Today I learned something about health and weight loss that is really worth sharing because when talking nutrition and exercise, it’s something we rarely consider. We already know we gain weight because our body is not processing the food we consume. Many times we chalk it up to a slow metabolism and try everything we can think of to jumpstart it.
I bet you never thought of using your breath to jumpstart your metabolism and lose weight. Did you know that not getting enough oxygen could be the reason your body is not processing your food? It’s called “futile breathing.” Reminds me of that song “Every Breath You Take”. I would like every breath I take to count, and not be futile. Most of us only take in 1/4 of the breath our lungs were designed to hold and this affects our whole system – including the ability to fully process our food. I learned that the capacity in which you breath is a direct mirror of how efficiently your entire body is performing. Futile breathing causes our bodies to only function at 25% of what it is capable of, causing low energy and weight gain.Your cells need proper oxygenation to burn fat instead of store it. Consistent lack of oxygen causes our metabolism to slow down.
So, how do we maximize our breathing and use it to rev up our metabolism? Do some deep breathing everyday. Our normal breathing rarely goes past our chest. By breathing deep into our bellies, our nervous system alert goes off. This allows our muscles to relax, our immune system to function, and our digestion to regulate. I am glad I got into the habit of ending all exercise sessions with stretching and deep breathing. It wasn’t easy – I am not a person to lie still and breath when I want to just finish and get on with my day. I have to force myself to do it because I told myself it will help me manage my day. I was blind to the fact that it was regulating my digestion and speeding up my metabolism.
You can do this too. Lie down, close your eyes, and breath in slowly letting the air make your belly rise. Then exhale slowly and let your body melt into the floor. In yoga the teacher used to say “Belly rise, belly fall.” I repeat that to myself as I breath and it helps control the urge to breath out or in too quickly. I do 3 complete breaths because I am in too much of a hurry to get done. 6 or 7 would be ideal. Now that I know it is doing much, much more than relaxing me, I plan to increase the number I do.
And so, as another day goes by, it’s the weekend, let’s all take a moment to inhale and exhale.
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