Optimal Breathing for Optimal Movement

There are times when hooping can be a challenge. Perhaps you are trying to balance on one leg or trying to find balance during a deep plie. Maybe your energy is waning and you lack the extra oomph to maintain hoop flow. Or you may feel a bit stiff and awkward, not able to make your movements as graceful as you would like. It may be that your breathing pattern is compromising your balance, energy and flow.

Just as the hoop's shape is a continuous and eternal circle, so is breathing. The act of respiration is a cycle repeating 20,000 times per day. This cycle of breath ebbs and flows just like the air around us. The air floats and produces a gentle breeze during calm, warm evenings, just as we breathe gently when we feel content. During periods of anxiety, our respiration is shallow and uneven, like an Alberta Clipper sweeping its chill into the environs. Finally, the strong winds of a hurricane mirror our breathing during intense aerobic activity.

In any activity, the breathing mechanism must function without tension or restriction to fulfill its task of respiration. The lungs, heart, diaphragm, and abdominal muscles work harmoniously and perform like a well-rehearsed orchestra, allowing a breath which is full and uninhibited. The diaphragm, in particular, is the most active organ in respiration. Contracting during inspiration, it pushes away abdominal organs thereby providing space for rib and lung expansion. If we breathe efficiently, with each breath we absorb about 20 milliliters of oxygen and dispose of nearly as much carbon dioxide. So, how do we breathe efficiently? We need to become aware of our breathing pattern and ensure we are using all of the muscles necessary for both inspiration and expiration.


Many breathing exercises focus on abdominal breathing, which isolates abdominal and intercostal muscles, and diminishes use of the diaphragm. In fact, our diaphram muscles can atrophy from disuse. When one is breathing naturally, everything moves: the diaphragm, abdomen, chest, even the back. By breathing naturally and without tension or restriction, we not only provide the necessary oxygen to all of our cells, but we increase both physical and mental stamina, expand our range of motion, and improve our quality of movement.

Optimal breathing is important for energy. If one consistently breathes shallowly, one is not getting a full intake of oxygen, and thus not energizing the body fully. The 'Chi' in Tai Chi means "life-force energy." This energy is brought into our bodies through the breath.


The flow of our movement, so important in hooping, is influenced by our breathing. As dance therapy pioneer Irmgard Bartenieff stated so beautifully, "movement rides on the flow of breath." When we breathe fully and completely, we can achieve fuller and more expressive movement.


However, there are times in which we are under stress, and our breathing tends to become shallow and concentrated in the upper ribs. Shallow breathing diminishes our cognitive abilities and compromises our ability to move more efficiently and effectively. Tension, a cause of shallow breathing, manifests itself in stiff arms, stiff torso, and stiff legs. Not only is flow compromised, but skill. Try shoulder hooping with stiff arms - it cannot be done.

Another condition under which we may under-utilize our breath is balancing while hooping. We are often told, particularly in dance and group exercise classes, to breathe. Well, of course we are breathing, but the breath is generally shallow and there are times when we may hold our breath. We may believe that by holding the breath we are controlling it, and thus we control our balance. The opposite is true: controlling the breath does not mean restricting it, but letting it flow easily and steadily. Our bodies function best when we simultaneously breathe with our movements. Rhythmic and full breathing is especially essential for balance.

Posture, just as it is important for balance, is important for breathing. Lifting the thoracic cage, widening the clavicle, lowering the scapula, and elongating the spine from the atlas to the coccyx creates space in which your organs can move freely. Inhaling through the nose also improves posture and aligns the spine.

Try this visualization for relaxed, full breathing: Imagine oxygen as a warm caress, as a fragrant, light mist which is surrounding you. As you inhale, you are greeted with a gentle warmth which flows through your nose, down your throat, into the lungs, and envelopes your chest, spine and abdomen. As you exhale, feel the tension leaving your body. Your jaw relaxes, your tongue and arms go limp, and your shoulders sink into alignment. Once again you inhale and imbibe each breath as an elixir: a reviver when you are tired and need to refresh, and a relaxer when it is time to rest. This oxygen, aided by your full and complete breath, revives your cells, releases tension, and energizes your body and mind.

Use fully this breath of life.


"For breath is life, and if you breathe well you will live long on earth." - Sanskrit Proverb

I Gained HOW MUCH?? Move It to Lose It.

Here are some strategies to lose weight or inches, and sustain the loss.

