Breathe 14-Day Program

Breathe 14-Day Program

THE SIMPLE, EFFECTIVE BREATHING CLASS FOR MENTAL AND PHYSICAL WELLNESS.

Breathing awareness and improvement can increase endurance, deepen meditation, alleviate specific breathing disorders and digestive problems, lower blood pressure, help you lose weight, recover faster, and control stress.

This program demonstrates advanced breathing techniques in an easy-to-follow, structured series.

You’ll learn how to correct your breathing, strengthen your breathing muscles and learn a short recovery breath to use daily. This is an intensive, dynamic process where you will feel relief immediately.

This might be the easiest and most profound change you will ever make.

Breathe 14-Day Program
  • Day 01

    This is the very beginning. Today we introduce to you the foundation of The Breathing Class, I call this “The Sequence”. It consists of Rock and Roll, Diaphragm Extensions, Cat Cow, and final set of Rock and Roll. It is imperative that you watch the technique videos before attempting them in t...

  • Day 02

    Building on the work you’ve done in Day 1, we repeat The Sequence (the more you do this, the better!) and we add on some new exercises: Inhale-Exhale Maximizations and Exhale Pulsations. If you want extra work, after finishing Day 2, go back and do Day 1!

  • Day 03

    You may not know it, but if you’ve done Day 1 and Day 2, your breathing has gotten better. But, there’s still lots of work to do. You are now working on turning your ribcage into a thoracic cavity. What’s the difference? Well, a cage is a box with bars on it. It doesn’t flex and it doesn’t m...

  • Day 04

    Today we focus on pelvic floor contractions on our exhale. This is important for a complete exhale. Again, you can only inhale to the extent that you’ve made room on your inhale. The better your exhale, the more fresh oxygen you can take in on the subsequent inhale. All the exercises today wi...

  • Day 05

    We want to turn our “ribcage” into a “thoracic cavity”. Why? Well, a cage is a fixed, firm box with bars on it. It doesn’t flex. It doesn’t move. Unfortunately, most of us do have a ribcage with stiff intercostals between our ribs as well as stiff abdominal muscles and obliques. The exercis...

  • Day 06

    At this point, your horizontal breathing should be starting to feel more natural. Building on that, today we focus specifically on strengthening our exhale muscles. By now, you know how important strengthening these muscles is. The exercises today are a few familiar ones: Rock and Roll and Exh...

  • Day 07

    Today, we do not have any new exercises. They will all be familiar (Rock and Roll, Diaphragm Extensions, Cat Cow, and the Intercostal Stretch). However, we do have a new focus today—extending the exhale. I want you to really focus on breathing out as much breath as possible on each and every e...

  • Day 08

    Today, we work on my favorite stretches of all—the Spinal Twists. We will do these seated, reclined, and we will do these combined with Exhale Pulsations. These spinal twists are great for the flexibility of your thoracic cavity, your spine, your posture, and your hips. Further, they will expa...

  • Day 09

    Today we review, ramp up, and retake our BIQ. The Sequence will be very familiar to you by now. But what I want you to do today is really push yourself. That means sip in a bit more air on the inhale, maybe more than you think you can. It also means that you really squeeze your belly and ribs...

  • Day 10

    Today, we work through The Sequence and we also introduce both Patterned Breathing and Box Breath. Remember, in all of these exercises, concentrate on horizontal breathing…no shoulder movement.

  • Day 11

    I now want you to start working on a more advanced version of Exhale Pulsations called Drop It and Pick It Up. This advanced version really targets the exhale muscles: the core, the abdominals, the obliques, and even your back. We will also be doing Rock and Roll, Exhale Pulsations, Drop It and...

  • Day 13

    We are now going to learn “Mediation for People Who Can’t Meditate”. I know that meditation can be intimidating for some. But this is an active meditation and it’s actually easier than traditional meditation, so don’t be nervous. You’ve got this. During the “Two Part Breath”, focus on breathi...

  • Outro - What's Next?

  • Technique: Perfect Horizontal Breath

    This is how you should be breathing. This exercise retrains our brains to breathe correctly. This is very much like Rock and Roll from a standing position. The shoulders and neck do not move. This exercise is an excellent one to use throughout your day; doing 5, 10, or more repetitions freque...

  • Technique: Rock & Roll

    Pay close attention here as this technique is vitally important to improving your breathing. Rock and Roll is the basis for relearning how to breathe in an anatomically congruous way. We are training our diaphragm, breathing muscles, and our brain to breathe more efficiently. This exercise is ...

