Yoga for pregnant women: Pay attention to breathing and relaxing

We breathe the air and bathe the sun, drink and eat and absorb energy from it. This important energy or vitality that controls the body in yoga is called prana, which is also the "qi" in China's dialect. Prana exists in the air you breathe, but not oxygen; it exists in food, but not the food itself. It is a subtle energy that exists in everything that sustains human life.

A better way to explain prana is to compare it to electricity. Protect the electricity source and the lamp will shine, which indicates that there is energy, and this energy is invisible. Everything and everyone generates electromagnetic currents. Prana is a form of energy in electromagnetic current. By using a fully active breathing method and combining it with a yoga pose method, the body can absorb and store more energy than before. This will leave you feeling full of energy after a yoga practice.

Breathing sustains life, and life ends when breathing stops. The body breathes a large amount of oxygen during breathing, and the entire body system reaches its peak state.

The lungs occupy almost the entire chest cavity, extending from below the clavicle to the diaphragm above the ribs, and also to the intersection of the back, ribs and spine.

Inhale air that should fill the lungs. From the base of the lung to the clavicle to the ribs on the back. However, under normal conditions, most people are accustomed to "lazy" breathing methods, and careful observation will reveal that we only use part of our lungs when breathing, and do not breathe completely.

In addition to being caused by stress, lazy breathing is also associated with bad habits. When we feel stressed or stressed, we hold our breath or breathe very shallow, and our lungs seem to be on strike. This also means that the vitality of every cell in the body is decreasing.

The oxygen we breathe out and the food we eat are converted into energy in our bodies. When this transformation occurs, toxins in the body are also formed, and these toxins must be eliminated from the body. Toxins are called apana in yoga, and there is a yoga pose (see page 39) that helps remove toxins from the body.

note

Symptoms of reduced blood pressure, shortness of breath, and dizziness may occur at different stages of pregnancy, so be careful when practicing breathing.

How we breathe

When you inhale, oxygen is delivered to the lungs through the trachea. The lungs are composed of many small air sacs and air bubbles, and the surface is covered with a layer of blood vessels that intersect and form a network. Oxygen enters blood vessels from bubbles and is transported to various parts of the body through red blood cells. Exhaust gases in the body, in the form of carbon dioxide, are exhaled out of the body through the opposite path. Oxygen is supplied to the fetus in the same way, through blood flowing through the placenta. The mother carries the carbon dioxide exhaled by the fetus out of the body through her own breathing.

The lungs expand when you inhale and contract when you exhale. The diaphragm is a muscle below the thorax that moves up and down with breathing. The diaphragm moves down, massaging the liver, spleen and intestines, stimulating the entire abdominal circulation system and the fetus in the abdomen. (Editor in charge: Teng Yun)