Belly breathing: A hidden cause of back pain?

What if it’s not really useful to breathe into the belly? When they tell you to breathe into the belly, most people actually mean diaphragmatic breathing. Belly breathing is a version of it at least: to access the lengthening of the lungs as well as outward expansion. But that’s not always the only effect. The … More Belly breathing: A hidden cause of back pain?

Breathing for Calm

It’s Moshe Feldenkrais’ birthday week, and International Feldenkrais Week! How many candles can you blow out? Moshe talked and wrote a lot around breathing and the breath. Let me share one thing to notice around the breath, if you’re teaching, but also if you’re talking to someone with a different point of view.  If someone … More Breathing for Calm

Breathing and Anxiety

When we are anxious it affects our breathing. It becomes shallower, faster. We hold our chest still. Then the ribs can’t move with the breath. Often we’ll hold the low chest muscles, stopping the movements of the diaphragm. Again, stopping the lungs from expanding. Very useful if we want to pretend we’re dead whilst a … More Breathing and Anxiety