THE BREATH

One more blog about the breath.  Why?  Because it’s kind of a big deal for overall health and because some of you had questions.
Nothing makes me happier than to see that some of you are actually reading my blogs, and have questions, and not afraid to ask them.  Please keep the questions coming, that’s how I know, what’s the best way to help.  No questions are stupid. Not everybody is a body worker, therapist, trainer or coach. I have been studying the body for over 20 years and the brain for over a decade and it’s not only my job, it’s my passion. I’m always educating myself. I would like to think that I’m also a teacher and educator, and love sharing information that can help to keep you healthy and creating a better version of you.
Stupid questions? NO WAY!
You should see my questions when I talk to my financial advisor, my tax person, my social media helper, etc..  For a while I felt embarrassed to ask the questions, than I realized I’m only making it worse for myself, when I nod and say “I got it” and have no idea what they were saying. The older I get the more I admit the things that I don’t know.  Look at this group email thing.  Every time I do something wrong on this site, and yet, I’m just going to keep going until I get it right.  So, don’t be afraid to ask, no judgement in here.

Before we start with Q & A, here is a video.  Another way to naturally unblock a stuffy nose (you already learned one method last week). It’s good to have more than one option.
Click here to watch.

Q & A

Q: What does the nose do that the mouth can not?
A: Complex question, bear with me..
1, Filters: as a natural filtration system, the nose is lined with a special mucus membrane that filters the air before it reaches the lungs. There is a lot of bacteria in the air that we breathe in, and this mucus membrane blocks the bacteria from going down the windpipe to the lungs. It also reduces dust and all other particles that surround us.  The mouth does not have the same mucus lining (the mouth lining’s job is to secret enzymes for digestion not for air filtering).
2, Warms the air we breathe in, to a more favorable temperature, so the airways would not cool down, narrow and dehydrate.
3, Moistens:  the “mucus blanket” moistens the incoming air and keeps the moisture in while we exhale, reducing the narrowing of the airways, and reducing overall dehydration.
4, Regulates air volume.  This could get confusing..The nose have smaller holes than the mouth, but because of that, the smaller entry creates a mild resistance to breathing, which will result is smaller breathing volume.  We want to have smaller breathing volume. (check previous blog we talked about breathing volume and learned how to measure your CP).
5, Dilates airways. Breathing through the nose facilitates the transfer of Nitric Oxide from the nostrils to the lungs. Nitric Oxide is a naturally gas, that helps with circulation and airway dilation.  It also helps with the reversal of plaque and cholesterol building in the blood vessels.  And we are all familiar with the ramifications of cholesterol and plaque in the arteries and veins, don’t we?

Q; You (me)  used to say in your yoga classes to breathe out through the mouth.  Now you’re saying that  we need to breathe out through the nose.  Why is that?
A: I have learned a lot since I went through the yoga teacher certification (about 15 years ago), and yes, I constantly make changes to my teachings based on new research and my newest studies. Simply, when we breathe out through the mouth, we loose moisture during exhalation, which will create dehydration and will narrow the airways, the windpipe (trachea), the bronchi.  The next breath of air will have a harder time to get to the lungs, we will want to take more air in through the mouth, etc…it will start a vicious cycle.

Q: It feels relaxing and calming to take a deep breath.  What’s wrong with a deep breath?
A: Nothing if we do it once a while.  Just think about why could it feel good to take a deep breath? When we do that, first we tense the muscles, then relax it.  That always feels pleasant. However, the more we repeat deep breaths, the more we increase the habit of over breathing.

Q; I need to talk a lot because of my job, and I became aware of taking huge breaths before I start speaking.
A:  Welcome to my world!  Talk is what I do all day long.  As you said, awareness is huge, just try to catch yourself sometimes, and take that breath through the nose.  Definitely tape your mouth at night for recovery. It’s an every night routine for me.  Tremendous help with resetting the body’s proper oxygenation.

Q:  I feel constant need for more air when I breathe through my nose.  Why?
A: Of course.  Remember, breathing is a habit, so if you were a mouth breather for 20-30-40 years and now trying to tell your brain and body to make this change, it will not be welcomed first.  We take about 20,000 breath a day, multiply that with the number of years… it will take some time to switch the habit. Work on increasing your CP, so the breathing volume will decrease and air shortage feeling will disappear.

Q; I’m too busy. I don’t have time to fit one more exercise into my daily life!
A:  Yes, I get it.  I think it’s safe to say that we are all busy all the time.  We all have 86,400 seconds a day, and we make a choice what we spend those seconds on. We all choose our priorities, and no one can make decision for us.  As long as we understand that our decisions and choices have consequences and the outcome of our health and well being depends on the momentarily choices that we make throughout the day, we could choose busy or aware.  The responsibility is ours!
Once I started and felt the instant difference in my daily life (more energy, no brain fog, less getting sick), and also started to understand the long term benefits and the likely ramifications of “bad” breathing, I made nose breathing a priority. The good news is that you don’t need to go to the gym or put on your workout outfit to practice breathing.  You have your head and nose all the time with you. Start small. Instead of checking your iPhone while you’re in the bathroom, pay attention to your breathing and breathe through the nose.  Every day, every time you go to the bathroom, that time adds up.  Or every time you are in your car and sit at the red light, no texting, breathe through the nose.  Find small instances when you bring your awareness to your breath and switch your mouth breathing to gentle nose breathing.  Time will add up and gradually it will become your new natural breathing.   At night tape your mouth to ensure nose breathing.

Q: Will reduced breathing and high CP help with bronchitis, emphysema, sleep apnea, coughing, allergies?
A: Yes. Reduced breathing will help with any conditions where coughing, wheezing occurs and excess mucus is present.  It will help with allergies, and also with skin conditions/allergies.  Once your cellular breathing is more efficient, the skin condition will improve.

Q: My neck muscles are always tight.  Can breathing help and if yes, how?
A: Yes, it can.  Just think about it.  If you’re a a mouth breather, you are usually a chest breather too, using the accessory muscles (upper trapezius and neck muscles) instead of the diaghram to breathe.  The neck muscles will constantly contract, every time you take a breath.  That’s a lot of muscle shortening.  Learning how to breathe through the nose and into the belly not into the chest, will help to loosen up the neck muscles.

Well, there are more questions, but this is a lot of information already.
Will do another Q & A, please keep the questions coming.Remember to subscribe to my YouTube channel , and hit the bell, so you will get notification when I’lm live or when there is a new video up.

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