So why breathing optimally is so important for stability?
One word: pressure.
The intra-abdominal pressure is what stabilizes our spine when we stand, walk, and move
about.
Remember the rib cage alignment conversation?
When the ribs shift forward and lift in front, they drop in the back, which, in turn, pinches the back
of our "abdominal balloon." That places the content of abdominal balloon under more pressure, and, like most things under great pressure (you know this first hand!), it tries to escape.
This escaping pressure moves either up (potentially creating hiatal hernia and increasing pressure on abdominal aorta), downward ( leading to pelvic floor disorders), or forward to destabilize our structure even further.
It is right next to impossible to utilize
the muscles of the abdomen correctly if your alignment or breathing (now you know how the two are connected!) are sub-optimal.
Try this breath awareness practice to become aware of your breathing patterns and also dismantle some of the tightness within the breath:
{in class we used sitting on a core ball as a feedback tool}
This is best attempted on the weekend, when you aren't feeling rushed and are less likely to get interrupted.
Close your eyes. Take a moment to scan your entire body.
Then begin to focus your attention on your abdomen. Notice how your abdomen moves as you breathe in and
out.
Feel the swelling and settling sensations on the inhalations and the exhalation.
Do you sense any tightness or constriction in your belly?
Do you tend to pull the abdomen inwards or upwards?
If you are not sure whether you are holding tension in the belly, tense abdomen for 7 seconds by pulling the muscles inward and then release.
Notice that abdomen billows outward
in all directions – up, back and to the sides on the inhalation. On the exhalation it retracts – gains the tone and firmness without being rigid or hard.
You might begin to notice a subtle rocking motion occurring in your pelvis on with the waves of your breath. If you can’t feel it now, bend your knees , placing your feet on the mat, and feel again.
Now bring your attention to the floor of your pelvis – the space from the pubic bone
to the tail bone, and between 2 sit bones.
Check around the base of the buttocks for any unnecessary holding. Again, if you are not sure you are holding tension in these areas, contract them for 7 seconds and then release.
Notice how pelvic floor moves when you breathe in and out. Can you feel any opening, broadening movement on the inhalation?
Feel the relationship of your pelvic floor and free movement
of your abdomen.
Tension in the breath and anywhere in the region you just explored will prevent you from moving freely through your hip joints, and also from stabilizing correctly thought back, pelvis and muscles of the abdomen.
