I just finished breathing.

Not permanently, of course.

I refer to my “magic fitness/mental health exercise.”

It’s called meditative breathing. And it’s popularity is growing, according to latest press reports.

This basically involves taking time out to think about and focus on your breath. Its harder than it sounds, but the results are totally awesome.

Personally, it renews me, recharges my mind. And this five-minute exercise doesn’t cost a cent. require any fancy equipment or awkward poses.

When I finish, I walk around the block (my own routine) and am back to the computer and my latest writing project.

Meditative breathing can be challenging for those who’ve never done it. It’s hard to just stop and concentrate on what is basically a natural process.

But in the short term, it has been proven to help the individual de-stress in just moments and clear his/her head. An extended practice can help lower your blood pressure and anxiety levels, according to medical reports.

For home practice, you just need to find a quiet spot where you can sit and concentrate on your breath and begin to drive out any thoughts for five minutes. For some, counting their breaths “Inhale l, Exhale 1″ helps to keep them focused on their breathing.

I set my wife’s kitchen timer, because five minutes seems much longer when you’re totally concentrating. But it returns you to the present.

Personally, I inhale and hold to a count of eight, then exhale slowly through my lips, all the while imagining I feel muscles relax in every part of my body, top of the head to toes. Breathing deep into the diaphram about seven times I quickly begin feeling relaxed and almost limp.

Personally, after that I spend a few minutes just concentrating on the word, “one” repeatedly. I can get so relaxed, I’ll fall into a ten-minute sleep if my writing efforts have pooped me out.

Then I’m ready to attack the computer again (or even do some yard work!).

You might say, as someone wrote: “It takes yoga off the mat.”

Try it a few times and see for yourself.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 12th, 2008 at 5:19 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.