DAY 13
WARM-UP: BASIC BREATHING
1.
Sit or lie on your back in a relaxed position. Breathe through the nose. Take three deep breaths. Then allow your breathing become even and find its natural rhythm.
2.
Bring one hand to your rib cage and the other on your abdomen. Notice whether it is your abdomen or chest that rises when you breathe in.
3.
Make a conscious shift from chest breathing to abdominal breathing. As you breathe with your diaphragm, your abdomen will rise and your rib cage will remain still. Keep the breathing rhythm relaxed and natural.
Try to keep your focus on your diaphragm at all times.
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Do you have a recurring situation where you feel nervous? You can try one minute of diaphragmatic breathing beforehand.
WARM-UP: RECOVERY BREATHING
1.
Fill your lungs with air and do a 30 sec breath holding exercise. During the breath hold, the pressure in the rib cage is increased.
2.
To end the breath hold, let air flow out unforcibly. Don't empty your lungs entirely. Allow the lungs to remain half full. Fill your lungs again with a quick breath. Hold for a few seconds while using the muscles between the ribs to squeeze the rib cage. This will create pressure in the rib cage.
3.
Repeat the quick breath 3 times. The pressure in the rib cage raises your blood pressure and helps new oxygen-rich blood to travel from the lungs to the brain as quickly as possible.
4.
Repeat the exercise four times.
When you dive, learn to do a recovery breath after each dive.
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To keep blood pressure high and ensure oxygen-rich blood reaches the brain as quickly as possible, it’s good practice to perform a recovery breath after every breath-hold longer than two minutes.
BREATH-HOLD EXERCISE
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1.
Lie on your back. You can keep your legs bent to help keep your abdominal area more relaxed.
2.
Close your eyes and breathe calmly with your diaphragm for 30 seconds. When you hear the signal, fill your lungs.
3.
Follow the breath-hold and breathing intervals according to the video instructions.
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The longest breath-hold in this exercise is 60 seconds. You can always start breathing earlier and extend your breathing time if needed.
6.
On the final round, you can hold your breath a little longer and observe whether the sensation intensifies or if a new sensation appears. If you wish, you can check how long you held your breath and write down your result.
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If you are relaxed and hold your breath for an extended time, carbon dioxide levels rise, and your body activates the dive response. The dive response conserves oxygen by lowering heart rate and reducing peripheral circulation.
