Most of us have not been coached in the art of diaphragmatic breathing, but wow is it important! In many cases, a breakdown in form with many activities starts with the diaphragm.
We’ve talked about this before in a previous post, but here’s a little refresher. The core is a closed canister of moving parts. Those parts moving in a coordinated fashion ensures that the pressure in that canister isn’t mismanaged and causes an issue.
Among the things that need to happen for proper function, we need the diaphragm to move down with a big inhale and up with a big exhale. When we don’t allow the belly to expand and the diaphragm to lower during a big inhale and the diaphragm to rise as the belly retracts we increase the pressure in our canister. This creates the low back pain, the hernias, and the dreaded leaking with activity.
Incorporating this small act of diaphragmatic breathing in big complicated movements helps us to work efficiently, as our lungs have plenty of room to expand with the inhale. It also forms the foundation of stability we need to move well without passing gas or leaking urine. Truthfully, this is a first step to learning how to move well, no matter what the movement is1
You can practice diaphragmatic breathing laying on your back with one hand on your chest and one on your belly. Try to allow belly rise with very little chest movement.. Change the position to increase difficulty, and try incorporating this into some of your workouts. Exhale with the work ex., during a squat, inhale as you lower, and exhale as you stand.
Holler with questions!
Rachel Atufunwa PT, DPT