So this is a question I get asked all the time and so I thought I would put this resource up, because it couldn’t be better explained than it is in this article.
While the article explains it really well, and the answer is very viniyoga style – it depends 🙂 it depends on what affect you are wantting to achieve. For the most part I teach the following.
Inhale – 1- Expand the chest first 2- then the belly
- To lengthen the spine and improve posture
- To gradually deepen the breath
- To have a more uplifting effect on the system
And if I want to use the breath to achieve grounding then I would breath into the root chakra or belly breathing on it’s own.
Hope this helps and feel free to ask any questions
xo
Basia
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There is an ongoing discussion in the yoga community about the directionality of the breath – do you begin your inhalation in the chest and then fill the belly or do your fill up the belly first and then expand the chest? This seemingly innocent question can have yoga teachers argue till they are blue in the face. Is there a right answer? Yep, but before we get to it, let’s start at the beginning.
First of all, let’s get our facts straight – we CANNOT breathe into our bellies (if the air does go into your belly, you are in deep trouble). You certainly do and should EXPAND your belly as you breathe in, but not because the air goes there.
