One of the things I love most about Kundalini Yoga is the way it showed me how to reconnect with my breath. I never realized just how shallow my breathing was or that I spent most of my days holding my breath, so having to be conscious of my breath for ninety minutes was a breakthrough for me.

There are so many ways to breathe consciously, or, breathe on purpose, as I like to call it.

I will explore the breath, breathing, and its metaphysical connections to life in future posts, but for today, I’d like to share with you this breathing exercise that was shared with me and several hundred other health coaches at Institute for Integrative Nutrition’s Rock the Ripple Effect a month ago in NYC.

Dr. Andrew Weil, founder of the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine gave us this breathing exercise to practice twice a day, and now I’d like to share it with you.

The Relaxing Breath

Find a comfortable position in a chair with your feet planted firmly on the floor  or on the floor (sit on something more substantial than a thin yoga mat like a pillow or meditation cushion) with your legs crossed in Easy Pose, or in full or half lotus position.

Straighten your spine, relax your shoulders, and pull your chin slightly in towards your chest.

Place the tip of your tongue at the root of your mouth at the back of your top front teeth and keep it there throughout the exercise.

To begin, inhale through the nose, then exhale through the mouth making a “whoo” sound with the breath.

1. Close your mouth and inhale through your nose for four counts

2. Hold your breath for seven counts

3. Exhale through your mouth, making the “whoo” sound with the breath for eight counts

4. Repeat steps 1-3 four more times.

Practice this breathing exercise for twice a day for up to four cycles and observe what happens to within and without your body.

Please come back and share your experience with me.

Note: It is common to experience lightheadedness when engaging in conscious breathing for the first time and should subside with continue practice.

Do you live in NYC? If you like this breathing exercise and would like to experience more breathing exercises like this one, please join me for my monthly “Breathe on Purpose” sessions. Click here for dates and to register.