If you haven’t heard about Kapalabhati before, I will tell you what I learned last week in my Yoga Teacher Training. Kapalabhati was the first learning of the entire course and I now understand why. It is a Kriya or cleaning method used by yogis to clear the forehead Nadi and the mind from any thought. It also helps improving your respiratory system, sinus, nostrils as well as increases your energy levels, improving your concentration and even your digestive system. Some people also refer to the Kapalabhati as a pranayama or breathing exercise as I could read in the B.K.S. Iyengar book: Light on Pranayama.

Kapalabhati is a Sanskrit word formed by kapala that means skull and bathi meaning light or shine. It is considered to be beneficial for multiple things, that’s why it’s recommended to be practiced first thing in the morning on a daily basis.

How to practice Kapalabhati:

1. Sit on the floor in cross leg position keeping your back straight and your hands on the knees with the Chin Mudra
2. Keep your mouth and eyes closed during the exercise
3. Inhale through your nostrils
4. Exhale vigorously and quickly contracting  the abdominal and pelvic floor muscles to push the air out of your nostrils (let the exhalation make a hissing sound)
5. Keep your body relax, with the chest and shoulders still while doing the practice
6. Inhale again keeping a regular rhythm for every breath  and repeat the cycle 30 times

Note: to make sure you practice Kapalabhati correctly, press your lower abdomen with your hand while exhaling and feel how it moves inward contracting your muscles. You can also start helping yourself pressing with your hand until your muscles understand the movement.

As everything in life this technique, even when it has lots of benefits, also has some contraindications mostly when practised in determined situations or if you have some health issues. So please be aware of them before starting to practice Kapalabhati to prevent any discomfort or injury.

Benefits of Kapalabhati:

• Is beneficial for the respiratory system, treating any sinus problem
• Improves digestion, and strengthen the abdominals muscles
• Increases the focus and concentration
• Boosters the energy so it’s recommended practising it in the morning
• Promotes immune system function
• Warms the body, so it’s a good practice in cold countries
• Cleanses the toxins of the organism

Contraindications to the practice of Kapalabhati:

• Pregnancy
• Hypertension
• Heart conditions
• After any surgery
• Abdominal pain
• Depression or any mental illness
• After eating or drinking (wait at least 2 hours after eating to practice this technique)

So, if you have never tried Kapalabhati before and you don’t have any of the contraindications, why don’t you follow these few steps and experience by yourself the benefits of this Kriya method?

You can start practising the Kapalabhati 3 rounds per day in the morning or afternoons. Remember that nothing is good in excess, so start slowly and increase the pace and strength of your exhalations enjoying all the positive benefits of Kapalabhati.

Adriana Esquivel

The first skill we learnt when we were born was to breathe. Somehow or rather, it came so easily, naturally and effortlessly since our birth that we don’t even consider breathing as a skill. We then start to pay less attention to our breath and took the most important thing in our life for granted.

When I first started practicing Yoga, I am more interested in the end result of the posture than the awareness of the subtle breath I was taking. Even with the constant reminders from the yoga instructor to keep breathing , I was still holding my breath on many occasions to try to get into the challenging yoga postures.  

And then, I was being introduced to Pranayama (practice of controlling the breath, which is the source of our prana, or vital life force) during the Yoga Teacher Training. On that faithful day, I started to pay attention to my breath, so much so, I integrated pranayama into my daily routine.

These are the different pranayama techniques I perform first thing in the morning on a daily basis:

1. Kapalabhati (also called Skull Cleansing)

• I do it with the purpose of clearing my head to keep my mind fresh and to kick start my day with a positive feeling)
• 40 pumps for 3 rounds

2. Anuloma Viloma (alternate nostril breathing )

• I do it with the purpose of  keeping my mind and body calm,composed and relaxed
• Inhale 6, Hold 12, Exhale 12 for 10 rounds

 3.  Bastrika

• I do it with the purpose of giving me courage and clarity and increasing my Aura
• 20 pumps for 5 rounds

Doing these 3 pranayama will only take 15mins. Im glad to say this worthy 15mins keeps  me sane and balanced.

On the aspect of asana practice, I do make it a point to be aware of my Ujjayi breathing throughout the practice. Our trainer, Paalu, once said, when you can’t hear your breathing during your asana practice, it means that you are not doing the pose correctly. And I come to understand that without breath, there is in fact no yoga.

Now, I  appreciate my Breath so much and breathing will continue to be my lifelong learning skill.

Namaste.

Jeslin (March 2018 Weekend YTT)

Pranayama is the fourth limb of the eight limb of yoga. It is ancient and commonly practiced breathing technique among yoga practitioners. By practicing Pranayama, it impacts the body’s cardiovascular system by regulating the heartbeat. With a long, deep and steady breaths as encouraged by pranayamas, we slow the heart rate down. Living beings with slow heart beats tend to lead a generally longer life as compared to those with faster heart rates. The term Pranayama literally means “expansion of life force (prana) and its purpose is to improve the body’s capacity to retain prana in the body”. Not all breathing exercise is classified as Pranayama.

Taking breathing exercise like Anulom Vilom (Alternate Nostril Breathing) is often confused as a Pranayama, however it is not classified as a Pranayama but rather the preparation to Pranayama Nadi Shodhana. Anulom Vilom is a breathing exercise that helps to distribute oxygen evenly to both hemisphere of the brain. This breathing exercise stimulates our parasympathetic nervous system producing a soothing and calming effect on the mind and breath.

The difference between Nadi Shodhana and Anulom Vilom – or in general between Pranayama and breathing exercises – is that Nadi Shodhana includes retention or holding the breath after exhalation and the use of Bandhas or Locks.

