DAY 21
WARM-UP: DIRECTING YOUR BREATH
1.
Sit or lie on your back in a relaxed position. Breathe through the nose. Take three deep breaths. Then allow your breathing to become steady and find its calm, natural rhythm.
2.
Breathe into different parts of the body, two breaths at a time. Start by breathing into the diaphragm. The abdomen rises while breathing in.
3.
Direct the breath into the chest. The chest rises while breathing in.
4.
Then, direct the breath into the sides. Feel your sides expand outward while breathing in.
5.
Send your breath to your upper back area. Feel your back rise while breathing in.
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6.
Repeat the breaths for the first minute.
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For the next two minutes, let your breathing flow naturally without control. Observe where your breath automatically directs itself.​
WARM-UP: 45-sec ONE-BREATH BREATH-HOLD
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1.
Gently blow air out of the lungs through your mouth.
2.
Using pursed lip breathing, slowly fill your lungs with air.
3.
Hold your breath for 45 seconds.
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4.
Empty your lungs and immediately fill them again using pursed lip breathing.
6.
Do many repetitions as you can.
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The sensation caused by elevated carbon dioxide is nothing to fear. It signals to the body that you are holding your breath and that oxygen consumption should be minimized. When you stay relaxed, your dive response activates, and your body begins conserving oxygen.
BREATH-HOLD WALKING
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Choose a moment in your day when you walk to the same place daily. The walk doesn’t need to be long—it could be as simple as walking from indoors to your car. Over time, you can adjust the difficulty of the walk to make it easier or more challenging.
1.
Relax, breathe with your diaphragm, and let your breath flow naturally at a comfortable pace.
2.
Fill your lungs and walk 10 steps while holding your breath.
3.
Walk the next 5 steps while breathing and allow your breath to stabilize.
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4.
With each breath-hold phase, add one more step pair (two steps) than the previous round. Let your breathing return to normal for the next 5 steps.
5.
When you no longer want to increase the breath-hold time, walk for a few minutes while breathing normally, allowing your breath to stabilize.
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Make this exercise a daily routine. Pay attention to which factors influence the sensations that arise during breath-holding.
At the end of the book, you’ll find a 365-day calendar. You can frame the page and place it somewhere visible. Color in one circle each day you complete the exercise.