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Have you ever wondered what your yoga teacher is talking about when he or she encouraged you to use “ujjayi” breath? Or heard the person on the yoga mat next to you breathing loudly? Pranayama, the practice of yogic breathing, may seem mystical and elusive at first, but is accessible with a little background knowledge and can even improve your health and yoga practice. Our ambassador, Ingrid Yang, from our La Jolla store writes about incorporating Pranayama into your yoga practice with tips on how to begin.

the importance of pranayama

Asana (Hatha yoga) is just one of the 8 limbs of yoga. Another  limb, and an essential aspect of yoga, is the conscientious use of your breath, or “Pranayama”. It calms the nervous system, relieves unconscious habits and inspires us into movement and positive energy. Start with Pranayama before your yoga practice or use it to begin or end your day. Start in a comfortable seat as we look at four of the most accessible Pranayama practices.

ujjayi

nadi shodhana

• Aliases — “Alternate Nostril Breath”; “Channel Cleansing Breath”
• Technique — Take “Vishnu mudra” with the right hand by curling the peace fingers in (image A). Gently press the soft part of the right nostril with your right thumb and inhale through the left nostril for a count of 5 (image B). Press the right ring finger on the left nostril and exhale through the right nostril for a count of 5 (image C). Inhale through the right nostril, close both nostrils and retain the breath for a count of 5 (image D). Exhale through the left nostril for 5 and inhale through the left for 5. Close both nostrils, retain for 5 and continue like this for 20 breaths on each side.
• Benefits— Alternate nostril breathing is a powerful breathing technique that cleanses and balances the nervous system and energy passageways of the body. This technique revitalizes and balances both hemispheres of the brain, as well as the front and the back. It is especially good for relieving insomnia or stress.

kapalabhati

• Aliases — “Skull Shining”; “Breath of Fire”
• Technique — Make successive, sharp exhales through both nostrils using contractions of the abdominal wall from below the navel.  While the exhalation is active, powerful and vigorous, inhalation is passive with the abdomen relaxed. Start slowly. Try 3 sets of 10 with deliberate, sharp exhales with passive inhales. It will take some concentration and when you first start this, you may not perform this technique as rapidly as other students in class.
• Benefits — A cleansing and detoxifying breath, Kapalabhati directly effects circulation and digestion. It improves abdominal organ tone, produces heat in the body, activates circulation and brings mental clarity and alertness.

shitali

• Alias — The Sanskrit word Shitalata is used for feeling the coolness of the body.
• Technique — Stick your tongue out and curl the outer edges up to form a tube. If that is difficult for you, touch the back of the teeth with the tip of your tongue. Inhale through the cylinder-like tongue. Exhale through both nostrils. Repeat this 10-15 times for 3 rounds.
• Benefits — Shitali is a cooling breath and reduces stress.

So now that we know the basics, let's make sure we're breathing everyday. Yesterday, I did it for 24 hours in a row. Working with my breath made a huge difference to my yoga practice, I'd love to hear any of your epiphanies that have fundamentally changed the way you do yoga.

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• Discover other forms of yoga.
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• Open your heart to the Pranamaya tank

you asked...

Sam and Carrie are wondering, how do you put your legs so far up your arms and push yourself off the ground? We want to learn this move!!
Love,
C & S

a yogi answers

Hi Sam and Carrie,

This arm balance, Bhujapidasana, (Shoulder-Pressing Pose) requires more flexibility than strength. If you practice Plank Pose, Chaturanga Dandasana (Four-Limbed Staff Pose) and Navasana (Boat Pose) regularly, you probably have enough strength in your arms and abdomen for most arm balances including Bhujapidasana. To prepare for Bhujapidasana, start by opening up your hips. This takes time, especially for men who tend to be tighter in that area. Work on Happy Baby Pose and lunges that open your hips and stretch out your hip flexors, e.g., low lunges where your back knee is on the floor, Virabhadrasana 1 & 2 (Warrior 1 & 2), Parsvakonansana (Extended Side Angle Pose).

To get in the pose, stand in Tadasana (Mountain Pose) with your feet as wide as your mat. Bend your knees, bend forward and start to tuck one shoulder behind one knee and then the other. You can hold the back of your ankles with your hands and start to work your legs towards straight. This is a preparatory stretch to the posture. Practice this one for a while. Once that doesn’t seem so crazy, with your knees bent, place your hands behind your feet, fingers pointing towards your feet. If you cannot get your palms flat onto the floor in a comfortable manner, go back to the preparatory poses until you are able to do so. Once you are able to get your palms flat on the floor behind your feet with your fingers pointing forwards, try to get your knees as high up onto your arms as possible as you slowly lift your feet off the ground. Squeeze your upper arms with your legs while you slowly bring your feet in front of you to the point where your ankles are crossed. Claw the earth with your fingers, pull your belly in, straighten your arms and activate your toes. Breathe and don’t forget to smile!

Good luck Sam and Carrie, but this pose is much easier to teach in person, so ask your yoga teacher or if you want please come to one of my classes and I will give you a quick demonstration.

Danielle

Find out where Danielle's teaching

This is Danielle's last Ask a Yogi post. Thank you VERY much Danielle for being our very first featured yogi and sharing your insight, tips, and advice with our online guests.

If your question didn't get answered please check back in soon and meet the next yogis to share their advice and thoughts on YOUR questions.

I have been practicing yoga for just under two years and have come to think of myself as pretty good at it. However, there is one thing I have yet to get the hang of--breathing. In class I bend halfway up on my inhale, fold on the exhale, step back on the inhale; there was no fluidity between my breath and the movements of my body.

As I sat in half lotus I set the intention to stay true to my breath. Within five minutes I would either start holding my breath or I’d be so concentrated on holding my pose that I would forget to pay attention to my breathing. I decided it didn’t matter. I convinced myself that I was getting the full worth of my practice.

The Yorkdale team at 889 Yonge in Toronto.

A few days ago however, I went to a usual studio of mine, but I there was a different instructor. She had us all attach a sound to our breath in our heads;  ‘ma’ on the inhale, ‘om’ on the exhale. She said that at any point during the practice if we find that we have lost touch with our breathing “gently and without judgment find your breath again.” I committed to not only staying true to the fluidity of my breath.  I promised myself that when I notice I had lost the ‘ma’ and ‘om’, rather than giving up, I would, without judgment return to it again.

Something amazing happened,  suddenly my planks were steadier, I could close my eyes in tree pose without swaying and my downward dogs never got tiring. The steadiness of my breath became the anchor for my entire practice. Did I make it the entire practice without breaking the cycle of 'ma's and 'om's? No, I didn’t. But I will. Probably not next practice, or the practice after that, but I will. I will eventually be able to stay true to my breath. But more importantly, breathing has no longer become ‘that thing in yoga I can’t do’, instead it something vital and fun, something I couldn’t imagine yoga without!