Breathing Easy

Have you ever put too much into an activity or your work and ended up exhausted? I am sure it has happened to most of us at one time or another.  I used to work in the power industry.  When it was regulated we would have to reconcile our costs yearly with the Public Utility Commission.  As I was the coordinator, it required very late nights for several weeks to provide all of the required information within the deadlines.  It was always an adrenaline rush that I enjoyed, then a crash.  I would end up exhausted.  I am sure if I could have stepped back and looked at the situation from the outside looking in, I would have seen alternatives.  But it is difficult when you are in the middle of the excitement.

In yoga, the most important part of the practice is your breath.  You breathe in and out of your nose.  I remind everyone that if you start breathing through your mouth - (I imitate gasping and heavy breathing) - you are working too hard.  They laugh but inevitably they end up making the sounds I just gently warned them to avoid.  Sometimes we finish a challenging pose and I hear their breath release at the end .  Busted!  "You were holding your breath - weren't you?!", I exclaim.  And they laugh as they admit it.

Pay attention to your situation.  Assess what is happening within your body as well as around you. Adjust as needed.

Here's to breathing easy!