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Introduction
Why it is important? We want to looksmax, so we need to optimize all areas. One neglected aspect is breathing. If you breathe poorly, whether it's due to environmental factors (bad air, chemicals, etc.) or the wrong way you breathe, you will get problems like acne, insomnia, stress, depression, improper facial development, poor posture, etc., so you need to invest time and energy here as well. As a former mouth breather, I have suffered a lot from this bad breathing, in the last few years I have been dealing with various issues on my looksmax journey, for me the biggest change besides my diet has been my breathing, hence this thread. Pair of the next points will be self-evident, few will be new.
In the first version I had much more theory, but I decided to shorten it significantly. My goal is not to entertain your intellect, but to give you briefly and concisely all the important information about proper breathing. Because one of the most important points is: theory is 1%, practice is 99%. So put the points into practice. First I will go into some theoretical basics, then I will give you practical tips that you can implement immediately.
Autonomic nervous system
Breathing is the master switch of the so-called autonomic nervous system, which consists of two smaller networks with opposite functions.
1. The parasympathetic nervous system (parasympathetic nervous system) provides relaxation and rest. This is achieved by the parasympathetic nervous system signaling the stomach to digest and the brain to release feel-good hormones such as serotonin and oxytocin after, for example, an extensive meal. It also stimulates the genitals to engage in sexual intercourse.
The lungs are crisscrossed by nerves that connect to both networks of the autonomic nervous system. A majority of the nerves connected to the parasympathetic nervous system are located in the lower lobes of the lungs, which is why long, slow breaths are so relaxing. The deeper the air molecules enter the lungs, the more the nerves of the parasympathetic system turn on, stimulating organs to rest and digest. As the air rises in the lungs during exhalation, the molecules stimulate an even stronger response from the parasympathetic system. The vagus nerve is the master switch to turn individual organs on or off in response to stress.
→ The deeper and gentler you inhale and the longer you exhale, the slower your heart beats and the calmer you become. (Humans are evolutionarily in this state most of the time)
2. The sympathetic nervous system (sympathetic nervous system) sends stimulating signals to the organs, telling them to get ready for action. Numerous nervous systems radiate into the upper lungs. When you breathe fast and hard, the air molecules turn on the sympathetic nerves and trigger an emergency (the more such messages, the worse the emergency).
In this state, the body diverts blood flow from organs that are not immediately vital, such as the stomach and bladder, to the muscles and brain. The heartbeat speeds up, adrenaline is released, blood vessels contract, pupils dilate, palms secrete sweat, and thinking becomes sharper.
→ The sympathetic nervous system dulls pain , diminishes blood leakage when you are injured and makes you faster and more dangerous so that you can fight better and run faster when you are in danger.
Nostrils
Nostrils of each person pulsate in their own rhythm, opening and closing like a flower, depending on, for example, our mood or state of mind. According to the Tantric text "Shiva Svarodaya", this serves to stay in balance and in tune with the rhythms of the universe.
The right and left nasal cavities work like an HVAC system, controlling temperature and blood pressure and delivering chemicals to the brain to alter moods, emotions and sleep states:
Environmental factors
Breathing Basics
Breathing Advanced
Got most Information through reading websites, but also "Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor". Very good book, worth it.
Why it is important? We want to looksmax, so we need to optimize all areas. One neglected aspect is breathing. If you breathe poorly, whether it's due to environmental factors (bad air, chemicals, etc.) or the wrong way you breathe, you will get problems like acne, insomnia, stress, depression, improper facial development, poor posture, etc., so you need to invest time and energy here as well. As a former mouth breather, I have suffered a lot from this bad breathing, in the last few years I have been dealing with various issues on my looksmax journey, for me the biggest change besides my diet has been my breathing, hence this thread. Pair of the next points will be self-evident, few will be new.