The purpose of using locks is to control the flow of energy or prana. There are 3 types of locks:

• Mulabandha (Root Lock): contracting the muscles between the pubic bone and the pelvic bone
• Uddiyana Bandha (Abdominal Lock): after a complete exhalation, expand the rib cage as if you were to inhale but don’t actually inhale. Suck the abdominal muscles and viscera in and up, hollowing the belly
• Jalandhara Bandha (Chin Lock): dropping the chin to the neck so the throat is closed

The mulabandha lock is in my opinion, the hardest to master as it wakens the muscle that is hardly used in our daily lives. 

Hope these would be useful! 

Cheers,

Lynn 

200hrytt/weekend

During the first day of the Yoga Teacher Training, when starting a few rounds of Sun Salutations, it became obvious that I was struggling to keep up with the flow. I initially thought the lack of strength in my arms made it hard to hold positions like Plank or Downward Facing Dog. After a few days of training at home I understood that the answer was the breath and the key was to synchronize the postures with the breath. I would like to share with you some tips to find better breathing in Sun Salutations and Flow workout.

All movements should be initiated by breath, making the practice fluid. Over time this will become more natural. Some movements are done on the inhale and others on the exhale. In general:

1. Lengthening the spine and back bending are initiated by inhales, and like wise deep inhaling will aid in opening the spine and front body. Inhalation is generally done automatically by the diaphragm but you can direct the frequency and depth of each inhalation by contracting certain muscles of breathing (draw the shoulder blades towards the midline, draw the shoulders back and down to open the chest forward, fix the shoulders blades in place and expand the chest upwards and outward).

2. Forward bends and twisting are initiated by exhales. Exhaling deeply will also deepen the forward fold or twist. The exhale has a deep effect to the workings of the core and is therefore used when the abdominals are most engaged. Make the exhalation a more active process by gently engaging the abdominal and intercoastal muscles by slightly squeezing the chest, to aid remove more of the carbon dioxide that is produced during metabolism.

Suryanamaskar sequence: This sequence of 10 postures is traditionally performed in the morning to greet the new day, for warming up the body and connecting to the breath. They are often performed in sets of 5, but if you are new to the practice, begin with 2 or 3 rounds, start slowly and steadily, it may take a while for the breath connection to feel natural. Each time you flow through this sequence, focus on synchronizing your breath with the movements of your body. In this sequence, odd numbered moves are done while inhaling. Think of the inhales as the “working phase” of the breath. Even numbered moves are done while exhaling. Think of exhales as the “relaxing phase” of the breath.

Instructions:

Start in Tadasana (Mountain Pose), feet either together or hip width distance, arms alongside the body.

1. Inhale, Ardha Chakrasana (Half Wheel Pose), raise both arms up, elongate the spine, contract the gluteal muscles as you bend backwards. Gaze in between eyebrows.

2. Exhale, Uttansana (Intense forward bend), lengthen the spine, fold forward from the hips with belly in. Place palms down next to respective feet. Try to bring the abdomen in contact with the thighs, face in contact with the shins.

3. Inhale, lift your head and chest to come to half way lift. Extend through the crown of your head as your press either your fingertips again the ground or your shins.

4. Exhale, release back into Uttanasana, place the hands on the floor and then jump back into Chaturanga Dandasana. Elbows hug your ribs as you lower to the floor.

5. Inhale, Bhujangasana (Cobra pose), slide the upper body forward and up, rolling the shoulders back. Keep the pelvis, legs and feet on the ground, engage the gluteal muscles slightly and stretch the sternum forward. Gaze in between the eyebrows.

6. Exhale, Adho Mukha Swanasana (Downward Facing Dog Pose), ground the palms, lift chest and hips off the floor, bend at the hip and point sit bones to the ceiling. Straighten knees and elbows, forming an inverted V shape. Legs are separated hip-width apart. Keep the spine and legs straight. Fingers are extended, arms and legs are active. Contract the quadriceps to draw the knee caps up. If possible, press the heels to the ground. Gaze towards the navel.

7. Inhale, walk or jump your the feet to the front of the mat raising into half way lift.

8. Exhale, release to Uttansana (Intense forward bend), alignment as per Step 2.

9. Inhale, Ardha Chakrasana (Half Wheel Pose), lengthen the spine, raise both arms up, come up to standing with a flat back.

10. Exhale, Tadasana (Mountain Pose), arms alongside the body or Samasthiti (Standing prayer), place the palms together at the heart centre. Gaze forward.

Observe your breath. To help focus on the breath, practice Ujjayi breathing, also referred to as the “ocean breath”. It is characterized by an audibly hollow, deep, soft sound coming from a gentle contraction in your throat. This breath enables to maintain a rhythm to the practice, take in enough oxygen, and helps build energy, while clearing toxins. Ideally you should maintain smooth, even ujjayi breathing throughout the entire practice.

During the practice, if you start experiencing difficulties breathing, it means you need to adjust the posture to allow for breath. When you become agitated, use the breath to calm the mind as well as open and steady the body. Stress and tension cause the breath rate to increase, peace and calm slow the breath rate. The opposite is also true, slowing the breath rate will bring peace and calm to the mind. As the mind calms, the body will follow, tight muscles will soften and supporting muscles will become more steady.

I have been practicing these techniques every morning for almost 2 months now, and my breathing has become a lot lighter and easier. Going through 10 consecutive rounds of sun salutations feels less challenging. I have also started to experience benefits in my daily life, to calm my mind and body when i become agitated or nervous.

Marie, YTT200 (Sep’17-Weekend)