BREATHE

Dan Brule (2017). Just Breathe: 

                              Mastering Brethwork for Success in 

                              Life, Love, Business, and Beyond.


Brule was a medical deep sea diver in the Navy and holds a Master's degree in (?). His book is immensely practical with many breathwork activities, stories, and also a spiritual perspective on breathing. 

The 21-day challenge near the end of the book includes a different breath practice every day for 21 days. There are many references/support from experts in the field of breathwork, including academics and well known individuals in the field like Wim Hof the iceman and Stig Severinsen who holds the world record for holding his breath. 


Some of the practices that resonated with me:

  • 6 breaths per min for 5 mins 3 times a day increases heart rate variability, resonance, and coherence
  • Wim Hof--30 full slow breaths (slow inhale through nose and quicker but relaxed exhale through mouth) followed by holding breath for 10-15 seconds--3 rounds
  • principle of exhaling twice as long as inhale
  • Buteko breathing through the nose is essential...shallow, slow, and relaxed breaths
  • sniff and pooh: several quick continuous inhales (sniff) followed by quick exhale (pooh) to energize
  • to warm: exhale with ahh open mouth; to cool: exhale with pursed lips
  • box breathing: 4 counts: inhale to count of 4, hold for count of 4, exhale to count of 4, and hold again for the count of 4...repeat until feel calm and centered
  • breathe into a sore or painful body part (bring one's attention to the area, feeling, and breathing), let the breath and attention stay there until there is some change in the soreness/pain (often, it will melt away)
  • to enhance rapport/connection with another person, match your rate of breathing to the breathing of the other person (watch their chest and/or belly to determine the breathing pattern)
  • notice that different emotions have different breathing patterns...change your breathing pattern and the emotion associated with that pattern will often follow
  • swara yoga...one can observe any time of day/night that it's easier to breath through one nostril vs the other (close one nostril and breath through the other, then close the other nostril and breath...compare...one is typically easier to breath through than the other)...this pattern of open vs some constriction of breathing when comparing the right and left nostrils switches approximately every hour (sometimes it's easier to breath through the right, and sometimes the left) with breaths about equal near the time of sunrise and sunset (one can verify this for oneself)...according to swar yoga, right nostril dominance is associated with action while left dominance is associated with rest...for optimal functioning, we need to align our actions/rest with our nostril dominance, that is, engage in active activities when the right nostil is dominant and more meditative/restful activities when the left nostril is dominant.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

  

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