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I hope the next 20’ish breaths are the most nourishing of your day.
4 THOUGHTS
1. Remarkably, It’s Possible
“Remarkably, it’s possible to use your breath to train your body to react more healthily to stress, both in the moment and over the longer term, by virtue of the way that it changes the level of activity along the vagus nerve. Over time, practicing slow breathing can change your baseline level of stress reactivity to a point where you freak out less often and recover more quickly when you do.”
– Caroline Williams, Move
👏 👏 👏
2. Movement Aids a Mindful Life
“Without a balance between physical activity and meditation, for instance, we may become irritable or restless. Exercise—jogging, swimming, climbing, hard work, and so forth for young people, and walking for just about everybody—can help to solve some of the problems that come as you descend in consciousness.”
- Eknath Easwaran, Passage Meditation
Here, Easwaran reminds us that a mindful life doesn’t require sitting still all day; in fact, it’s the opposite. Physical activity reduces restlessness and eases the mind, helping us “solve some of the problems that come” when we do sit still to practice 🙏
3. Three Reminders that Breath is Life
1. “The fact is that when we focus on the breath, we are focusing on the life force…To contemplate breathing is to contemplate life itself.” - Larry Rosenberg
2. “Only with oxygen and some means of extracting it are all things possible—thinking, moving, eating, speaking, and loving. Life and the breath are synonymous.” – Michael J Stephen, MD
3. “Without the breath, what is there? It’s where you and I and everyone else began. It’s where all life begins.” - Wim Hof
4. This Breathing Exercise Is in Fact Good Medicine
“In conclusion, our results support the ancient knowledge that spontaneous laughter is in fact good medicine (preventive or therapeutic) being associated with greater reduction in cortisol levels as compared with usual activities.”
Modern science and ancient wisdom agree: laughter is good medicine. Make sure you’re enjoying this most enjoyable of “breathing exercises” this week 😊
1 Quote
“While we cannot control life, we can learn to shape our response to it; conscious breathing is a valuable tool to support that.””
1 Answer
Category: Breathing and the Core
Answer: This core muscle connects the spine to the femur and plays a role in breathing through its link to the diaphragm.
…
(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)
…
Question: What is the psoas?
In good breath,
Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”
P.S. the emotional diurnal cycle
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Amazon Associate Disclosure
I’ve been recommending books for almost 6 years. Yet somehow, I just discovered that I could be an Amazon affiliate [face-palm]. In any case better late than never. Now, any Amazon link you click is an affiliate link. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. So, if you’d like to support my work, buying books through these links is helpful : )
* An asterisk by a quote indicates that I listened to this book on Audible. Therefore, the quotation might not be correct, but is my best attempt at reproducing the punctuation based on the narrator’s pace, tone, and pauses.