  • Technique: Cat Cow (aka Table Top)

    If you’ve ever done any yoga, you’ve likely performed the exercise. The key here is to really relax the belly on the inhale (Cow) and squeeze your belly and ribs on the exhale (Cat), pushing your shoulders away from the floor, and drawing your navel to your spine.

  • Technique: Inhale-Exhale Maximizations

    This exercise serves many functions. By maximizing the inhale (and sipping in a bit extra, past your perceived capacity), you are both strengthening and stretching your inhale muscles, facilitating stronger and fuller inhalations. By maximizing the exhale (and pushing out a bit extra, past your...

  • Technique: Exhale Pulsations

    This exercise is to strengthen your exhale muscles. On the exhale, forcefully blow the air out of your lungs by contracting your stomach muscles and pulling your navel to your spine. On the inhale, just relax your belly, allowing the inhale to happen naturally. Think of blowing out a candle fr...

  • Technique: Balloon Exercise

    This exercise strengthens your exhale muscles. Essentially, you are performing a Rock and Roll with emphasis on the exhale. Really try to blow forcefully into the balloon. Exhale only with your exhale muscles: the ones at the middle of your body. Remember that to breathe well, the exhale is j...

  • Technique: Cat Cow Chair

    This exercise is performed just like Cat Cow, except you are on your feet, not your knees and your hands are on a chair or something at a height between your knees and your hips. Now, I don’t know where this one appears in the workouts. I wonder if B’s intention is to use this in place of Cat C...

  • Technique: Intercostal Stretch with a Weight

    This exercise is very much like the Intercostal Stretch. This is just a more advanced version, using weight resistance to increase the load therefore strengthening and stretching the intercostals even more.

  • Technique: Intercostal Wall Stretch

    This exercise is merely a variation on the Intercostal Stretch. As opposed to the Intercostal Stretch, this exercise allows you to stretch the intercostal muscles without getting on the floor. Also, you can gauge your progress more easily since you can adjust and monitor your arm position as yo...

  • Technique: Intercostal Stretch

    The small muscles between your ribs are your intercostal muscles. These are important muscles for your breathing. You don’t want these muscles getting week or rigid. This exercise strengthens and stretches these muscles making breathing easier and more efficient. It is normal to feel your bre...

  • Technique: Spinal Twist Seated

    This is yet another variation on the Spinal Twist. The purchase on the chair and the fact that you can involve your arms to a greater degree will often mean that you can twist farther and deeper with this variation than the others. If you have a job that has you sitting for long periods during ...

  • Technique: Spinal Twist

    Spinal Twists, all of them, are my favorite exercise. These stretches provide a host of benefits to your spine, your hips, your posture, and your breathing capacity. Pay close attention to your spine. You should not be hunched over or arching back. You should strive to keep your spine as long...

  • Technique: Spinal Twist Reclined

    This exercise is a variation on the Spinal Twist. All of the exercises in the Spinal Twist series are very good for your internal organs and digestive system as well as loosening up your lower back.

  • Technique: Drop Pick It Up

    This exercise takes place in the tabletop position, just like Cat Cow. Unlike Cat Cow, in Drop Pick it Up, your spine is not extending and flexing. You keep your back in a straight line, focusing on the dropping of the belly and a using a full circumferential breathe on the inhale and contracti...

  • Technique: Downward Dog

    This is Rock and Roll performed in the Downward Dog position. Again, if you have any yoga experience, you’ve surely encountered this position. Doing Rock and Roll from this position challenges the breathing muscles to a greater degree than normal Rock and Roll. Don’t let your form waver. It i...

  • Technique: Extended Exhale

    This exercise works your exhale muscles, but does so differently than Exhale Pulsations for example. As you do this exercise, concentrate fully on making your exhale as complete and long as possible. You are aiming to increase the amount of time on the exhale.

  • Technique: Diaphragm Extensions

    This exercise strengthens the muscles used when you inhale. In the workout videos, our model is doing Diaphragm Extensions with no weight. In this technique video, he is using a stack of books for resistance. If you want more of a challenge or this is not your first time through the course, co...

  • BONUS: How To Measure Your Breathing IQ (BIQ)

    Dr. Belisa explains how to measure your Breathing IQ (BIQ). Use these measurements to track your progress as you work through the 14 days.