INSPO Fitness Journal July 2017

Just
breathe
BY JOHN APPEL
This month I’ve decided to take
some advice from yoga-trained
physiotherapist Therese Hogan on
how to breathe.
I
often teach this breathing technique to my
clients when they are stuck in a pain cycle
(detailed instructions are at the end of this
article).
Although modern life provides many
exciting opportunities, with access to the
world at your fingertips like never before,
it also drains you of the energy and vitality
you need to enjoy the things you love. I’m
sure you’re not alone in feeling that you
can’t even catch your breath in life (let along
knowing how to actually breathe fully).
Among the million things to do in a day,
it seems impossible to find the time or energy
to look after yourself … and so the cycle
goes on as you get increasingly run down and
exhausted and increasingly unhappy. You are
not alone.
“I’m sure you are not alone in feeling that
you can’t even catch your breath in life…”
Chronic stress is one of the leading
causes of illness in modern society. Most of
us know of the link between stress and major
health problems like high blood pressure,
heart disease, diabetes and autoimmune
diseases. But did you know that modern
research finds that long-term stress also
leads to poor digestion, insomnia, reproductive
problems, lower libido, skin problems,
delayed healing, poor memory and weight
problems?
While it’s normal to experience stress in
life, the real problem is the constant worrying
over things like money, relationships,
work, the economy and the latest news. The
non-stop release of stress hormones like
adrenalin and cortisol has the cumulative
effect of damaging the body and interrupting
peace of mind.
You probably know the feelings - the tight
shoulders as the deadline looms, the butterflies
before you have to meet that person,
forgetting that vital task while you’re doing
ten things at once, the chocolate cravings
that hit after that big job’s done.
And then of course the next deadline
comes in, the next job on the list, the next
uncomfortable encounter...it just doesn’t
stop. Chances are that you already know that
things have got to change.
You might have even had a time in the
past when you managed to stay balanced
in the face of stress. But those things have
fallen by the wayside or worse still the things
“While it’s normal to
experience stress in
life, the real problem
is the constant
worrying over
things like money,
relationships, work,
the economy and the
latest news.”
that used to help have become more of a
problem.
“It’s time to change!”
As a manual therapist I know that we
can only get so far in working with the body
alone to reverse the damage. Similarly, we
have seen that looking at the emotional side
alone is also not solely the answer.
We know for there to be permanent and
effective change, that we need to get the
20 INSPO – FITNESS JOURNAL JULY 2017