Richie Bostock, referred to by many as 'The Breath Guy' has written this informative, easy to use and practical guide to optimise our breathing - a key to overall health - and harness the profound benefits of our breath to supercharge our life and wellbeing....and it's free!
Beautifully illustrated and well set out, the book is packed with life-changing tips and exercises for specific health conditions and ailments prevalent today.
From the introduction by the author:
Breathing is the only function that happens completely automatically and is 100% under our control. This is not an accident of nature, it's a human design feature.
Many ancient traditions knew this, and developed practices based around breathing to increase the quality of their physical, mental and emotional health.
The well-known yogic discipline of pranayama is a system of breathing exercises designed to work with what the Hindu sages referred to as Prana, or life-force energy.
Many other cultures around the world - such as the Tibetans, Sufis, Taoists and shamanic societies - developed their own sacred breathing techniques, as a way to improve their state of being or even to enter visionary states for spiritual experiences.
The importance of the breath as an essential element in one's state of being was even highlighted in some of the oldest languages. In ancient Greek, the word for soul 'psyche pneuma' also means breath. In Latin, 'anima spiritus' also means soul and breath.
In modern times, the breath has been forgotten, taken for granted and swept aside as something that 'just happens' to keep us alive.
But now, as science continues to advance, more and more research supports what ancient traditions have known for centuries: that the way we breathe significantly impacts our quality of life.
Mental health professionals have pioneered the use of breathing techniques as an effective form of emotional therapy, helping people work through mental and emotional challenges such as traumas, anxiety and depression.
More and more athletes and sports teams are adopting breathing practices to gain an edge. To improve output, elite endurance athletes match the cadence of their step, stroke or pedal to their breathing. Professional boxers and mixed martial arts fighters use breathing techniques in between rounds, to recover as quickly as possible, ready for the next round. All these techniques, ancient and modern are BREATHWORK.
To quote Dr. Andrew Weil, celebrity doctor and world leader in integrative medicine:
'If I had to limit my advice on healthier living to just one tip, it would be to simply learn how to breathe correctly"
