Breath and the Importance of it during movement - Part 1
Breath
Breathing and the Importance of the breath. We all have to breathe and that is one fact no-one will debate. There are however numerous methods and styles of breath work. I will discuss and highlight some of these over the next few articles.
For this article, we will focus on the mechanics of the thorax and how this influences breath and movement and touch on some of the aspects discussed in Pilates.
Pilates and Breathing
The purpose of breathing in Pilates is twofold.
Directional breath to facilitate movement, and
Dynamic breathing in sustained postures to facilitate stability.
The Breath should match the demand of the activity ie. either mobility or stability. When we inhale the rib cage should expand three dimensionally.
Vertically
Front to back
Transverse or across the width
Breathing facilitates Movement and Movement facilitates breathing. Great examples of this are breathing into the front part of your chest is easier in Thoracic extension or leaning backwards from the trunk, while spinal flexion or bending facilitates breathing at the back of your chest.
Breathing can also facilitate Stability when you understand the role of the breath in assisting movement. In general terms, an inhale breath facilitates or ‘helps’ extension or leaning backwards (arching) while your exhale breath helps flexion or bending (rounding). This may sound confusing but think about your inhale breath assisting spinal stability when the hip moves into flexion or bending. It can do this by preventing the spine from following the hip into flexion as the spine wants to extend or arch backwards with the inhalation.
For this reason, the breathing patterns may change from person to person depending on the goals of the task and the level of control of the person in the class. The above example could be swapped to use the breath out which would increase the challenge of the client in the same exercise. There are guidelines that accompany every exercise in the Pilates repertoire and these are always the starting point when teaching you the exercises.
There are many articles covering the use of an exhale breath to facilitate transversus abdominus however a forceful exhale may cause over activity or excessive narrowing of the rib cage and be detrimental to the desired task of appropriate stability for the movement.
Thorax mechanics are facilitated by the breath and in this way a cue to facilitate lengthening of the thorax or to visualize a slinky will be enhanced when a breathing challenge is applied. IN this way the breathing task is then the loading applied to the task at hand.
The thorax comprises the thoracic spine and all the rib and rib connections made to it. There are 136 joints in the thorax and they all need optimal control and stability.
Think about that for a moment and wonder why I pause when you ask me for ‘ core ‘ exercises. Mmmmm well there are numerous areas that need control and every rib level has its own core stability requirements.
The Thoracic Ring Approach is the innovative, 3-D assessment & treatment model for the thoracic spine and ribcage created by Synergy Physiotherapist & Owner, Dr. Linda-Joy (LJ) Lee.
She describes the thorax as having an important role in transferring loads through the body. If the thorax comprises up to 35% of your body’s total mass, think about if it is leaning to one side and the effect this has on the subsequent loading and control in the rest of your body.
From her website page she describes beautifully how breathing is there fore affected and why it is so important (https://synergyphysiopilates.com/unique-approaches/thoracic-ring-approach/)
“….Optimal function of your thorax allows you options for a variety of breathing patterns while you run, jump, twist and sing…….
the muscles of your “core” are attached to your thoracic rings and innervated from the thorax. This means that if your thorax is not functioning optimally, it can cause or “drive” problems with core muscle recruitment – from your abdominals and diaphragm to your pelvic floor………”
“….The diaphragm attaches to the lower 6 thoracic rings, and multiple thoracic ring muscles are involved in breathing – when these muscles are out of balance, they affect your options to breathe into different parts of your rib cage, which is sometimes more obvious during certain movements or activities because of the extra demands on the thoracic muscles to create movement and control….. ”
So as you can see, there are the suggested breathing patterns associated with traditional Pilates which are fabulous and have their place and purpose, and can be easily researched further. HOWEVER there are new considerations that take into account the pattern of control you have around your rib rings and thorax in total. IF you have altered thorax patterns of control which don’t seem to be ‘fixed’ with trying hard at the ‘right / correct breath pattern’, or you find another region in your body is aggravated with trying the ‘correct breathing or movement pattern associated with a particular exercise, then you may require a specific assessment using the Thoracic Ring Approach TM. The goal is to facilitate optimal loading and therefore help with re-patterning not only your breath but how you move and load. Learn how to reconnect with your body and learn how it moves with us at Radiant Pilates.
Part 2 will cover how breathing can influence your sympathetic nervous system.
