This post is by studio owner + director Leena Miller Cressman.
When I started studying yoga in the early 2000s, I constantly heard—and mimicked—the cue: “Take a deep breath.” I assumed “deep” meant “big.” I thought that when it came to breathing, more was always better. Expand the lungs, pull in as much air as possible—I thought I was “nourishing” my system with every giant inhale.
Now, I think differently.
My understanding changed thanks to some great teachers like Jennifer Snowdon and James Nestor’s brilliant book, Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art. I’ve come to appreciate that the breath is a responsive part of our internal ecosystem, meant to shift in harmony with our physical environment.
The “Flash Flood” Metaphor
Think of your breath like rainfall for the ecosystem of your body. When you are running or working hard, your body needs a heavy downpour to keep everything balanced. But when you are moving through a gentle yoga flow, forcing those massive, high-volume breaths is like sending a flash flood into a quiet garden.
Instead of nourishing the soil, that “flood” of air causes erosion. In biological terms, taking in a high volume of air when your body doesn’t metabolically need it is hyperventilation.
I often see students taking “sprinting-level” breaths from the very first Cat/Cow. Instead of calming their “internal climate,” this over-breathing can:
-Flush out too much CO2, making it harder for oxygen to actually reach the tissues.
-Signal the nervous system that there is an emergency (fight-or-flight).
-May create a sense of internal “storminess” and anxiety.
-It’s ironic: I see people trying for the fullest breath possible, intending to de-stress, but they are accidentally creating a climate of stress within their own bodies.
Redefining “Depth”
I still value “deep” breaths, but I’ve redefined what that means. To me, depth isn’t about the volume of the flood; it’s about how deep the roots go. Now in my yoga practice I look for a breath that is slow, soft, and nasal—one that sinks deep into the lower lobes of the lungs without disturbing the peace of the rest of the system.
Let me talk about the nasal part a little more. All my learning has made me fall in love with the wonders of the schnoz!
I’ll leave you with a 4 fun facts on why breathing through your nose is so important and incredible:
-Your nose has beautiful little hairs, crevices and tunnels that help to filter, warm and humidify the air for your delicate lung tissue.
-When you breathe through your nose, your sinuses produce Nitric Oxide. This gas is a vasodilator, meaning it helps relax and widen your blood vessels to improve oxygen circulation. Nitric Oxide is also the first line of defense against viruses and bacteria. Win-win!
-Nose breathing naturally slows down your breath, and helps you not exhale too much too quickly, helping your body to naturally maintain the best balance of CO2 in your body.
-Nasal breathing naturally encourages the diaphragm to drop lower, which massages the internal organs and stimulates the vagus nerve for a natural relaxation response.
Hope to see you in class, you’ll hear me cuing breath in these different ways. I love chatting all things nose breathing so come talk to me after class if you’re breath-curious! -Leena
The Branches 