Advanced Pranayama Practice – Chanting Breath..

Chanting breath sounds simple, and really it is. It has many benefits to the body and when incorporated into a practice it can bring about certain changes within the body.

Often used in meditation for benefits like…

• Stress
• Anxiety
• Clearing the mind
• Focusing the mind

These benefits are gained by following your teacher’s cues which are included in the warm-up of your practice.

The practice itself, like any other breathing exercise should be reduced, modified, or removed from the practice if dizziness, lightheadedness, or faintness starts to occur.

Starting out…

Find a pose, like an easy pose, that is comfortable and you are able to relax into, this is the grounding for all breathing pranayamas in yoga and beginners should ALWAYS be in the most comfortable position for their bodies.

Once you have found the comfortable pose that you are able to allow your body to fully relax in, start to become aware of how your body feels.

Breathing naturally, through the nose, feeling the coolness of the breath on the inhale and the warmth of the breath over the lips on the exhale, focuses on how your shoulders, back, hips, legs, and feet are feeling.

Becoming body aware, allows the pranayama practice to flow easily once the practice has begun.

Start to focus now on your breath, the sound, the rise and fall of the chest, and the abdominal area.

Once the breathing sound is heard the “ohm” sound is able to start to be introduced, this sound starts a the back of the throat on the exhalation.

The “” sound will be longer and stronger than the “m” sounds as you exhale.

A good way to focus on this is to find a comfortable breathing count, for example, breathing in for 5 seconds and slowly exhaling for the same length of time, in this case, 5 seconds.

To help becoming distracted, it is advised that you close your eyes, so that your complete focus is on the sound and feeling of your own breathing and not external distractions.

When to do this practice…..

This Pranayama practice is able to be done at the beginning of practice during the warm-up sequences or at the end as you head into Savasana.

I personally believe that this is the perfect practice to start and end practice with and would recommend this beautiful pranayam to be flowed through so that you complete a gentle sequence for the lungs, digestion, and lymphatic flow of the body.

As always though, when starting a new program, exercise or breathing practice it is a good idea to seek the advice of your medical professional and also to know your body and how it responds to the type of practices you’re putting into your body.

For now, though, enjoy this beautiful breathing practice and flow with it as your journey along this path.

Happy yoga family…