One of the most overlooked, yet most efficient, stress relieving tool is… our breathing! Our breath can centre us, can bring us back to the present, and can give us an insight into how we are feeling at that time (quick, shallow breathing may indicate we’re anxious or worried). Scientifically, studies have shown that breathing exercises can reduce stress and anxiety, improve cognitive function and improve feelings of positivity. Better still, this is a real tool that we can always access, wherever we are!
I know we often focus on our breathing during the Pilates classes, but I wanted to share with you a few resources that you may find helpful if you want to focus on breathing, relaxation and mindfulness further.
- Headspace App.
This is by far my favourite and one I know many of you will be familiar with. They guide you through everyday mindfulness and encourage you to complete this daily. This in itself can help reduce stress by simply having you sit still and switch off for 10 minutes a day!
- Prana Breath: Calm & Meditate.
Sometimes simply noticing your breathing and practicing different breathing techniques can help reduce worry and stress. This app gives you different breathing options – calming, relax, clear mind, anti-stress, which allow you to tailor the breath session to your current needs.
- Body Scan Meditations.
This is one I utilise a lot with patients, as it draws your attention to your body, noticing different sensations as you mentally scan down, from head to toe. It allows us to check in, especially in times of stress or worry. Stress not only has mental and emotional symptoms, it has physical symptoms too, and can contribute to things like back pain and headaches. Staying present and breathing into the sensations we’re experiencing can help bring relief.
There are lots of different youtube videos out there for Body Scan’s and I know Headspace has one on their meditation list.
This is I know a very small list, but hopefully you may find some of these resources helpful. Would love to know if you have any recommendations for breathing or mindfulness that you can share with us?
