Just a couple beginner questions

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

I have trouble breathing through my nose for a long period of time. I have to stop and breathe through my mouth a few times now and then as if to catch my breath. Is this normal in the beginning? It’s almost like I feel like I can’t get enough oxygen in through my nose; even in seated meditation.

Another thing is with poses… is it OK to work on one alone until you feel comfortable with it? I did join a web site that was recommended to me. It just seems I go from one pose to another and can’t really do any of them as good as I should. When you practice on your own, can you single one out and stick with it awhile instead of a series of poses?

Maybe some of this has been answered before. I looked at the recent threads and didn’t see anything similar. I don’t mean to be a bother. I admit I could study up elsewhere but part of what I hope to find in this community is friends and conversation, …so here I am :slight_smile:

#2

you sure can work on individual poses at your leisure if you like, long holding of poses of course gets into “yin” yoga.

are you new to exercise? is that why you can’t catch your breath? do you do cardiovascular exercise often?

I assume you mean having to occasionally breath thru your nose when doing sun salutes or a “vinyasa” type series?

is there a medical issue like deviated septum?

#3

Before I found yoga it was weights and cardio at my gym. I am fairly fit and healthy. It’s just breathing through my nose is new to me. I’m not sure if I have a flaw but it is harder for me. I want to open my mouth and breathe even in simple seated meditation. I can do it for awhile but then it’s like I need to breathe through my mouth a little, then I can go back. I guess I have always breathed through my mouth. Maybe it’s just new to me? I thought maybe everyone goes through it. I don’t seem to be congested but I thought of even trying a sinus medicine.

#4

well, you should only breathe thru your nose during asana, are you sure it isn’t more mental when meditating? out of habit?

if you [I]need[/I] to breathe thru your mouth during even meditation it would sound like something medical to me. but due to your history it doesn’t sound like that’s the case IMO.

otherwise I’d just concentrate on the bandhas and breathing slow and steady, without the breath we’re just doing gymnastics. Breathing is yoga.

if your breath isn’t slow and rhythmic but fast and pacey you’re just telling your nervous system to not relax and that will inhibit stretching and being able to get deeper into the pose.

just work on it, be mindful, present and in the moment, for me this helps it be a moving meditation.

#5

Hello Hobo,

Without some idea as to the nature of your practice it is difficult to give pointed feedback. For a person who is having such an issue in a power vinyasa practice there is one answer. For a person doing a Viniyoga practice there may be another. In other words I’m looking for data relative to your oxygen needs in the practice you’ve chosen. Fast, slow, hot, normal?

That having been said, it would also be relevant to know if you have similar issues when you are not practicing. Are you primarily a mouth breather in your daily living? Also what part of this is due to congestion and what part of it is habitual?

Finally, if congestion is at all an issue (and obviously this would have to be the case practicing AND not practicing) then some information from you about the amount of dairy you are consuming in your diet and, perhaps, a hint about your local climate.

If you are having inhalation restriction (even while seated in meditation) AND you do not have mucous in the airways or a deviated septum, then I would be curious about the nature of backbends in your practice. Which ones are you doing and to what depth with what feelings and results.

Without any of the aforementioned information you’ve put me in a round room and told me there’s a penny in the corner.

#6

Thank you for taking the time to reply.

I am new to yoga, so I am doing simple things. I have registered with yogaglo and I am doing beginner and level 1 exercises. I especially like the meditation exercises.

I am primarily a mouth breather in daily life. I’d say 99%. I had allergies to grass and dust as a child and maybe that is why. I do work in a dusty environment and have for many years. Otherwise I live in the clean mountain air of WV. We have a 4 season weather pattern here.

I do eat dairy products. I put considerable thought into my diet as far as my weight is concerned. I try to eat whole foods and avoid CATS. Coffee is the hardest of these for me to avoid. I have tried to wrestle it to the ground the last couple weeks. The others I can do without.

I am new so I am not doing any back bends unless you would count baby cobra.

I don’t seem to have mucous. I do seem to have a much harder time breathing through my nose. On a restriction basis I’d say if feels 50% harder.

I understand the importance of breathing in yoga so I am continuing to try. I am also going to my doctor on Monday and will ask if I am defective somehow. It really feels like congestion without mucous. Maybe it is because I work in a dusty environment. I have even considered trying mask lately to see if it helps.

#7

Hey Hobo, if your body is not used to breathing through the nose, just give it some time to adjust. I don’t see the harm of breathing through the mouth in between as long as you need it. In my experience as yogini and yoga teacher it is far more important to take care of the body than to follow instructions strictly. We are all individual in our physical, emotional, mental and spiritual needs. Techniques are presented to help us become aware of those needs so we can harmonize the different planes. So my suggestion would be to try out different postures and breathing exercises and sticking to the ones that really make you feel good. From there you can go on with more challanging techniques after some times. But keep listening to your body. It’s like a little child. When you take good care of it, it will trust you and follow you into much deeper practice.
You might also want to try neti, the nasal shower. Just in case your nose is not free of mucus. It is one of the best cleansing techniques, have never had a cold since I use it daily.
You can find more about me and my yoga classes in Rotterdam, Holland, on dyogaya.com.
Lots of joy with your practice!

#8

Thank you :slight_smile:

#9

@Hobo

Excellent reply. Very clear, Thank you.

Neti is a wonderful suggestion as long as you are being directed properly as to the concentration of salt to water and only using sea salt or tibetan salt (not table salt). Care has to be used in order to avoid infection in the nasal passages. ut generally speaking it’s a wonderful method for drawing sediment from the nasal membrane through the process of osmosis.

When done properly, backbends will open the musculature surrounding the respiratry system - the lungs. Over time this should help you breathe. However it will not, in all likelihood open up nasal pathways. Please do try to determine the obstruction there and if it remains a mystery consider the avoidance of dairy to determine its relevance (for you).

And as is pointed out elsewhere, if you are a habitual mouth breather and have been so for several decades, don’t expect an epiphany over night :slight_smile: It takes time to alter patterns deeply ingrained.