Moves with Abbie PT – Female Personal Trainer Gloucestershire

The benefits of including breathing exercises into your everyday life:

Reduces Stress and Anxiety

• Breathwork can activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps to calm the body’s stress response and reduce feelings of anxiety.
• Deep breathing exercises help to lower cortisol levels (the stress hormone)

Boosts emotional well-being

• Breathing exercises helps regulate emotions by encouraging calm, controlled breathing, which may support emotional responses.
• It also promotes feelings of peace, balance, and mental clarity, especially in stressful situations.

Enhances focus & self-awareness

• Breathwork improves oxygen flow to the brain, improving focus, concentration, and cognitive performance.
• It can help clear mental fog, and increase awareness and mindfulness by encouraging you to connect with the present moment and cultivate greater awareness of your body, mind, and emotions.

Improves physical health & energy levels

• Breathwork improves lung capacity and strengthens respiratory function, supporting overall health and physical endurance.
• It can also enhance the body’s circulatory and immune systems by improving oxygen delivery to cells.
• It helps to balance the nervous system by shifting the body from a sympathetic (fight-or-flight) state to a parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) state, creating a sense of balance and calm.
• Conscious breathing helps regulate the body’s energy levels by balancing oxygen and carbon dioxide, leaving you feeling more energised and focused.

Supports relaxation & sleep

• Breathwork exercises help relax the nervous system, making it easier to fall asleep and improving sleep quality by promoting relaxation.

Releases tension & trauma

• Some breathwork techniques can help access and release stored emotional tension or trauma, leading to feelings of emotional relief and personal growth.

A technique to try…

BOX BREATHING

1. Inhale for 4 counts
2. Hold for 4 counts
3. Exhale for 4 counts
4. Hold for 4 counts

This breathing exercise is a great way to help regain control, stay calm and focused in stressful situations.

To help relax the body further and more deeply for a restful sleep try;

1. Inhale for 4 counts
2. Hold for 4 counts
3. Exhale for 6 counts
4. Hold for 2 counts

The longer exhale helps stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system for a deeper sense of calm and relaxation.

Summary

As with everything, improvements don’t just happen overnight. However, the more awareness you have and consciously start to practice specific techniques yourself or following along to guided practices, you may begin to really feel and sense some (or even more) of the benefits mentioned above.

Breathwork truly is such a versatile tool for enhancing mental, emotional, and physical well-being and will certainly provide the invaluable long-term benefits with consistent practice.