Pilates Breathing Exercise

Joseph Pilates stated, “Even if you follow no other instructions, learn to breathe correctly.”

Basic Diaphragmatic Breathing Exercise:
The Set Up: You can do this exercise lying on your back with your knees bent or sitting up. Either way, do it with one hand resting lightly on your lower belly so you can feel your breath move your body.
Check points:
Your shoulders relaxed and dropped away from your ears.
Your spine is long, in what we call neutral spine, a natural position of the spine that allows the curves of the spine to be present.
If you are sitting, feel that your weight is falling directly down through your sit bones and your head is floating up toward the sky.
Your throat is open and relaxed.
The Inhale: Breathe in slowly through your nose. Let the air flow into your upper chest and down your spine — expanding the sides and lower ribs, filling the diaphragm, back and lower back, and dropping all the way down into the pelvis. Allow the deep inhale to push your belly out a little bit.

The Exhale: Let go of your breath in the reverse order that you brought it in. Drop your lower abs, then your belly. Let your ribs pull in, and last, let your chest to drop as you fully expel all the air.

Repeat: Do this diaphragmatic breathing exercise a few times until you get the sense of how each part flows into the next.