Slow down and take a breath
There I was, clicking into a pair of demo skis at the show with my husband, and then poling away to the quad, when I realized I was breathing way too hard. I was surprised. I had been training hard this last month, I had worked out everyday, and I had accomplished my goal; and yet I was huffing and puffing away at such a low-level activity that I was incensed. All I could think was that I needed to do some deep breathing to slow everything down, but you know how you feel when you are out of breath, that is the last thing you want to do.
Cooper Mountain, Colorado is a fabulous resort town nestled 70 miles west of Denver. Its village sits at 9,712 feet, and the top of the mountain is 12,313 feet. I quickly realized that walking around here, let alone skiing, would require a lot more oxygen and red blood cells to transport them around on then I probably had on board with all my training. Even sleep at this high of an elevation would be an adventure. You see, where we live and work everyday is about 2,200-2,400 feet, and that is the elevation our bodies are acclimated too.
Breathing is one of the most basic things you and I do everyday, and the amount of breaths we take directly affects all the systems in our body. Deep, slow breathing stimulates the vagus-nerve activity, which causes our heart rate to decrease as we exhale. The Vagus-nerve runs from the stem of the brain to the abdomen, part of the parasympathetic nervous system. When it is stimulated, it is responsible for the bodies "rest and digest "activity. The opposite occurs when the parasympathetic nervous system is activated when we are under stress or have anxiety. This system gives us the "fight or flight" response, and this is necessary when we are under difficult circumstances, but we do not need this system to be on "high alert" all the time. When it is overactive it can lead to all kinds of disease processes, such as heart disease, autoimmune dysfunction, depression, PTSD, etc.
In a Stanford study by Dr. Moraveji, he reported that a group of his students who were doing normal computer work took 16.7 breaths per minute, compared to only 9.3 breaths per minute when they were relaxing. As you decrease your breathing rate, you then naturally slow your heart rate down. Currently, there is a new device Dr. Moraveji describes called "Spire" that tracks your breathing patterns. It is like a pedometer and can be clipped onto you to assist you in regulating your breathing patterns. It identifies the person's torso movement patterns as they breathe and establishes their baseline. Then as they are working throughout their day, it alerts them when they need to slow down and take a breath. An app also comes with the machine with breathing exercises to assist you in your training.
Really learning to deep breathe is not that difficult but it is a skill that often we have to practice till we are good at it on a consistent basis. So right now, wherever you are, let's practice it. First, begin by taking a deep breath in all the way to your belly. This means that your lower ribs should flare out if you are doing this part right. This is called diaphragmatic breathing and your belly pushes out as you breath in. You want to do this slowly and deliberately to a 4-5 count, paying attention to the activity. Then you want to calmly push all of the air out of your lungs. This is called exhalation, and your belly will flatten as you do this maneuver. Do this to a 4-5 count as well. Do this activity 4-5 times, and then resume whatever you were doing.
As you get better at it, your body will naturally do the deep breathing patterns as stress arises. Oh, don't get me wrong, sometimes I have to remind myself of it - like I did today while trying to hoof around on skis - but eventually it becomes second nature and you will do it while working, driving or trying to relax to go to sleep. And believe me, it works. So slow down and take a breath, your body will thank you for it.
Sheree DiBiase, PT, is the owner of Lake City Physical Therapy. She and her staff can be reached at (208) 667-1988, and in our Spokane valley office at (509) 891-2623. Come in for an appointment, and we will train you in these techniques. They will change the way you work, sleep, live and play.