Breath-Stretching: A Guide to Breath Power and Stretching Fitness

By David Stein

Breath-stretching examines the foundations of breath and movement principles to distill their essence and combines them into a unified system that develops flexibility and vitality. It explains how to control the breath for smooth, deep, powerful breathing and how to coordinate movement with the breathing rhythm.

Breath-stretching explores

• Language: English
• Publisher: David Stein
• Release date: Apr 11, 2021
• ISBN: 9780996151634

Book preview

Introduction to Breath-Stretching

Breath-stretching is for anyone that wants to learn basic principles and techniques of breath control coordinated with stretching movements. Breath control and stretching are root skills that can be used to build coordination, develop core strength, and release strain. The breath is the body’s most basic force. Controlled breathing acts as a power amplifier and coordinates movement. Stretching positions are used as the foundation for graceful movements.

Breath-stretching uses the power of the breath and simple stretching techniques to develop controlled breathing, balance, flexibility, core strength, muscle tone, and a solid base of physical fitness. Breath-stretching shows how to coordinate deep breathing with the body’s movement. Practicing these techniques will allow the body to feel limber and invigorated. It will help unblock the currents of electrochemical energy that get trapped by muscle overuse and strain.

Breath-Stretching explores fundamental principles of breath and movement as the keys to revitalizing the body’s energy. This book explores how to become aware of and control the breath for smooth, deep, powerful breathing. Breath power feels good, relieves stress, strengthens the core muscles, and is easy to develop.

Breath-Stretching describes these principles as six integrated elements. They are: (1) controlled breathing, (2) smiling, (3) body centering, (4) breath stretching, (5) breath step movements, and (6) spine stretching. Get all the elements working together in harmony and breathing and movement will be coordinated, smooth, flowing, and powerful.

These techniques are used to:

• Control the breath and increase core strength.

• Coordinate the breath with a stretch in a range of motion from a meditation pose to a flowing deep stretch.

• Release the strain that is caused by the daily grind of activity.

• Relieve the strain that is caused by athletic training.

• Rebuild strength and improve health.

• Develop strength and a toned physique using a no-impact system of exercise.

• Learn basic principles that can be applied to disciplines such as Tai chi, Qigong, Yoga, and Meditation.

I guarantee that you will be breathing for the rest of your life. Using these techniques allows you to feel the power of the breath and make breathing an enjoyable experience that’s different from our ordinary automatic breathing. Enjoy a deep breath, full stretch, and good health.

This book is a beginning guide, not a final word. It is a piece of a puzzle. I hope it helps you on the path to a strong, healthy life. Anything I got right I owe to the many books, videos, teachers, and years of practice I’ve experienced.

Visit my web site breath-stretching.com for additional information.

Part One: Breath-Stretching Basics

The terms used in this book to describe the body and its movements are used in a non-medical, general anatomical sense. Breathing is explained using two reference points: the breathing cycle of in and out, and abdominal control by expansion and contraction. This refers to the action of pulling the abdominal muscles inward (contraction) and relaxing or pushing the ab muscles outward (expansion) with a range of force from gentle to forceful. Core strength is rooted in the abdominal area just below and above the navel and it extends to the pelvic and chest area muscles.

The term muscles is used in a general sense. It includes tendons, ligaments, and organs that move with the muscles. References to the foot’s ball and heel refer to locations on the soles of the feet. The term strain describes uncontrolled or unwanted muscle tension. Breath-stretching uses two methods to release strain: by passively relaxing the muscles, and the use of actively controlled muscle tension. Both methods use controlled breathing as a technique to relieve strain.

The body’s movement is described in terms of the body’s vertical and horizontal axes and geometric angles of movement. These are not exact angles; they represent a general direction of movement and alignment. The body’s alignment points are a guideline for balanced positions.

Easy stretching can transition into a deep stretch. Gradually transition from an easy stretch to a deeper stretch and coordinate it with the breath to prevent overextension of the muscles and possible strain. Relax into the stretch, do not force a position. Relaxing into a stretch is counter-intuitive; however, this is an accurate description of this stretching method. This doesn’t mean a stretch can’t have maximum tension or some discomfort. The smiling technique explores how to relieve this discomfort. Stretch the areas where you feel stiff or sore to relieve tension. Breath-stretching uses controlled tension to relieve tension.

The terms deep and stance width are subjective. Breathe and stretch in positions that are deep for you. This isn’t a contest. Enjoy the experience. The guidelines for stance width will be based on your own foot’s width.

These exercises work best on an empty stomach. Any type of comfortable shoes or bare feet is okay. When wearing shoes, occasionally notice and stretch out from the footbed’s normal wear pattern. Whether in shoes or bare feet, feel the foot’s connection with the ground by stretching and planting the foot into it. The hyphenated term breath-stretching refers to the discipline, the term breath stretch refers to a set of techniques of breath-stretching.

The Roots of Breath-Stretching

The practice of using breath control techniques for physical and spiritual development has existed for thousands of years. This practice has blossomed into many disciplines with their own distinct goals, principles, and techniques to control the breath and coordinate it with body movement, each a science and art.

Breath-Stretching uses basic concepts of breath control and movement found in the disciplines of Yoga and Tai Chi; however, it is not a description of those disciplines or their techniques. Breath-stretching describes a set of underlying principles from those disciplines that have been combined to create a system that is easy to use and an effective form of deep breathing exercise.

It is the description of principles and techniques rather than specific positions and choreographed movement routines that illustrate how to use breath-stretching. There are many terms unique to breath-stretching that describe these principles and techniques. The index lists these terms.

The Yin and Yang of Breath-Stretching

The concepts of breath-stretching have a yin and yang nature to them. Breathing and stretching work in harmony. The symbol and techniques describe the constant blending flux between two forces that are expressed as tension and relaxation. The principles and techniques are described as the interaction of paired forces. These are not simply opposite forces. There is a core of yang within yin and vice versa. Using this analogy there are two ways to view exercise; either movement guides breathing or breathing guides movement.

Movement that guides breathing is typically associated with any aerobic exercise such as a sports activity or weight training. As the intensity of activity increases, breathing and heart rate increase in response. It is beneficial to control breathing, but it is the intensity of the movement that drives the breathing rhythm. The faster or longer you run the deeper the breath and heart rate. All types of exercise, including breathing and stretching, can be practiced in this manner to great benefit. The intensity of the activity increases the intensity of the breath’s rhythm There is a range of motion where, on the far end of the scale, breathing is an automatic and unconscious action. Our normal breathing rhythm is automatic and unconscious.

Breath-stretching is a breath-centric exercise system that is a simple approach to breathing guides movement. It focuses on the muscles of the respiratory system (lungs, diaphragm, abdominals) to guide the body’s stretching movement. Breathing becomes a conscious, voluntary muscle control, typically slower and more rhythmic than an intense high impact exercise. The breath can be made calming or energetic.

Breath-stretching is based on the blending of two forces: breath and movement. Breath control is described using one technique with four variations of stretching the abdominal muscles with the breath cycle. It describes how to become aware of and control the breathing rhythm. Movement is explained as the motion of the body’s vertical and horizontal axes relative to the centerline with the timing