Pranayama: The Most Popular Types of Breathing
Sometimes it isn’t easy to put your mind and peace. When we feel overwhelmed with disappointment, anger, or any other emotion, we take a deep breath and slowly breathe out to calm ourselves. It’s the simplest breathing technique, but even this one is quite effective. Want to learn other, more efficient breathing techniques to help you cool down and support inner harmony? Then this article is for you!
Prana+yama: what exactly is it about?
Pranayama is one of the eight primary yoga practices which focuses on breathing. The word “pranayama” consists of two parts: “prana,” which roughly translates as “breath” or “life force,” and “yama,” the meaning of which is “to control.” So, pranayama is a traditional Indian practice, the purpose of which is to gain control over your emotions, feelings, and sensations through breathing exercises. Moreover, as with most yogi practices, pranayama is connected to spiritual development; therefore, the techniques you will read about will foster your spiritual growth.Caution! People with heart diseases or respiratory issues must avoid the following practices.
Pranayama techniques for you
There’s a vast amount of different breathing exercises. However, we will talk about the most popular and easy ones so that you can practice them even without experience.
Anuloma Vyloma (Nadi Shodhana)
For this exercise, you must sit comfortably and close one of your nostrils with your fingers. Breathe through one of your nostrils for at least five seconds, exhale for the same five seconds, and then change the nostril you breathe through. Repeat this exercise a few times.
Vyloma Pranayama
Inhale half of your usual breath. Wait for a few seconds and inhale again. Continue till you feel that your lungs are full of oxygen. Then hold your breath for a few more seconds and slowly exhale from your nose. Repeat this breathing cycle several times.Vyloma Pranayama is an excellent tool for people who suffer from anxiety or panic attacks. This type of breathing has a soothing, relaxing effect and helps normalize fast cardiac rhythm.
Dirga Pranayama
This technique is called Three-Parts-Breath since you involve three body parts in this exercise.Inhale some air in your abdomen section. Hold your breath for a second. Then, slowly inhale some more in the middle of your ribcage. Hold your breath again. Lastly, inhale in your chest. Then steadily exhale. Redo this pranayama a few more times.By practicing Dirga Pranayama, you will not only calm down but also expand the capacity of your lungs. Moreover, since you stimulate your abdominal area, it may help with digestive problems.
Sama Vritti
Sama Vritti can be loosely translated from Sanskrit as “equal flow.” For this practice, you need to breathe in, hold your breath, breathe out and hold your breath again for equal periods. So, if you inhale for 5 seconds, you should exhale and keep the air inside your chest for the same time. As in the practices above, you need to repeat the cycle multiple times to get a relaxing effect.Sama Vritti can quickly put you in a meditative state. This exercise might benefit people who want to put their minds at peace before sleep.
There are many other pranayamas, which can positively impact your mental and physical state. Nevertheless, these four are the most accessible and most suitable for beginners. Try each one at home: we guarantee you won’t regret it!
Conclusion
We hope our article helped you learn more about such a wonderful yogi practice as pranayama. Take care of your health and, most importantly, yourself.
