Humans do have a remote control of sorts, and you carry it with you 24/7. It’s your breath. Thousands of years of tradition, common practices (conscious and unconscious), and a mounting body of evidence show us that your breath is about the best tool you have for something called state control. Conscious manipulation of your breath allows you to shift states, as it were. Feel anxious, flustered, boiling from your insides? Your breath can bring you down to a calmer state. Feeling lethargic? Your breath can bring you up and raise your alertness in a matter of minutes.

Now here’s the bad news: if you’re not practiced in using your “remote control,” it can go haywire on you in a phenomenon we like to call “the tail wagging the dog.” It’s no coincidence that we observe people who are spinning out into a panicked, highly elevated state breathing with sharp, shallow, mouth breaths. They’re not in control of their remote, and actually, it’s controlling them and feeding the cycle.

You don’t have control over traffic or any of the other things out there that will inevitably butt their way into your day. But you do have control over how you respond. And like anything else, it takes practice. No better time to start than right now.

Keep your eyes peeled for more opportunities to practice in our continuing Introducing Breathwork series.

See you out there. #developyourself

-Preston

@cfnobo

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04032020 - REST DAY

• Breathing Warm-up & Mobility

• 1 round (all nasal):

• 5 full power breaths in the bottom of a squat

• 5 full power breaths in a plank

• 5 full power breaths in a reverse plank

• Straddle stretch - 2 mins

• :05 contract w/ inhale & hold, :10 relax w/ exhale

• Thoracic soft tissue work - 2 mins

• :05 contract w/ inhale & hold, :10 relax w/ exhale

• Repeat 1 round (all nasal):

• 5 full power breaths in the bottom of a squat

• 5 full power breaths in a plank

• 5 full power breaths in a reverse plank
  
  

• Apnea Training

• 5 rounds:

• Complete 4 fast burpees

• Then, 3 controlled nasal breaths

• On your 3rd breath, exhale to a natural stop, then hold until you feel the strong impulse to breathe (note your time held)

• Rest ~:45 (until you can get 3+ slow controlled nasal breaths in a row)
  
  

• Recovery breathing

• 4 breaths at each cadence (nasal, ocean breath):

• 2-2-4-0

• 3-2-6-0

• 4-2-8-0
  
  

• Mobility:

• Accumulate 6 minutes (3 mins/side) in variations of the spiderman stretch

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