I was sick for a couple of weeks in November. I ached everywhere, was listless and did not feel like moving, and was rather sedentary. I ate, however (mainly liquids to soothe my sore throat), and, after a week, was surprised to see that I had gained 4 pounds! Wow, did that happen quickly. And the extra weight stuck with me until I returned to my typical daily routine, which involves movement throughout the day.

To take off weight and keep it off, rather than limit calories, my philosophy is to eat what you need (with good food choices), and to move.

I use the term movement in lieu of exercise because exercise is a single activity of a finite duration that you plan into your day. Movement consists of a variety of activities, planned and unplanned, that you incorporate throughout your day. In addition to expending energy / burning calories, movement also creates energy by increasing your metabolism.

So, how do you establish a daily routine of movement? Multitask by including movement in your daily activities:

Move While On The Telephone

We all use cordless phones, be it your office phone or cellphone or both. Now, I realize many of you work at the computer while talking on the phone, so you will need to try to get out of your chair every once in a while. Cordless phones allow mobility.

While on the phone, you can walk around your house or office, stretch, bounce, dance, and perform other mainly lower body activities. If you prefer full-body exercise, use the speaker function; you can pause to write or type notes if necessary. Be like Rocky - do jabs, shoulder rolls, and bouncing feet. The movement is gentle, not taxing, so you are not stressing the body - you are invigorating it!

And, hoopers, start off with waist hooping. If you have room, you can add walking and circling! Nice way to brighten the conversation.

Move While Reading

Every day, it is common to read a newspaper, journal, magazine, and/or book, either in print or electronically with a portable device. Print media is portable (even heavy textbooks - add some weight to your workout). Therefore, you can get up and move while you read. As a student, I would study while walking outside. I am a fierce advocate of exercising to augment learning; I believe retention of the material is supplemented by movement.

Move during Pauses

You're on hold, waiting for food to finish heating, waiting for a file to download, or waiting for a program to install. All opportunities to sneak in some movement. I realize that you are likely productive during these pauses and performing other duties (we are a nation of multitaskers after all), but try to incorporate some movement in there as well.

Resistance Bands for upper body toning

I love resistance bands, especially those made with soft gel. They are small and portable. You can use them while at your desk, while reading, and during a walk. They are great not only for strengthening but for stretching the muscles as well. Use light resistance and high reps to increase the heart rate for an energy boost.

Conclusion

Adding movement throughout your day is a wonderful way to burn excess calories, stay in shape, and feel energetic. It does require conscious effort, however, so you may want to give yourself prompts such as post-it notes by your telephone or on your book. Soon these movement boosts will become routine to serve as a wonderful supplement to great days.

Introduction and Hooping with a Herniated Disc

Hello, happy hoopers! This, and upcoming, blogs will contain information about hooping such as:

* why it is an overall fitness tool and how it works to tone your entire body
* how hooping helps improve your mood
* how, and why, athletes should hoop for cross-training
* how hooping can improve a dancer's technique
* how to enhance your yoga practice with hooping
* in-depth analysis of targeted muscles groups
* other topics hopefully of interest to you

In fact, if you have any suggestions, if you would like to know how hooping relates to any facet of your life, or if you would like to contribute to this blog with thoughts on your hooping experience, please contact me (hooper@hoopmotion.com).

Today I will discuss how I was able to hoop through a herniated disc. Although undiagnosed, the symptoms (sharp pain in the vertabral border of the left scapula radiating down the left arm) suggested inflammation of a thoracic disc.

After nearly 3 weeks, the pain has finally subsided to a whimper. Initially, the pain was so severe that I could not sleep. At the suggestion of my physical therapist sister, I began a regimen of stretching tight, and strengthening weak, muscles. This was about the only physical activity I could endure. I had to stop running and walking, and suspend dance choreography, all of which jolted my body and increased the pain.

However, I was able to hoop. Because of the location of the injury (left scapula), pain eased when I raised my arm overhead thereby releasing some of the weight borne by the shoulder. As some of you hoopers know, a great arm toning exercise is spinning the hoop while in halo position (Hoopnotica's label) or in Wild West (Hoop Girl's label). No pain, no problem. As well, waist, hip and thigh hooping were fine, but chest hooping caused discomfort given that my back push was compromised by the pain.

I could locomote gently (walk in all directions and change levels), as long as the arm was elevated. Because hooping has little or no impact on one's body, I have been able to hoop throughout my recovery.

This was my experience. You should speak with your doctor or pt before you perform any exercise routine.