5 Breathing Practices For Stomach Health

Can breathing improve the condition of the abdominal organs? Definitely yes. The inhabitants of the East knew about such healing properties of breathing practices even in ancient times. Today they are united under the general name "pranayama". Alexey Starovoitov, a yoga practitioner, public figure, author of the HolYoga social project, tells about how to breathe with the benefit of the stomach.

Why do you need to be able to breathe correctly?

Despite the fact that breathing is inherently an innate, unconditioned reflex, very few people know how to breathe correctly. The value of breathing exercises lies in the fact that they help to establish control over all vital physiological processes in the body. Pranayama heals the nervous, endocrine, respiratory, circulatory, digestive and urinary systems.

To achieve a sustainable result, it is important to do pranayama daily, on an empty stomach. Sit in a comfortable position on the floor. In this case, your crown should rush up, and the spine should be flat throughout the entire practice. Hands can be placed on your knees - palms up or down.

1. Abdominal breathing

We put our right hand on the stomach for control. We inhale into the abdominal cavity - and exhale. We continue to breathe, taking in and out through the nose. In this case, the chest and shoulders should be relaxed.

We do 12 repetitions.

2. Square breathing

The rules for performing: for 4 counts inhale, for 4 counts for holding the breath, for 4 counts for exhaling and for 4 counts again for holding the breath. Each time we hold the breath with the upper and lower locks closed, for which we draw in the perineal areas and lower the jaw to the collarbones. Open the locks when inhaling and exhaling. Take a deep breath and exhale slowly to get ready for the practice, and then do a square breath.

We repeat 12 exercise cycles.

3. Kapalabhati ("Shining Skull")

We do Kapalabhati 36 times by contraction of the abdominal cavity: we perform a sharp exhalation through the nose and at this moment the stomach abruptly goes inward (the breath in this case occurs automatically). This is followed by holding the breath with the upper and lower locks closed. At the end, open both locks and exhale through the mouth.

We carry out 7 approaches.

4. Bhastrika ("bellows")

We take a deep breath through the nose into the abdomen, rounding the abdomen, then exhale slowly. Next, we begin to breathe with our stomach, making sharp breaths and exhalations. In this case, the body should be relaxed, and the work occurs exclusively due to the movement of the abdomen, diaphragm and lungs (see also: "5 exercises that will help strengthen the lungs").

Breathing in and out is one cycle. We perform 10 such cycles, then we take a deep breath, close the upper and lower locks and hold our breath for a time that is comfortable for you. We take an additional breath and only after that we exhale.

We restore breathing and do another approach.

5. Exercise with closing the middle lock Udiyana bandha

We take a deep breath, exhale slowly. Then we draw air into the abdominal cavity (inhale), close the lower and upper locks. Next, close the middle lock by pulling the abdominal cavity under the ribs. At the same time, we supply all the air to the neck area, where we should feel a certain pressure. We open the jaw slightly, but the lips remain closed. We linger in this position for a while. Then open the lower, middle and upper lock, exhale through the mouth. We repeat 2 more times. During the exercise, the shoulders should remain relaxed.

We complete pranayama by taking a deep breath and a slow exhalation. Then we take a breath, fold our lips with a tube and exhale everything through our mouth. We repeat again.

Contraindications:

There are a number of contraindications for these exercises. They cannot be performed:

pregnant women;
during the menstrual cycle;
during exacerbation of diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.

Thanks to these exercises, you will work out the abdominal organs, feel a state of euphoria, fill yourself with strength and energy to realize your intentions and life plans.