Category: Senior Fitness

Some say that the Universe itself was formed by the breath of a Higher Power (pick yours). Mankind was said to have been created by a creator who breathed into the dust and dirt of a lifeless entity and thus created humanity.

Thinking about breathing as a Spiritual event goes back a long way. It is the subject of many philosophies throughout the ages including the world’s religions, as well as Buddhism, Taoism and other ideologies. Breathing is the first rung of life support and is the essence of life itself. So it truly lends itself to much spiritual interpretation, and has inspired many and varied Spiritual ideologies throughout the history of mankind. We understand that breath is life itself and that we have the ability to control it, simply be aware of it, cut it off, re-breathe it into someone who is near death, through artificial respiration, or through mechanical means.

The following are some brief thoughts and commentary about the Spirituality of breath and breathing . . .

SPIRIT — Derivation. Latin Spirare: To breathe. Blow.

From Webster’s New World Dictionary: Spirit: Latin Spiritus;  Breath (#1). Courage, Vigor, the Soul, Life. Spirare: To blow, breathe.

“The Spirit is no doubt the controlling agent of our existence”

— Bruce Lee, Tao of Jeet Kun Do, p. 200

When you inspire someone, you breathe life and energy into them.

When someone expires, they breathe their final breath.

Spirit is often used to mean the Divine Essence, or animating principle within a living being. (Source: The Free Dictionary/Encyclopedia). In that context, Spirit can also be used interchangeably with the following:

 Chi (Chinese), Ki (Japanese): The Universal Life-force that keeps us alive, functioning, and connects us to the Universe and to one another. Both the Chinese and the Japanese ideogram for Chi includes a representation of the steam coming from a teapot symbolizing the “breath of life”

 Prana (Hindu): Universal life force. The “breath of life”.

 Ruach/Ruah (Hebrew): Breath or Spirit. Divine Inspiration.

The above references take the spirituality of breath and breathing across a wide range of religious and spiritual beliefs. There are more.

“Constantly, breath is bridging you to your body, connecting you, relating you to your body. Not only is the breath a bridge to your body, it is also a bridge between you and the universe. The body is just the universe that has come to you, which is nearer to you.” – Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh (Osho).

I wrote some comments about breathing and meditation in last week’s article. For many, meditation is itself a Spiritual act. For some, meditation represents a way of opening a line of communication with a Higher Power and, “following the breath” is the gateway to opening that channel. I wrote last week that I participated in a meditation class for eight weeks and that one of the overall comments by the participants at the end of the class was that they experienced an overwhelming feeling of inner peace. The ability to control and follow your breathing is thought of by mystics and even some within the medical profession, to have the ability to heal. I don’t know the answer to whether it does or not, but you can find many testimonials to the healing power of the breath in books and online.

It’s certainly worth looking into. While many medical professionals endorse the power of controlled breathing as a stress reduction and healing tool, most doctors remain more traditional in their treatments. Please consult your own medical professional before you go off on your own to use the power of breathing to cure yourself of any physical or mental challenges.

Just understand that many believe that “following the breath” is, or will lead to a Spiritual experience and some consider “the breath” to be their connection to their Source.

I’ve put off writing about the technical electro-chemical aspects of breathing and how oxygen is converted to energy in your body, until the last article of this series which I will publish next week. It can be an interesting topic, and useful when explained simply. I’ll make sense out of complex words like Mitochondria,  Adenosine trisphosphate (ATP), and the bioenergetic continuum, and put them into a context that is simple and understandable — Trust me. Really!

Thank you for reading.

 

 

During this series of articles about breathing, I’ve mentioned that the correct way of breathing is with your abdomen and diaphragm rather than your chest. When you breathe in, your abdomen should push out and when you breathe in, your abdomen should be pulled in. I’ve also written that oxygenated blood is pumped from your heart into your extremities where it is converted chemically into energy. Unoxygenated blood is returned to your heart to be reoxygenated, and the cycle repeats. I mentioned that the normal breathing cycle for adults is usually between 9 and 15 cycles per minute.

I’ve also written about how some people are advocating a new trend in breathing for physical and mental performance. I mentioned Wim Hof and his breathing techniques. Wim Hof’s breathing techniques are a form of hyperventilation where there is an excess of oxygen in the blood and a depletion of Carbon Dioxide.

This week, I’ll discuss controlled deep breathing, the benefits you get from it, and a specific technique that results in a balanced levels of highly oxygenated blood and carbon dioxide. Those benefits? Increased energy, reduced stress, a calm mind, and centered self-control. Since most older adults are very shallow breathers resulting in low oxygen levels in the bloodstream and low energy throughout the body, you may find this article useful.

