The tension we feel in our bodies often comes from weak & dysfunctional breath patterning. When our breath is powerful & balanced, it creates a sense of ease throughout our physical & emotional body. When we are not breathing well, our spine is collapsed, & the diaphragm is weakened, so we begin to rely on the neck & back muscles to hold up our structure & help us breathe.

Weak breathing habits lead to poor posture, which cause tightness & tension as muscles assume the burden of functions they are not designed to perform. It is no longer just the elderly who show signs of poor posture, as habitual slouching & poor alignment increasingly affect young people as well.

Observing muscle balance & posture may lead us to conclude that a slouched person might be holding feelings of depression. Are they depressed from slouching? or are they slouching from depression? If we focus on changing patterns through core breathing, our body will naturally feel light, & our mental energy will be free to express itself. We can become enslaved in a stress cycle simply from poor breathing & the resultant bad posture & negative feelings that this cycle can create. This is an example of carrying "issues in our tissues." When we are aligned & breathing well, it is actually difficult to frown. Conversely, it becomes difficult to smile when one is slouching. Poor breathing leads to poor alignment, which leads to depression, which leads to poor alignment, which leads to poor breathing, & so on. It's easy to become stuck in this stress cycle when our modern lifestyles demand that we spend so many of our waking hours in a chair. Utilising YogAlign core breathing to align our spine & balance our muscular-fascial web, we can positively impact our reservoir of mental & physical energy and the quality of our thoughts.

Your breath defines your movements, your posture, your mood, and eventually, determines your life span. Learn to breathe with purpose & passion, in order to re-create who you are - a vital, passionate & loving being!

Much Love to Michaelle Edwards creator of YogAlign