In the first version I had much more theory, but I decided to shorten it significantly. My goal is not to entertain your intellect, but to give you briefly and concisely all the important information about proper breathing. Because one of the most important points is: theory is 1%, practice is 99%. So put the points into practice. First I will go into some theoretical basics, then I will give you practical tips that you can implement immediately.
Autonomic nervous system
Breathing is the master switch of the so-called autonomic nervous system, which consists of two smaller networks with opposite functions.
1. The parasympathetic nervous system (parasympathetic nervous system) provides relaxation and rest. This is achieved by the parasympathetic nervous system signaling the stomach to digest and the brain to release feel-good hormones such as serotonin and oxytocin after, for example, an extensive meal. It also stimulates the genitals to engage in sexual intercourse.
The lungs are crisscrossed by nerves that connect to both networks of the autonomic nervous system. A majority of the nerves connected to the parasympathetic nervous system are located in the lower lobes of the lungs, which is why long, slow breaths are so relaxing. The deeper the air molecules enter the lungs, the more the nerves of the parasympathetic system turn on, stimulating organs to rest and digest. As the air rises in the lungs during exhalation, the molecules stimulate an even stronger response from the parasympathetic system. The vagus nerve is the master switch to turn individual organs on or off in response to stress.
→ The deeper and gentler you inhale and the longer you exhale, the slower your heart beats and the calmer you become. (Humans are evolutionarily in this state most of the time)
2. The sympathetic nervous system (sympathetic nervous system) sends stimulating signals to the organs, telling them to get ready for action. Numerous nervous systems radiate into the upper lungs. When you breathe fast and hard, the air molecules turn on the sympathetic nerves and trigger an emergency (the more such messages, the worse the emergency).
In this state, the body diverts blood flow from organs that are not immediately vital, such as the stomach and bladder, to the muscles and brain. The heartbeat speeds up, adrenaline is released, blood vessels contract, pupils dilate, palms secrete sweat, and thinking becomes sharper.
→ The sympathetic nervous system dulls pain , diminishes blood leakage when you are injured and makes you faster and more dangerous so that you can fight better and run faster when you are in danger.
Nostrils
Nostrils of each person pulsate in their own rhythm, opening and closing like a flower, depending on, for example, our mood or state of mind. According to the Tantric text "Shiva Svarodaya", this serves to stay in balance and in tune with the rhythms of the universe.
The right and left nasal cavities work like an HVAC system, controlling temperature and blood pressure and delivering chemicals to the brain to alter moods, emotions and sleep states:
- The right nostril speeds up circulation, warms the body, and increases blood pressure and heart rate. This occurs because breathing through the right nostril activates the sympathetic nervous system, the "fight or flight mechanism" that puts the body in a state of alertness and readiness.This breathing feeds more blood to the left hemisphere of the brain, especially the prefrontal cortex, which deals with logical decisions, language, and calculations.
- The left nostril has the opposite effect. It is more closely connected to the parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for relaxation and rest, lowering blood pressure, cooling the body, and reducing anxiety. This breathing shifts the blood flow to that area which influences creative thinking, emotions, formation of mental abstraction and negative emotions.
- The goal here is a state of balance. Through the yoga exercise "nadi shodhana" one can manipulate the body functions with conscious breathing through one or the other nostril
Environmental factors
- High quality furniture (wood <3) (why? plastics today contain formaldehyde, which is considered carcinogenic and pollutes the air.)