Recently, there has been a lot of focus on controlled, deep, rhythmic breathing such as yoga breathing, Pilates style breathing, and meditation with its concentration of the breath. The main form of deep breathing that is being promoted is called “box breathing”. Don’t let the term throw you, it’s ultra-simple. It’s being promoted among Navy Seals, by Tony Robbins in his seminars, and even by Dave Asprey, the entrepreniural founder of “BulletProof Coffee” which is all the rage now (that’s a whole different article).

Box breathing is nothing more than taking a deep abdominal breath over a count of five, holding that breath for a second count of five, exhaling forcefully for a count of five while drawing the abdomen in, and finally holding the empty lungs for another five seconds. Simple, right? Yes, it really is. The actual count can vary as can the amount of time holding the breath. The benefits are simple: a calming of your mind, a focusing of your mind; a temporary lowering of your blood pressure and somewhat of a short detachment from reality while you are engaged in the process. That’s why this style of deep breathing is often used for meditation.

Thich Nhat Hanh, the well known Vietnamese Buddhist Monk writes extensively about the breathing patterns used in practicing Mindfulness and suggests that the box breathing format is one of the best, although he doesn’t call it that. He shortens the cycle a bit to three of four counts each and reminds his readers of, “the essential discipline of following one’s breath to nourish and maintain calm mindfulness, even in the midst of the most difficult circumstances.” (The Miracle of Mindfulness, by Thich Nhat Hanh, p. viii.). He goes on to say that one should perform this form of breathing when one is stressed and the stress will disappear. Since stress is one of the major causes of physical problems for all adults, it would serve us well to follow his advice.

When you use this form of breathing several times a day, you should reap the benefits for the rest of the day. It is always well to remember that a calming technique is always available to us and that it is up to us to use it to lessen the effects of the stress of day to day living. I use it a lot — in traffic. It works for me.

Thank you for reading.

 

Over the years we have been told not to breathe too hard, we would hyperventilate. Hyperventilation is the result of breathing too hard and too fast, resulting in feeling lightheaded or dizzy, an increased heart rate and an overall “weird” feeling. It is often accompanied by tingling in your arms and legs. Most of the time hyperventilating results from anxiety and stress. It is caused by a decrease in carbon dioxide in the blood and It is usually looked at as “not a good thing”.  The cure is to focus on controlling your breathing, slow it down deliberately, and get your stress and emotions under control. The goal is to take in less oxygen and let the carbon dioxide increase in your system.

But recently, hyperventilation is being looked at as a method to increase athletic performance, increase mental clarity, and turn feelings of depression and anxiety into a controlled feeling of well being.

Wim Hof (yep, that’s the spelling) is an adventurer who heavily promotes rapid deep breathing as a tool for better physical and mental performance, and a lot of top names such as Laird Hamilton, the most well known of all big wave surfers, hold this method of breathing in high regard.

Hof claims that his method of deep, fast breathing will “significantly improve your energy levels, detox the body and release toxins, relieve stress and tension, and strengthen your immune system.” (www.wimhofmethod.com). He also says that by using his breathing method, your body’s pH level will become more alkaline (that’s good).

Although he has an online course available for sale, Hof is not just promoting another crazy fitness fad. He has brought in the scientific community to monitor him closely as he tests his theories. And lest you think Wim Hof is just another self-promoting nutcase, you should know that he climbed to 22,000 feet altitude on Mt. Everest wearing only shorts and shoes, but couldn’t finish the climb because of a foot injury. He did, however, climb Mt. Kilimanjaro in two days in his shorts. He also ran a full marathon in the Namib Desert without water. The run was performed under medical supervision.

Oh, and he also holds the Guinness record for being submerged in ice; a record time of 1 hour and 52 minutes.

So how does this apply to Seniors? Personally, I do a Qi Gong exercise that involves deep, fast breathing and I end up in a hyperventilated state. Yes my limbs get tingly and I get light headed. But I have been doing it as part of my overall exercise routine for a long time. Personally I don’t like the feeling. On the other hand, I also do a lot of regular deep breathing exercises and that makes me feel energized.

I don’t think most seniors want the hyperventilated feeling. I don’t think it’s in our best interests to get light headed and unbalanced at any time, even if it may provide some theoretical benefits. Most of us are not interested in becoming high performance athletes, and even if we were, the jury is still out on the real benefits of hyperventilation as a performance tool.

I will be covering controlled deep breathing in the next article and will discuss the many physical and mental benefits that just plain good, deep breathing has to offer.

 

Thank you for reading.