Why breathing the right way will make you less stressed
Joseph Pilates famously said:
‘Breath is our first act and last act of life, most importantly learn how to breathe.’
Breathing ‘well’, as Joseph said, really means breathing optimally, using the full capacity of the lungs, creating optimal alignment within our skeleton so that the diaphragm can move efficiently and then learning to optimise the use of our breath for movement.
Poor breathing mechanics can contribute to lower back pain, neck pain, headaches and migraines, pelvic floor dysfunction and anxiety. In fact, the more I learn about health and wellbeing the more it all stems from the breath, which brings me back to Joseph Pilates' quote!
In this article, I’ll talk about how stress can affect our breath, causing sub-optimal breathing, and what we can do to help ourselves.
What happens to our breath when we are stressed and why inefficient breathing patterns can be problematic for our wellbeing.
Stress is an unavoidable reality of life and whilst it gets a bad rap it's important to remember that it's this fight-flight trigger response that has helped us humans survive this long. Stress only becomes problematic when it isn't regulated and is our normal state of being, it's this that can have serious health implications. The good news is whilst we can't always control the stressors in our lives we can control our responses to this stress.
One of the reasons I started Pilates was due to lower back pain, at the time I was also working in a highly stressful environment with very little understanding that my lifestyle was likely the cause of both the back pain and the stress. What I loved about Pilates was its slower pace and focus on breath. It wasn’t until I was a Pilates regular that I really understood where I had been going wrong all these years. Yes I know, hindsight is wonderful, isn’t it?
How stress influences our breath
In short, stress makes our breath more shallow, but before we go further, it may be useful to understand what effective breath is. When we breathe, the primary purpose is to take in oxygen which is sent around the body, via our blood to all of our major organs. Our lungs act as a filter to remove carbon dioxide. Ideally, when we breathe the large dome of muscles known as the diaphragm is able to contract downwards to allow the lungs to fill. The diaphragm then relaxes again as the lungs empty.
The impact of stress on our breath
When we’re stressed our breathing is faster and more shallow, our brain reads this as a danger signal which triggers our sympathetic nervous system, our fight and flight response. When we trigger this system our stress hormones increase and our heart will start to beat more rapidly. When we breathe more quickly and the breath is more shallow we use different muscles to breathe, these are known as our ‘accessory breathing muscles’, these are the ones around the neck and chest. We need to use these muscles if indeed we were in immediate danger but you can see how this isn’t ideal breathing all of the time.
Lauren always begins a class with noticing your breath and becoming present in your body.
What can we do to improve our breathing
When we breathe, as I mentioned the diaphragm contracts downwards and the ribs expand, it’s also important to allow expansion into the back and sides of the ribs too. This is because the full range of breath uses the lower lobes of the lungs, this is where oxygen exchange is more efficient and sends signals to our brain to trigger our parasympathetic nervous system or rest and digest state. This then decreases heart rate, blood pressure and stress hormones a signal that everything is well and that you are safe.
How do I change my breathing if I realise it’s not optimal?
As I often say in the studio to clients, we can’t change what we don’t notice. It is through gentle observation within ourselves that we can begin to promote change. When you breathe, where does the movement start? Does your belly rise on the inhale and fall on the exhale or do you have a paradoxical breath pattern where the opposite happens? Do you draw in breath slowly or do you gasp? Does it come in through your nose or do you mouth-breathe? Can you feel your belly and ribs move when you breathe? Do your shoulders lift when you inhale or can you keep the soft? Bringing awareness to this in a non-judgmental way is crucial being aware and present in our own bodies and creating a sense of calm in ourselves.
In all of our classes and one-to-ones, we start with an awareness of breathing so that you tune into yourself, in that movement and build that mindful presence to help alleviate stress.
One Sunday per month we run a Rest and Restore class, designed to help create calm, restore slow deep breathing, alleviate tension and aid sleep - sign up to our emails to be notified of the next Rest & Restore class.
If you can’t attend a class at the studio, our LHP At Home online library of classes has a dedicated collection of classes to decrease stress and promote calm. Join our Pilates At Home membership.
Other useful sources of information are:
NHS website: https://www.nhs.uk/mental-health/self-help/guides-tools-and-activities/breathing-exercises-for-stress/
Book: Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before; Dr Julia Smith.
Dr Rangan Chaterjee: https://drchatterjee.com/5-breathing-techniques-help-reduce-stress/
Calm App: https://www.calm.com/
Headspace: https://www.headspace.com/meditation/breathing-exercises
Lauren Hilton Pilates is a boutique Pilates studio specialising in mindful Pilates movement. Located in the heart of Shrewsbury our fully equipped studio has the ultimate Pilates experience for you.
Our classes are booked on a termly basis (and fill up quickly). To be one of the first to receive our booking alerts, subscribe to our emails.
See you in the studio or virtual studio soon!
Lauren x
Owner and Pilates teacher, Lauren Hilton Pilates, Shrewsbury
