There is an old saying - from where I don’t know - that goes something like half breathing is half living.
Lots of people want to know how to deal with stress. Here’s the good news: the best stress relief is free, and the hardest part about it is remembering to do it. What’s this miracle stress reliever? Breathing! With a little technique and a few minutes in traffic, you’ll start to notice stress melting away and all those little things that used to bug you? Not so much. This month we’re going to look at breathing in detail and I challenge you to check back daily for new tips and information.

Three Part Breathing
You wouldn’t think that human beings would need basic instruction in breathing, but we do. Most of us walk around all day doing what’s called high breathing, which involves raising the ribs, collarbone and shoulders. This type of breath is shallow and a lot of the air fails to reach the alveoli so that it can be used by your body. Not only that, but think about your ribs. They don’t expand very far. High breathing limits you to taking a very small air capacity.
Middle breathing is breathing where mainly the middle parts of the lungs are filled with air. The chest expands somewhat and the diaphragm moves up and down. The abdomen may even move in and out a little. However, it is also a shallow type of breathing. With this form of breathing, the ribs and chest are expanded sideways.
The most effective form of breathing involves moving the abdomen in and out and in changing the position of the diaphragm. Low breathing, or abdominal breathing takes place primarily in the lower part of the chest and lungs. We often use low breathing when we sleep.
Low breathing is superior to high or mid breathing because:
· more air is taken in when inhaling
· the diaphragm acts like a second, it’s movements promoting circulation in the lungs · the abdominal organs are massaged by the up and down movements of the diaphragm
· low breathing has a beneficial effect on the solar plexus, a very important nerve center.
Now that you know where your air is going, it’s time to learn to put them all together into a complete yoga breath.