3 Regular Breathing Methods for Yoga

There are about 10 kinds of breathing methods in yoga. The basic ones for the beginners are "chest breathing method", "abdominal breathing method", "alternating breathing method" and so on.

There are also some more complicated methods like sound breathing method, voice breathing method, bellows breathing method.

Basically, breathing is divided into abdominal breathing, chest breathing, and full abdominal-thoracic breathing.

    (1) Abdominal breathing:

Lie on your back, gently place your hand on your belly button; when inhale, draw the air straight to your abdomen; If inhale correctly, lift your hands with your abdomen; the deeper you inhale, the higher your abdomen rises. As the abdomen expands, the diaphragm decline.

Then exhale, the abdomen is retracted inward toward the spine; with the action of contracting the abdomen as much as possible, all the exhaust gas is exhaled from the lungs. When doing this, the diaphragm naturally rises.

   (2) Chest breathing:

Lie on your back or sit with your back straight and inhale deeply, but don't let your abdomen expand; instead of expanding your abdomen, draw air directly into the chest area.

In chest breathing, the chest expands and the abdomen should remain flat. Then, when the inhalation is deeper, the abdomen is retracted inward toward the spine; when inhaling, the ribs expand outward and upward, and then exhale, the ribs are downward and inward.

(3) Full abdominal-thoracic breathing:

Full abdominal-thoracic breathing means to combine the above two kinds of breathing. This is a natural breathing method. After practice, this breathing method will be carried out automatically in all daily exercises and life, and it is used as usual.

Inhale fully into the chest, the abdomen is naturally inward, and the lower end of the ribs will be expanded, but there should be no ups and downs below the belly button.

This kind of breathing in yoga has many benefits: due to increased oxygen supply, the blood is purified; lung tissue is strong and disease resistance is enhanced; chest and abdomen vitality and endurance are increased.