Hi everyone;
Below is my little Vinyasa routine.
Vinyasa is a type of yoga class that contains a sequence of movements, connected by the breath, that transitions into a continuous flow of yoga poses, called asanas.
The most important aspect of Vinyasa yoga is the breath. In particular, you inhale as you raise your amrs, then exhale when you move into a forward fold. From there you move into another pose during an inhale, followed by another with an exhale, and on and on you go.
I do a this vinyasa sequence every day, especially in the winter. It takes about 10 minutes, but can be sped up for a cardio work out or slowed down into longer help poses that take several breaths per pose.
For those who know me best, I have a hard time with rainy and cold days. I feel like a bug in a jar with a tiny air hole punch in the lid most of the time during the winter. It totally freaks me out. As a kid, the only time I every got a spanking was when I refused to come into the house and go to bed. The sun was up...and therefore, so was I...I thought to myself. My loving parents had other ideas. Every winter, as soon as I'm forced inside, cabin fever sets in. Even though I am an avid x-country skier, skater and runner, I can't stay outside all the time like I do in the summer.
To prevent myself from flipping out during the winter months, I do Vinyasa yoga. Vinyasa yoga requires a concerted amount of effort, as it demands mindfulness with the breath work, as well as balance, strength, stamina as well as the proper sequence of the Vinyasa flow poses. With so much to think about, I am unable to think of anything else at that moment in time. And I'm thankful for that. Because, when I'm in the throes of the winter woes, and unable to go outside because it's dark, cold and blizzarding, I need a change of mind and pace.
Research done by Philippot, Chappelle, and Blairy in 2002 demonstrate that there is a two way connection between how you breathe and how you feel. Participants were put through a small series of emotional events where their breath was tested. In particular, the emotions of joy, anger, sadness and fear were looked at, and measured by changes in breathing rate, depth, movement, and tension and other aspects of the breath. Researchers found that there were characteristic changes in breath for each emotion. Joy, for example, was associated with steady, smooth, slow deep, and relaxed breathing. Sadness, in contrast was associated with irregular, shallow, and tense breathing interrupted with sighs and tremors.
In a second study, the researchers turned the observations for each emotion into breathing instructions. They had participants change their breathing according to those instructions, with no hint that the breathing patterns were connected to specific emotions. The study found that the breathing patterns reliably created the emotions they were associated with, without any other emotion cue or trigger.
These studies and others like them confirm that how you breath dictates how you are feeling, and visa-versa. Try observing it on yourself, because the breath is a powerful tool for breaking the cycle that reinforces chronic pain, anxiety and stress. When you learn to breathe in a way that supports feelings of comfort, safety, and joy, you can actually choose these experiences over suffering.