- high quality apartment/house (close to the forest) (better air and you can go for a walk there)
- many plants (especially air cleaning plants like monocot, dragon tree, bow hemp) (why? Not only do they turn carbon dioxide into oxygen, but they can even filter pollutants like formaldehyde, benzene and trichloroethane from the air)
- little plastic and no open chemicals (self evident)
- good bed with good air circulation (for good sleep)
- optimal humidity/temperature in the room (20°C-23°C and 40%-60% humidity depending on room, bedroom 16°C-18°C) (how to increase/reduce..google it)
- proper ventilation according to season (depend on location..google it)
- Thorough cleaning & minimize dust
- Use alternative cleaning products if possible (too time consuming for me)
Breathing Basics
- Breathe through nose (always, no matter what you are doing)
- Good Posture (self evident, it will help you massively with mewing and breathing because your breathing apparatus is in the best possible position)
- Mewing (only in this way you can get used to breathing through your nose)
- Breathe softly (If you hold a match in front of your nose, it should not go out)
- Breathe more calmly and slowly, also exhale slowly (ideally: 5.5s inhale → 5.5s exhale) (check the speed of breathing regularly)
- Breathe fresh humidified air (The best air is in nature (untouched forest), do not rot in your room)
- Don't sit all day in your room. If you work at the PC, use the Pomodoro technique and use the breaks to walk, maybe do a breathing exercise, maybe get some fresh air.
- Never sleep on your stomach, sleep on your side or back (sleeping on your stomach negatively affects your breathing)
- Ideally, perform dynamic stretching every day to loosen muscles (the most important muscle to be able to breathe easily is your back muscles)
Breathing Advanced
- Ideally, use Yogi Full Breathing: 5.5s inhale → 5.5s exhale → repeat (=5.5 breaths per minute and 5.5l breath volume), breathing first into the diaphragm, then into the ribs, then into the clavicle, then exhale starting with the clavicle, then the ribs, then the diaphragm again, and repeat.
- Breathe through left nostril to become calmer, through right nostril opposite.
- The deeper and gentler you inhale and the longer you exhale, the slower your heart beats and the calmer you become
- The smaller and more inefficient the lungs, the faster you get sick and die. The organs are malleable and we can change them at any internal time. (Increase lung capacity through slow exhalation and air holding training (target 3min))
- Seal mouth with tape at night (helps with mewing at night, and keeping your mouth shut, so you have to breath through your nose)
- Focus on breathing from time to time: Up to 80 percent of office workers suffer from what is called continuous partial attention. We scan our emails, write something down, check Twitter, and do it all again without really focusing on a specific task. In this state of constant distraction, breathing becomes shallow and irregular. Sometimes we don't breathe at all for half a minute or more.
- if the nose is blocked, simply take some water in your hand and pull it through the nose so that it flows out through the mouth
- Alternate nostril breathing (Nadi Shodhana) (Improves lung function and lowers heart rate, blood pressure and sympathetic nervous system load. Stimulates the brain. Can also be performed with Rhythmic Breathing.)
1. thumb of the right hand to the right nostril, ring finger to the left nostril, resting the index and middle fingers between the eyebrows
2. close the right nostril with the thumb and inhale slowly through the left one.
3. at the end of inhalation, pause briefly while both nostrils are closed, then lift thumb to exhale through the right.
4. At the natural end of exhalation, hold both nostrils closed for a moment, then inhale again through the right one.
5. continue breathing through alternating nostrils for about five to ten passes. - Resonant breathing (MY FAVORITE) (Calming exercise that puts the heart, lungs and circulation in a state of coherence in which the body's systems work with maximum efficiency.)
1. sit upright, relax the shoulders and abdomen and exhale.
2. inhale gently for 5.5 seconds, stretching the abdomen as the air fills the lower part of the lungs.
3. without pause, gently exhale for 5.5 seconds and retract the abdomen as the lungs empty. Each breath should feel like a cycle.
4. repeat at least 10 times, more often if possible. - Buzzing a song (Buzzing releases 15x more nitric oxide in the nares; this dilates capillaries, improves oxygen supply and relaxes smooth muscle fibers);
- Holding your breath while walking/running (Improves co-dioxide level in the blood and thus blood supply)
1. exhale completely while continuing to walk slowly and counting steps.
2. in case of strong air hunger stop counting and quietly inhale several times through the nose without stopping. Then breathe normally for at least one minute and then repeat. - Yogi rhythmic breathing with Cleansing Breath (to advanced for looksmax, google it if interested, great for cleansing the lungs)
Got most Information through reading websites, but also "Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art by James Nestor". Very good book, worth it.
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