Good Morning! Some of you may have noticed I haven’t posted for a few days; I didn’t do my daily practice on Friday which I put down to having an incredibly long day, although afterwards I can see that is an excuse which I could use most days! However yesterday I was inspired to practice with Chris in his mini Ujjayi breath intro and workshop. The inspiration was sparked by a Yoga, the Brain and Mental Health conference I went to on Friday night.
Throughout both the lecture by the lovely Dr David Beales and Heather Mason the breath featured heavily, much more than the physical postures (asanas). I was very interested to hear how clearly Chris explained the importance of the breath, even saying that Ashtanga Vinyasa is meditative breathing practice for restless people, which is an image I love!
Dr Beales recounted a quote from a book by Ronald Ley, “Breathing is exquisitively sensitive to stress” and reminded us that mindfulness is the conscious of your breath to maintain present moment awareness. Heather talked us through a plethora of scientific research which time and time again found Ujjayi breathing affects the physiology is such a way to decrease activation of structures in the body which have a potential to increase the likelihood stress and poor mental health. For example the slow consistent pressure on the lung wall through Ujjayi breathing activates slow adapting stretch fibers that indirectly activate parasympathetic response, which is the ‘rest and digest’ action of the nervous system, promoting calm and relaxation.
Therefore Chris’s video was a reminder to myself of the importance of and a useful brushing up tool on my Ujjayi breathing and my ability to teach it to my students. Thanks Chris xx
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