teaching Breathing

RE: teaching Breathing

Hi Stephen,
I'm coming at this from a different angle, forgive me if it doesn't address the question quite correctly but...

I've just been giving a singing lesson to a Pilates student. Dueto an old,severe spinal injury she holds her weight over her heels (if she stands 'correctly' she falls over forwards. Her breathing is neither shallow (I won't let her!) nor truly diaphragmatic (ie with organ displacement right down behind the lower abs), because her habit from Pilates is to tense the anteriorouter muscle sheath low in the abdomen. Frustrating!
I had understood Pilates to teach reliance on the deep/core muscles and 'front of spine' muscles for postural support and pelvic alignment, rather than the superficial ones,so this surprised me.

office work that requires sitting all day at a computoris known to weaken core muscles and changenormal breathingto shallow breathing.

Presumably it's the incorrect sitting that weakens core muscles - someone who sat at their deskon a Swiss ball or practiced Alexander Technique would not be weakened - but I know what you mean.
In your last comment I think maybe (?)you mean to refer to office workers who breathe shallowly or thoracically, that is to say using intercostal rather than diaphragm muscles. As I understand it, diaphragmatic breathing is deep breathing but correct me if I've learned the wrong words.
Beware also of deep breathing that becomes so fastidious that the upper chest ceases to work at all. I had to work on this for a while some time ago - I was collecting stale air in my uppermost lungs!
Hopefully a proper Pilates person can now answer your actual question... oops, sorry...:(
Bestest
Patrick / BigVoice
PS 11th + 12th rib work SO important both for posture and breath - great strategy - wish I heard of more people doing it!

RE: teaching Breathing

Stephen and Bigvoice: this is a very good question and response.

TBH "Pilates" and "Philosophy" don't often share a sentence. I'm just looking at Joseph Pilates "Return to Life through Contrology" which is a s close to a philosophical statement as Jo P made about Pilates .
Basically he talks about the importance of the out-breath and in block caps it says ""Squeeze every atom of air from your lungs until they are almost as free of air as in a vacuum". Stand erect again and observe how your lungs automatically completely re-fill themselves with fresh air"........(until you get slightly light headed). he doesn't dictate where exactly the breath should be taken into.

Jo Pilates died without leaving anything organised behind him and you will find various different methods being taught about using core muscles.

The one that seems most largely used is "navel to spine", adn the other through (Aussie) Clinical (or physio -influenced) Pilates is a drawing in of both pelvic floor and transversus. If either Rectus or the TAs are engaged this doesn't leave a lot of room for diaphragmatic breathing (breathing into the stomach)- the breathing is taught to go out into the sides and backs of the ribs. There are scarf- breathing exercises to promote this.

(Stephen I think sitters are less likely to breathe diaphragmatically as their belly is kind of condensed ! - more likely to breathe into their upper chest/ shoulder area? Correct me if I'm wrong)

Arguably rib breathing is OK for the exercises but when it gets to be a way of life it's a problem. I know that as a Pilates teacherof three years standing I was asked in a (not Pilates) class to breathe into my stomach. My abdominal wall was so tight I couldn't do it. I was shocked. Some Pilates teachers are excessively tight in their middles and can even suffer from urge incontinence because of IAP.

I then became a Franklin method teacher and learnt that the abdominal wall and pelvic floor should not always be tight and drawn in but should be able to flow with movement - and with the breath.

I still teach TAs and PF as part of pelvic stability exercises. There is lots of evidence to show that these muscles synchronise with multifidi and help the spinal column to strengthen. But in our relaxation sessions at the end of class, I always remind clients that their belly should rise and fall with their breath, and we do specific diaphragmatic breathing exercises.

I'm looking forward to your comments.

What would you define as good everday breathing technique?

RE: teaching Breathing

I do Pilates and have been taught to 'breathe into your rib cage". However, I have recently changed my health and vitality in a few days - I was a chronic asthmatic with severe bronchial problems - by doing Buteyko exercises twice daily.

Buteyko breathing includes breathing through the nose - even using a vertical strip of micropore tape to keep the mouth closed while asleep - breathing slowly and by taking a small volume of air into the abdomen.

I could not believe that my helath and well being could change overnight, but it did. Now one month on, my peak flow reading has increased two hundred percent and is improving daily.

RE: teaching Breathing

That's amazing Catrin - I've read a bit about Buteyko (my book walked off with an asthmatic client....).
Am i right in thinking that they believe that asthma sufferers breathe in too much - or is it breathe out too much CO2 - and that's what does the damage - by restricting the breathe intake the CO2 levels are normalised and all is well - without steroids. Not sure about this - will you correct me if I'm wrong.
Whatever, it's fascinating You must be delighted.

RE: teaching Breathing

Hi all
Catrin, so glad you have found buteyko technique a huge help and I hope you can encourage other sufferers to learn the technique.

I was really just seeing if therapists/pilates teachers had noticed the breathing characteristics I had, that some people will breath into their stomachs (diaphamatically) allmost to the complete exclusion of ANYrib movement what so ever, and if this was the case does pilates offer any teachings to correct this.

If I understand you correctly spinal music there is no specific advice on correct breathing given via pilates
it originates from physios knowledge who happen also to teach pilates.My understanding of correct breathing is the same as the way you teach it as above.

steve

RE: teaching Breathing

That's it Stephen -you will find that Pilates teachers encourage breathing into the rib-cage.

I was at a Reiki meeting the other day where the Japanese Reiki Master chose to devote the time to breathing into the whole body, "drawing the breath up through every chakra" (we had to try breathing through the a***ehole! So we breathed into every part of our rib-cage, belly, liver, kidneys, pelvis......... And we breathed like this for about half and hour - hard.

Four Japanese girlsbroke down in tears - the breathing had released something they had held repressed.

I had always considered the way people breathe to be indicative ofemotion in some way - but this really convinced me!

RE: teaching Breathing

Hi spinal music
I am familiar withthe transformational breathing techniques you mention having studied reiki myself and had some unbelievable experiences/releases using it, and I do occasionaly guide massage clients towards Reiki as a valuable/essential experience.

Breathing/meditation its all good stuff! and I think its great that people can findthis kind of work via healthypages directory.

steve