Oceanic Breathing ~ Ujjayi Pranayama

Oceanic breathing or ujjayi pranayama is a delicious breathing technique which helps to calm your mind, focus your attention and move you in to a meditative state. It has a variety of names, the most common are:

-          Ujjayi breath

-          Oceanic breath

-          Victorious breath

-          Whispering breath

The sound you make when practicing this breath is similar to that of the movement of waves– hence some of the names mentioned above.

Developing your breath is an important aspect of your yoga practice. Taking deep, full breaths ensures that your whole body is getting plenty of oxygen causing rejuvenation and regeneration of all of your cells and a sense of being completely alive!

You can practice ujjayi pranayama whenever you are feeling stressed, anxious or tired. It is a great way of being able to regulate your breathing and is also a powerful technique to use when you are performing exercise or practicing Hatha yoga.

So how do you do it?

-          Inhale and exhale through your nose.

-          Relax your face and shoulders.

-          Engage your vocal chords so that you make a whispering sound as you breathe.

-          Control your breath with your diaphragm, this will assist in ensuring a full, complete breath.

-          Organise your breath so the inhales and exhales are even, you can introduce a count – in and out for a count of 4.

-          You can continue for as long as you like.

-          Relax your breath and notice how you feel, become completely absorbed in the effects of your practice.

It may take a little practice to get used to it, but the effort is truly worth it. Once you notice how good this practice feels you will want to practice more and more! Our breath is the carrier of prana/life force/ energy, once you have harnessed the power of your breath you will feel supercharged, unstoppable and ready for anything that life throws at you!