It should not be surprising that moving the body can help us get deeper into breathing and feel a sense of well-being that may be harder to reach when we are completely still. For some people this movement could be jogging, where they naturally fall into a specific breath rhythm to maintain efficiency and avoid fatigue. There is nothing quite like the sensation of expanded lung capacity while energy circulates through the body.
On other days, or depending on our mindset and physical condition, stillness combined with deep breathing can bring us just as much benefit. In yoga we ease into a posture, and once we reach the maximum expression of that shape we become still, focus on our breath, and allow energy to move freely through the body. Thoughts will inevitably arise, but over time we learn to gently redirect the mind back to the breath and the posture.
If we push ourselves too hard in a posture and the breath becomes restricted, we lose relaxation. The goal is to stay in a place where the posture is still challenging but the breath remains free. As practice advances, breathing patterns can be adjusted in difficult shapes. For example, in a deep backbend, taking shorter inhalations and longer exhalations can create relief and relaxation. Breath retention is sometimes used to build inner energy and awareness, followed by a greater sense of release on the exhale. In general, the most beneficial breathing is long, slow, deep, and full, with equal attention to the inhale and the exhale.
Simple postures such as Śavāsana., the dead body pose, allow profound relaxation. Lying flat on the back changes the way the lungs expand compared with standing upright. When lying down the lungs move more towards the back body, and many people feel a deeper sense of release when they breathe into this space. Similarly, in a forward fold, drawing in the core can intensify both tension and release, creating another path to relaxation.
Downward Dog is another posture that offers unique breath awareness. Imagine the skin at the bottom of the toes extending back through the soles, rising into the ankles, calves, hamstrings, buttocks, spine, and up to the back of the head. Shoulder alignment is also key. As we widen and lengthen the shoulders and press into the hands, it creates both space and strength. In this posture gravity shifts the orientation of the lungs, pulling them toward the front of the body. This encourages more air into the upper lobes of the lungs, which are often under-utilized. To support this, first allow the belly to expand gently forward on the inhale, then contract inward and upward, transferring energy into the chest to complete the breath.