Pranayama Yoga - Breathing Exercises

For many of us, Yoga is about taking a position so we can relax and although that is true, it is still important to consider the Pranayama Yoga which is the aspect of Yoga that deals with breathing. Since we need to breathe in order to live, it's pretty obvious that it is the most important function of our body. A beginner that practices Yoga might not realize it but with time anyone who is serious about Yoga will need to properly learn the relaxation techniques related to breathing. So let's have a look at some of the exercise available that are relatively easy to complete.

What Is Pranayama?

Before going into the exercises, I think it's a pretty good idea that we first define Pranayama Yoga. Pranayama is composed of two Sanskrit words, Prana which is related to the vital energy or the breath and ayama which means to extend. In Yoga though, we are looking to control our breathing not extend it necessarily. Basically all you have to do during Pranayama is to control the process of your inhalation and exhalation during your Yoga exercises in order to maximize your efforts. This will eventually allow you to learn how to control better your vital energy.

Basic rules of Pranayama

Before starting on Yoga pranayama there's an important principle you should respect. No matter which breathing exercise you follow, the proportion of inhalation, exhalation and retention should be the same for all your exercises. In this case it has to be a ratio of 1-4-2 which means you should inhale for a second, hold your breath for four seconds and exhale everything within two seconds. Before taking any positions, try it out. This is the first step to taking control of your breathing and you'll see that it can be very challenging if you've never done that before.

Yogic Breathing Techniques For Beginners

Although you won't see all the techniques here you'll learn the easiest ones. If you ever are interested in more advanced exercises, might I suggest you look for a teacher that can teach Yoga pranayama. Of course the easiest one is to simply sit and put your palm on your knees and concentrate on your breathing for a minute. Then take a 10-20 second break and repeat the process for five minutes.

The exercise mentioned above is all done with your nose only. Now this one requires you to use your mouth. The only difference is you will have to inhale slowly through your nose and before you exhale, plug your ears with your respective index fingers and slowly produce a humming sound while exhaling slowly. This is called the bee breathing or brahmari.

An excellent breathing exercise for seniors would be the tongue breathing or Sitali. In a sitting position, draw out the tongue and roll it up from the sides to form a tube or half-pipe. Slowly inhale through the tongue and fill the lung and withdraw the tongue once you've inhaled. Hold the breath and exhale slowly through the nostrils. This Pranayama Yoga is excellent for the elderly because it allows to reduce tension and high blood pressure.

As you can see, these are only a few of the many available breathing exercises available to you. If you are new to Yoga pranayama and you want to try it out, feel free to do so by finding free online lessons. However be careful and select beginner exercises before adventuring into advanced programs. In any case, if you decide to take this a step a further, it is strongly suggested that you get guidance from a professional teacher or guru. Don't take the risk of injuring yourself, follow a Yoga instructor's guidance.

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