mind off the day or the to do list as you focus on your breathing, not what has been done or needs to be done. You can also implement counting… breath in, hold and breath out. There are many different opinions on the numbers but I like 3, 7 and 8 (breath in for 3, hold for 7 and out for 8) or sometimes 4,4 and 4 (breath in for 4, hold for 4 and out for 4). Find what works best for you!
Any time of stress - if you notice yourself getting stressed, your heart rate rising or your breaths getting shorter, stop and do this exercise 3 - 10 times.
Additional ways I IMPLEMENT this everyday
As I mentioned, deep belly breathing has become second nature for me.
When I watch the news, which I rarely do, I will implement deep breathing to not be affected by the stress induced from it.
If I am sitting in traffic or running late, I pause and take a few deep breaths.
If I am watching an intense show, like Ozark, I definitely implement deep breathing to keep my body relaxed.
The list goes on…
Have I convinced you? Are you in? I hope you join me in this weeks challenge and find it as helpful and useful as I have! Stayed tuned for the next one…
Stay safe, healthy and happy!
Elena XOXO
Have questions, thoughts, or your own tips & tricks? I would love to hear from you! Let’s get social—find me on social media or share right here by using the comment box below.
