“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.”

—Lao Tzu

By Tara Stiles

If you want to live in harmony and be the best versions of yourself that you can be—in your career, with your family, and with your friends—you need to address the body as a whole.

And that begins in the mind. 

Reconnecting our bodies with our minds starts with something that is already inside us: our breath. We breathe all day long without even thinking about it, but most of us aren’t activating the true potential of this inner resource.

Our breath lives within us, it moves through us, and it sustains us. It is at the root of who we are, beyond our own expectations or the expectations of others, and it connects us with our true potential.

Breathe Through Stress and Tension

When we are stressed, our breath is the first thing to be affected. When external tension enters our bodies, our breath becomes short and shallow. We literally hold our breath when we are tense, shocked, or afraid. We have all heard that breathing properly is good for us, but we turn our backs on the power of breath, instead functioning on autopilot and struggling our way through. Tension has become our habit.

This lyric from Ben Harper’s song “Better Way” is a mantra of mine, and I use it a lot when I’m practicing or teaching yoga. You can’t access the full potential of your breath if you are tense and rigid. But it is possible to train yourself to be relaxed and movable even during times of stress. The exercise below will help you focus your attention on your breath, allowing it to flow freely through your lungs and throughout your entire body.

This practice could become part of your routine. Try it first thing in the morning, while you are still in bed and before you do anything else. Try it throughout your day as well, while doing simple tasks like taking a shower, loading the dishwasher, or commuting (unless you are the driver!). The idea is to integrate this technique into your routine during moments of calm, so that it becomes second nature. 

Then, at tense moments, when you feel stress creeping in, you can also access the technique and use it to keep your breath flowing freely, which will help you to deal with the difficult situation. The goal is to train yourself to be movable—and to breathe—in all situations, to bridge the gap between moments when you feel relaxed and moments when you feel stressed. The stress will not disappear, but by accessing your breath, you can train yourself to react to it more mindfully.

Breathe With Tai chi

Tai chi is a type of low-impact, slow-motion exercise based on Chinese martial arts and often described as “meditation in motion.” It’s a practice that involves a series of graceful movements performed in a slow, focused manner and accompanied by deep breathing. This way of moving focuses on the mind-body connection, and it’s beneficial for reducing stress and anxiety, promoting flexibility, and even diving into your creativity.

Practice this simple tai chi exercise to tap into the power of your breath and reduce tension in your body and mind. Once you’ve mastered this simple practice, you’ll be able to do it anytime, anywhere, whenever you feel yourself starting to get anxious or stressed.

Sit or stand comfortably. It is important to be comfortable for this exercise, otherwise tension creeps in so easily. Adjust yourself in any way you need to in order to be comfortable. Close your eyes.

Soften your body a bit. Relax your knees, your elbows, and your shoulders. Imagine that you are allowing your body to be moved, so that if someone nudged you gently, you would sway like a tree in the wind. Remain soft and movable. Let yourself exist here, just for a moment.

Take a single, deep inhale through your nose. Notice your body lift up and expand in reaction to your inhale. Release a long, easy exhale through your mouth. Notice your body relaxing downward. Repeat this big inhale and long exhale twice more. Notice your body moving slightly after you breathe, following it in response, not at the same time, but being pulled and supported by your breath.

Keep your eyes closed. How does your body feel? Softer? Do you feel tension anywhere? Take note. When you are ready, gently open your eyes.

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This article is from Clean Mind, Clean Body, from a chapter titled “Hit the Reset: Mental Detox,” and is printed here by permission of the publisher.

Tara Stiles is a wellness expert, bestselling author, and founder of Strala Yoga. Her newest book, Clean Mind, Clean Body: A 28 Day Plan for Physical, Mental and Spiritual Self-Care was released December 2020. Find out more at www.tarastiles.com