Breathing and Meditation Exercises for Seniors

Breathing in & breathing out, is one of the principal things advised when somebody is worried, terrified, or restless. The justification is that breathing loosens up the psyche by providing a constant flow of oxygen, and improves blood flow to the brain, helping you calm down and think rationally. It also helps increase focus, attention and instinct. Breathing exercises are the doorway to reflection and drive you towards a better way of life that involves self-reflection and consequent self-actualisation. 

Breathing exercises are truly simple to learn and help enhance your daily breathing. Studies have shown that your breathing pattern changes your entire personality development and other interconnected physical processes, while also helping mitigate pressure. 

Here is a curation of breathing exercises for seniors that you can easily add to your routine and help improve the quality of life for yourself and those around you.  

Pranayama  

Pranayama is the act of breathing instructed and rehearsed by yogis per set guidelines. It’s an activity made to enhance physical and mental prosperity. Pranayama is derived from the Sanskrit words “Prana” and “Yama” meaning the energy of life and control individually.  

Pranayama follows breathing that aids in stimulating different regions of the body like the brain, lungs, and blood capillaries. The procedure involves breathing in, pausing, and breathing out in brief periods all at once. Here are a few breathing activities to help your lung activity and prosperity, as well as your mental health. These can be practised anywhere at any time. 

Simple Breathing Exercises for Seniors  

 1. Nadi Shodhana 

A yogic breathing strategy that involves breathing in (inhaling) and breathing out (exhaling) through your noses. This activity helps calm you down whenever you feel restless or fomented. 

To rehearse Nadi Shodhana, you want to breathe in profoundly through your left nostril while holding your right nostril shut with your right thumb, pause your breathing for a couple of moments, and breathe out profoundly through your right nostril while holding your left nostril. Keep this activity up for 3 to 5 minutes, switching back and forth between both nostrils while keeping a quiet psyche and shut eyes. 

 2. Ujjayi 

Ujjayi translates to the breath of victory. This pranayama method aids in settling your mind to a soothed state and is normally utilised when an individual is furious or baffled. 

This pranayama brings focus to the throat muscles using diaphragmatic breathing. While exhaling, bring awareness to the back of your throat (like you are fogging up eyeglasses) and also apply the same throat muscle contraction while inhaling and make a hissing sound (like the way Darth Vader from Star Wars sounds). 

3. Shiitali Kumbhaka 

This pranayama method is performed by collapsing your tongue in a U-shape while breathing in. You should initially keep your mouth shut, then, at that point, start pausing your breathing till you build up to eight, and afterwards let the air out through your nose. This procedure is best accomplished for 8 breaths in 8-minute time frames. This activity particularly assists individuals with breathing issues. 

 4. Siitkari Kumbhaka 

This pranayama practice is a lot like the Shiitali referenced above, assisting you to deal with similar ailments. You take a full breath in through the nose while holding it in for around 8-10 seconds and afterwards continue to exhale out through the mouth as your tongue is lying on your teeth on your tongue and produce a murmuring sound with the assistance of your tongue. 

You want to remember to enjoy some time off, a minimum of an hour, between the acts of Shiitali and Siitkari pranayam. It is very effective to practice each of these methods consecutively.

5.Brahmari 

The Brahmari pranayama strategy follows a similar essential guideline of the Ujjayi method cited above. This pranayama recommends making a murmur-like sound while breathing out. The murmuring sound aims for vibrations in your mouth that associate with your mind. This strategy is best when you cover your ears while you’re murmuring. It helps work on your psychological wellness while assisting you to acquire passionate mindfulness. 

However, you should never do this while lying on your back, make sure to be upright while sitting. 

6. Bhastrika 

The Bhastrika pranayama is also called “the yogic breath of fire”. This pranayama imparts a lot of energy to the body as it involves rapid inhalations and exhalations, pumping more oxygen into the body.  

To begin with, sit in Sukhasana, raise your hands, open fists while inhaling deeply. During exhalation, make it slightly more forceful and bring down arms next to shoulders with fists closed. Continue inhaling and exhaling like this 20 times and then relax, keeping palms on your thighs. 

 7. Surya Bhedana 

This pranayama follows a similar essential rule to the Nadi Shodhana referenced above, to rehearse this activity, breathe in through the right nostril and breathe out through the left. You should breathe in six to ten breaths all at once in a given period. 

This breathing activity assists with issues like stomach sharpness, hypertension, and epilepsy; it also helps your heart well-being a great deal.  

 8. Chandra Bhedana 

Chandra Bhedana is also commonly called a single-nostril breath. It assists individuals with despondency and other emotional well-being issues. 

You essentially take a breath in through your left nostril and breathe out through the right one multiple times for a minimum of 11 cycles. 

Hopefully, the aforementioned strategies act as catalysts for your improved physiological and mental health. To support seniors achieve a healthy lifestyle, Emoha offers a host of services on its mobile app. Learn yoga, meditation and other exercises from leading experts, and practice these healthy activities with a community of 7000+ seniors. Learn & grow together with the Emoha App. Download Now! 

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