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YOGA AND BREATHING

Francesca Silva

Okay, I’ll admit it. It’s taken me quite a while to get my “New Year’s Revolution” going. All that talk about improving my health, getting fit, etc took a bit of a back seat because of other issues (aka “excuses”) that came up.

But last week I finally had my first session with my personal trainer. After filling out the requisite forms (absolving the gym of any liability should I keel over), Paula had me warm up on an elliptical machine. Then she checked to make sure that my heart rate was well within the calculated beats per minute before we continued with some weight training and stretching exercises.

Before I knew it, the hour was almost up and it was time for the cooling down exercises. I was surprised to find that I had managed to complete all the exercises without feeling out of breath (or keeling over) and mentioned that to Paula. She said I wasn’t as unfit as I’d told her I was and also said she was surprised at how good my breathing is, considering I’m asthmatic.

That’s when I realized how much yoga has helped me. Learning how to breathe properly has literally opened up a whole new world for me. In the past, I would take short, small intakes of breath and even unconsciously hold my breath occasionally. But since I learned how to breathe through my yoga practice, I’ve felt so much better. No doubt my precious Neti Pot has had something to do with it too, although I’m ashamed to admit that I’ve been rather lax on that lately (I’ll bore you with those details in another blog).

So, in between my twice-weekly exercise sessions and practicing my restorative yoga at home, I should be fit and healthy in no time at all – if I don’t keel over first!

Now all I have to do is get hubby on track with his personal trainer and, once we’ve established a routine, we’ll be able to exercise together (oh the romance of it all)…!

[tags]yoga exercise, personal trainer, exercise at gym, practicing yoga, breathing exercise[/tags]

One Response to “YOGA AND BREATHING”

  1. I enjoyed your post; deep breathing is a powerful yoga tool. I’m sharing tools I’ve learned on my blog and I’d love your feedback on a recent post about heart-focused breathing, breathing from the 4th chakra, called, “Living From the Heart.” Good luck with the hubby. Namsaste, Sherry Daily Spiritual Tools

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