Hatha Yoga for Beginners: How You Breathe IS Important in Yoga

  

Last week I met up with a classmate, Ann, from way back in junior high school.  We lost touch after we went to different high schools.  In catching up on the past decades, I learned that Ann also practices yoga and first took a class in high school (and she looks great - I must add - slim and trim). She said that she has noticed that over the years some of the essence of yoga has been ignored or overlooked by some yoga teachers.  She told me that she had been at loggerheads with one yoga teacher who dismissed the importance of focusing on and synchronizing the breath with poses.  

Wow - that surprised me!  I re-watched the lecture part of Deepak Chopra's DVD, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga for beginners the other day, and attention to synchronizing the breath with yoga poses was emphasized. A key point the DVD makes is that correct breathing in yoga relates to the "Law of Giving and Receiving" because as you inhale and exhale deeply, you are creating an energy exchange. As you inhale deeply you are infusing all the cells of your body with fresh air and as you exhale deeply your are eliminating the stale air.  The awareness of your breathing that you gain from your yoga practice also allows you to maximize your energy level because you are increasing your oxygen intake.

Some other key points I have learned in my yoga studies is that when you do yoga poses, inhale and exhale through your nostrils.  Apparently, an Indian yogi once said that the nose is for breathing and that the mouth is for eating and kissing.  I agree!  So, if you take a class or read a book about yoga that doesn't stress proper breathing - you are missing some of the essence of true yoga.
 

Thought of the Day:  Synchronize your breath with your yoga poses for maximum benefit from your practice.  ~Laura Venecia Rodriguez