“Oxygen: the first and most basic necessity of life, the essential element of your moment-by-moment involvement with the air around you.
Life begins with your first breath. You will breathe in oxygen ten to sixteen or more times in the next minute. You will take one hundred million breaths before you take your last.
But breathing is far more than inhaling air containing oxygen, circulating it in your body, consuming its benefits, and exhaling carbon dioxide. Philosophers and physicians have always recognized the basic relationship between breathing and life energy. For three thousand years, the philosophy of yoga has held that control of ‘vital breath’ is the key to good physical health and to calm, clear thinking. In this century, science has advanced our understanding of how breathing interacts with the body and the mind. Research has shown that slowing down and deepening breathing shifts us from the stress response to the relaxation response; this slows the heart, normalizes the blood pressure, increases blood flow to the digestive system, deepens sleep, increases energy, focus, concentration, and memory—optimal breathing not only helps prevent or cure diseases, it raises performance levels in school and sports. …
The purpose of this book is inspirational in the literal sense: to breathe new life into oneself, to reintegrate body and mind.”
~ James Loehr & Jeffrey Migdow from Breathe In, Breathe Out
This is the fourth book of Jim Loehr’s we’ve featured so far.
(Others include: The Power of Full Engagement, Toughness Training for Life and The New Toughness Training for Sports.)
Written in 1986, it’s a bit old school (gotta love references to VHS tapes) and it’s currently out of print but I found it in our home library (Alexandra bought it over a decade ago) and I figured it would be perfect as part of my prep for Optimal Breathing 101. It didn’t disappoint. (Get a copy of the book here.)
In honor of the title, let’s breathe in… and breathe out…
Inhale energy and exhale stress by guiding and controlling your breathing. :)
I’m excited to share some of my favorite Big Ideas and help us apply them to our lives today so let’s take one more nice deep breath and jump straight in!
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