Energy Management Tip for Balanced Living

Whole Body Breathing

Here is an easy exercise to practice during those times of stress to calm and relax your nervous system and your mind:

1. Close your eyes and begin to bring your awareness to your breath.

2. Move out of your thinking mind and just feel the breath flowing in with each inhale and flowing out with each exhale.

3. Now, with the next inhalation, fill your lungs to full capacity feeling your chest fill with air, and then, on the exhalation, exhale the air all the way down to your toes.

4. Visualize that the air is traveling all the way down your body, down your legs and then releasing out of your toes, especially your big toes, and into the earth.

5. Feel your shoulders relax and on the next exhalation, visualize the air traveling down your arms and releasing out of your hands and into the earth.

5. If there is any tension in your body, visualize the tension softening and releasing with the exhalation of air, breathing out of the body and into the earth.

6. Do this breathing exercise 10x through the body out of your hands and your toes until the body feels more calm and the mind feels more relaxed.