BREATHING
Breathing is not something that you ‘do’, more something that happens to you when you don’t get in the way.
Breathing is a ‘reflex activity’
You breathe as much as you need for the activity automatically – that is called ‘aerobic breathing’
The diaphragm is the strong muscle that separates the lungs from the abdomen
The diaphragm works automatically
You cannot actually feel the diaphragm; you can feel some of the effects of the moving diaphragm and some of what can get in the way of a freely moving diaphragm
The diaphragm domes up when it relaxes, as carbon dioxide moves out of the lungs
The diaphragm works to flatten itself down, pushing the ribs out and up so air comes into the lungs – the muscles between the ribs (intercostal) help with this movement
The diaphragm also massages the abdominal viscera, keeping them all working well
After you breathe in it is healthy to breathe out – i.e., don’t hold your breath in
If you sing or play a wind/brass instrument you have to subtly control the speed of the outbreath
If you are not singing or playing your wind instrument - after you breathe out you only need to breathe in when the ratio of carbon dioxide to oxygen reaches a certain critical level, so if there is a pause in the cycle – that’s the moment for it to happen, not after you breathe in
Your brain sends a message to the breathing mechanism to take a breath and it happens
The first part of you to move on an in-breath is your diaphragm next is ideally your abdomen, i.e. below the diaphragm
The lower ribs, starting with the floating ribs are next
The abdomen moves because your internal viscera is displaced by the movement of the diaphragm
Some internal organs are attached to the underside of the diaphragm, so gravity helps the downward movement when you are standing or sitting
If your primary control is not in good shape your breathing will suffer
If you arch your back, you cannot breathe freely
If your emotional state changes, your breathing changes
If you are feeling anxious you are almost certainly tightening your abdominal wall
It is easier to release the abdominal wall in semi-supine, gravity helps
It is difficult to breathe freely if your eyes are over-focussed or darting about from point to point
You can stop/restrict reflex breathing in three places, the abdominal wall, the valve at the back of the mouth and nose and the intercostals muscles (between the ribs)
The inbreath is most rapid when it makes the smallest noise, this happens when you release the vocal folds as if you were going to say ‘aaah’
There is more lung tissue at the back of the rib cage than the front
The diaphragm is higher at the front, lower at the back
In an ideal world, you breathe in through the nose, the air is warmed, filtered and moistened
If you breathe through the nose you get fewer throat infections
When you breathe deeply, you expand into the space behind, to the sides and in front of your thorax
When you breathe out your body lengthens easily
When you breathe in your body widens easily
You can encourage lengthening and widening by thinking ‘directions’
The ribs are strong but moveable; they can move a lot when necessary
If you raise your chest when you breathe in, you are restricting the freedom in your breathing mechanism. The front of your chest is raised by the twisting of the cartilaginous joints where the ribs meet the sternum. The sternum has a joint at the level of the 2nd rib; the lower section of the sternum tips up and down at that joint – it happens without your intention to do it
The ‘whispered ah’
· Raise the soft palette (think of something funny or awesome)
· Allow your eyes to sparkle
· Release the jaw to open your mouth
· You can start by holding your chin and guiding it delicately forward and down
· Then think of the jaw moving forward and down
· The tongue is free in the bottom of your mouth
· Aspirate a long ‘ah’ sound (the most open vowel sound), listen to the quality of your ‘ah’
· Close your mouth and wait for air to go in your nose.
Now you are ready for another whispered ah
· Try standing and sitting while aspirating an ah – listen to any change in the ah
· Notice your abdominal muscles and what you do with your eyes
· Experiment with moving from a whispered ah to speaking or singing
· Alexander was very keen on the ‘whispered ah’