The Oxygen Advantage
In 2020 I read the book Breath by James Nestor and suddenly had many questions about whether I actually understood what good breathing looked like. I was aware that whenever I was a student of exercise or ballroom dance, instructors often said to me “you’re not breathing”! This was always ironic to me as I have spent the past 35 years studying the physiology of breath and instructing people on how to breath in Pilates. In my masters degree in Exercise Physiology at UF I worked in a lab that studied the physiology of the diaphragm during exercise. The diaphragm is the most important muscle for breathing and arguably along with the heart, the most important muscle for life! I have taught
diaphragmatic anatomy and breath work in Pilates for years and have focused on how to connect the breath to the core for a strong spine and back and for overall health. But suddenly I realized after all these years that not only had I not understood the importance of every day breathing, but I was a suboptimal breather myself! Joseph Pilates said the following about breath in his book:
“Breathing is the first act of life, and the last. Our very life depends on it. Since we cannot live without breathing it is tragically deplorable to contemplate the millions and millions who have never learned to master the art of correct breathing. One often wonders how so many millions con>nue to live as long as they do under this tremendous handicap to longevity. Lazy breathing converts the lungs, figura>vely speaking, into a cemetery for the deposi>on of diseased, dying, and dead germs as well as supplying an ideal haven for the mul>plica>on of other harmful germs. Therefore, above all, learn how to breathe correctly.”
Excerpt From
Pilates’ Return to Life Through Contrology
The Framingham Study, which started in 1948 is the longest term epidemiological study that has ever been done on health and wellness. It recently concluded that the single most important factor for increasing you longevity is: Drumroll……
Lung Capacity. Joseph Pilates wrote his book in the early 1940s before this study began! How did he know? Clearly he was ahead of his time.
In 2022, I attended a Summit meeting for Balanced Body Master Trainers and was pleased to see that James Nestor was the featured speaker. He was not only a great writer, but a wonderful speaker and educator. I noticed that he had a retreat coming up in Costa Rica which of course was already sold out! So Cheryl Forehand and I patiently got on the wait list and continued to pursue this coveted experience. We got in and attended in November 2023. It was everything that I expected, and much much more! We were completely infused with breath work everyday, wonderful vegan and Mediterranean meals 3 x a day and the most interesting mix of people from all walks of life from all over the world ready, and curious to experience better breathing. I walked away a different person. Calmer, more confident, better focus and memory, and with this sort of understanding that everything that I need to control my physiology, my emotions and my attitude , is just one breath away.
Breath is the beginning and the end of this wonderful journey called life. It is a tool that is with us at all times. I wanted to know how do I keep this feeling? This treasured knowledge, How do I incorporate it into my everyday life? They gave us prescriptions and homework and very simple things to do all day and night.
- Keep your tongue on the roof of your mouth.
- Breath through the nose most of the time and pick a simple breath practice to do daily.
- Tape the mouth at night to prevent breathing through the mouth.
- Coherent Breathing: An easy breath to practice daily is inhale for 4, exhale for 6. Try this for 10 cycles sometime during your day. 1-3 x per day.
There were different prescriptions depending on our needs and desire. But the place that I always learn the most and am able to truly integrate something into my life is by teaching others. So I chose to work with Patrick McKeown (The Oxygen Advantage ) who just so happened to be coming to LA the only US location that this Irishman would be teaching in his tour for live certifications worldwide. And
conveniently, the home of my lovely daughter Sabrina. So it was a no brainer! Patrick taught us more of the science behind the importance of several things:
- Breath through the nose (always if possible) . The nose is designed for breath, the mouth is not!
- Inhale lightly and softly through the nose.
- Breath slowly both in and out.
- Breath primarily into the diaphragm and learn diaphragmatic breath over chest and belly breathing.
- Tape your mouth at night to be sure that you are breathing through the nose.
- Become more tolerant to Co2 for better O2 delivery by breathing light.
WHY CO2?
Simply put, the more that you can tolerate CO2 hanging around in the body, the more O2 will be released into the tissues and muscles, and the more you will be increasing you Sympathetic Nervous System response – the calm , blood pressure lowering, rest and digest response as apposed to the fight or flight response. Another benefit of this is the release of more Nitric Oxide, the lung and vascular dilator. The bottom line is that we want to breath less.
The fewer breaths that we take per minute, the more efficient we are at breathing. The less energy expended. The end result of all of this is more energy, more focus, calmer state of mind, and better sleep,
It is time that the simplest thing that we can do to improve our health and wellness becomes the most important . Learn how to breath well! 24 -7.