Foundation Breath

MOVEMENT WITH KEV | FOUNDATION 01 THE FOUNDATION BREATH Restore pressure. Reclaim position. Create room to move. 3-5 BREATHS slow, quiet, controlled MISSION: Do not try to 'calm down.' Execute the positions and let the system respond. Breathing is pressure management - not a performance, a contest, or meditation theater. 1 ESTABLISH POSITION Place your hands around the lower ribs. Keep the jaw, neck and shoulders quiet. Maintain your height while allowing the abdomen to soften enough for the diaphragm to descend. 2 CONTROLLED EXHALE Exhale slowly through the mouth - like quietly fogging glass. Feel the lower ribs come down and inward and the abdominal wall engage. Do not crunch, strain or collapse. 3 HOLD THE POSITION Pause for 2-5 comfortable seconds. Rest the tongue gently on the roof of the mouth. Keep the throat and face quiet. Stop the pause before you need to gasp. 4 SILENT NASAL INHALE Inhale quietly through the nose. Direct expansion into the sides and back of the lower rib cage. Keep the front ribs from flaring and the shoulders from lifting. QUALITY CHECK YOU SHOULD FEEL Lower ribs moving down on the exhale Expansion through the side and back ribs A quiet neck, jaw and shoulders Enough effort to focus - never panic AVOID Chest or shoulders lifting first Front ribs flaring on the inhale Forcing out every last bit of air Straining, gasping, dizziness or pain WHY THIS MATTERS A better exhale helps organize the ribs over the pelvis. A quiet nasal inhale can then expand areas of the rib cage that are compressed. This gives the trunk, shoulder blades, spine and hips a better platform for relative motion. Use before training, after work, or when the neck and shoulders are doing the breathing. Coach: Kevin Velarde | Call or text: (424) 210-7369 Stop for dizziness, faintness, pain or unusual shortness of breath. Educational use only; not a substitute for medical care.