Instructions for correct abdominal breathing exercises

The term belly breathing may sound strange to many people, but it is actually an ancient fitness technique, practiced for thousands of years by cultures around the world.
In fact, belly breathing has been considered a complete yoga practice, bringing a lot of benefits to the body if done correctly and regularly every day.

In addition to nose breathing, mouth breathing, belly breathing is a way of breathing in which there is control of consciousness, actively using the diaphragm - a dome-shaped muscle layer located below the lungs - to increase the exchange volume. gas, increasing the complete saturation of oxygen in the blood. The consequence of this repetitive movement is that the abdominal wall is pushed out with each inhalation and flattened on the exhale.
Most people have a habit of only breathing through the chest wall. Incoming air circulates only in the thoracic cavity and quickly exits. Thus, even though we all have very high breathing rates, the volume of oxygen actually received is disproportionate. This makes the body more deprived of oxygen and makes us feel short of breath or anxious, breathing faster. Ultimately leading to a habit of rapid, even shallower breathing as we age.
Meanwhile, abdominal breathing can help regulate breathing in a controlled manner in respiratory rate and volume. With each inhalation, the diaphragm is controlled to lower to the maximum, the abdominal wall bulges to allow fresh oxygen to penetrate deep into the bottom of the lungs. At the same time when exhaling, the diaphragm is maximized, the abdominal wall is contracted, all carbon dioxide will also be expelled.

Besides allowing us to take fuller, deeper breaths, there are several other notable health benefits of practicing deep belly breathing, which are:
2.1. Helps You Relax One of the great benefits of belly breathing is its ability to help you relax - almost instantly.
This is because the activities of belly breathing are linked to both our sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. Specifically, the rhythmic breathing and deep breathing movements reduce stimulation on the sympathetic nervous system; thereby, we will reduce the chronic stress response.

Through it, the body also self-regulates blood pressure, reduces heart rate, stabilizes the digestive process and we will feel better, as if we have been freed from the constant stress of daily life. .
2.2. Improves Recovery After Exercise Studies also show that belly breathing is not only great for overall relaxation, it's also great at reducing exercise-induced oxidative stress levels. caused sex.
Researchers have found that, for post-exercise athletes who take time to practice belly breathing, levels of the stress hormone cortisol are reduced and the relaxation hormone melatonin is increased more. compared to someone who didn't take this step.
In addition, the researchers hypothesized that diaphragmatic abdominal breathing could help protect tissues in the body from the long-term adverse effects of free radicals.
2.3. Stabilizes blood glucose levels Usually, when people think about controlling blood sugar, the first thing that comes to mind is diet.
However, studies are now suggesting that breathing may also help in this role. This finding comes as researchers have found that diaphragmatic breathing exercises can help balance blood sugar and better control disease for people with diabetes. The mechanism is because breathing has a positive effect on the nervous system, relieving stress, so it reduces the response to increasing blood glucose levels.
2.4. Promotes Digestive Function As mentioned, belly breathing helps activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which governs most of the functions of the digestive system.
At this time, the production of saliva in the palate increases, the gastric and intestinal movements are also stronger and the secretion is abundant, which helps the food to be broken down into small pieces, absorbed quickly. more quickly. Since then, the rate of gastric emptying also improves, we also feel hungry quickly and eating also becomes more delicious.

A belly breathing exercise is always an easy exercise that you can practice every day, or even several times per day, to strengthen your diaphragmatic movement and start to reap the many benefits of this deep breathing. .
Here is a step-by-step guide to help you build the right belly breathing method for yourself:

Step 1: Start by lying on your back on a flat surface with your head supported by a soft pillow. Bend your knees up while you can also place another pillow under your knees for support. Place one hand on your stomach and the other on your chest wall to feel your diaphragm as you breathe. Step 2: Then, inhale slowly through your nose, feeling your stomach gradually rise and press against your hand as the air fills the deepest point in your lungs. It should be noted that the position of the ribcage should be kept as still as possible. Step 3: Exhale through your lips while you focus on tightening the abdominal muscles, so that all the carbon dioxide in the chest can be completely expelled. Step 4: Repeat these steps for about 5 to 10 minutes every day. Aim 3 to 4 times in a day to get maximum benefits. Always be patient. Keep in mind that you may find it difficult to breathe at first when you have to use your abdomen to breathe, especially if you have never been conscious of your diaphragm before. However, you need to be confident and don't worry, the muscles in the dome of your diaphragm will get stronger over time.
Whether you are new to abdominal breathing practice or have a lot of experience, doing it regularly and persistently after a certain period of time will always bring you unexpected benefits. The correct abdominal breathing technique following the above simple steps not only helps you increase the efficiency of oxygen absorption, but also helps you reduce stress and have a stronger immune system to prevent disease.

References: health.harvard.edu, verywellhealth.com, my.clevelandclinic.org, healthline.com.