Technical Yoga: Alternative Nostril Breathing

July 12, 6:20 PMTampa Yoga ExaminerDanielle Hope Hier

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Designed to help balance the left and right hemispheres of the brain (the logical and creative sides), promote relaxation, help with insomnia, lower blood pressure, and gently strengthen the lungs and clear the sinuses, Alternative Nostril Breathing is one of the most important breathing exercises a person can add to their yoga practice.

Another astonishing development, is that after  recently working for two weeks with a man recovering from a stroke, his balance and focus improved, as well as his overall mobility on the previously restricted left side of his body, as if his brain were finding new pathways to compensate for the trauma. 

Below, you will find a link to a video of one of my younger yoga students, Anthony Nassy, demonstrating a version of the breath work.

Alternative Nostril Breathing:  Variation 1  

1)  Sit in a comfortable seated pose, and place the middle three fingers of your right hand on your forehead, palm facing inward, and fingertips pointing up towards the hairline.  You may hold this position, or move your fingers just away from your "third eye", so that you are not touching your face.

2)  Inhale, and close off the right nostril with your thumb, and exhale through the left nostril.  Inhale through the left nostril, then close it off by pressing on the side of your nose with your pinky finger, release the thumb from the right nostril, and exhale through the right. Inhale through the right nostril. 

3)  Keep alternating back and forth for up to 20 minutes.

Alternative Nostril Breathing:  Variation 2

Another option is to close off one nostril at a time, taking one or more breaths in and out through one side, before switching to the opposite.  Since the right side promotes energy, and left side relaxation, if you are practicing this option twice a day, consider breathing through the right side during your morning routine, and left side in the evening.

In this video:  Yoga student Anthony Nassy demonstrating Alternative Nostril Breathing.