Have you ever felt stressed or overwhelmed and wished you had something simple to do to help you get through it? Breathing exercises are a great way to help reduce stress. They can be done anywhere, anytime. Let’s look at 3 different breathing exercises to help manage stress and anxiety!
Breathing exercise #1: Box breathing
We love this one not only for its simplicity, but also because it is easy to remember. Just think of a box. It has 4 corners. To do this exercise, breathe to the following counts : inhale for 4, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4. Repeat this as many times as you need.
Breathing exercise #2: 4-7-8 breathing
We love this one for its long exhale. Most of us don’t take long exhales, so to help you with this here is a tip. When you are exhaling for a longer period of time, breathe out through pursed lips, like blowing through a straw. This will help you to be able to exhale for a longer period of time. To do this breathing exercise, follow these steps : inhale for 4, hold for 7, exhale for 8. Repeat this for as many times as you need.
Breathing exercise #3: Belly breathing
We love this breathing exercise because it really helps us to feel more connected with our breath and our body. The beauty is in the simplicity of this one. You are just going to take big, deep breaths. But as you do this, focus on your breath and how your body moves when you take these big inhales and exhales. To do this breathing exercise: place one hand on your chest and the other on your belly, breathe slowly and deeply, in through your nose and out through pursed lips.
What is the main theme in all of these?
Slow. Down.
Deepen your breathing and lengthen your exhales.
This helps turn on your parasympathetic nervous system so you can r e l a x 🙌🏻✨
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