Dr Belisa Vranich, is a leading expert in mental health and fitness, and the author of Breathe: The Simple, Revolutionary 14-Day Program to Improve your Mental and Physical Health.  She is a regular guest on Good Morning America, The Today Show, CNN, and Fox News. Being a former pro athlete, Crossfitter, and a yoga guy who has been meditating for years, I thought I knew how to breathe. After reading her Belisa’s book, and interviewing her, I realized that I still had a lot to learn.  Listen in as we talk about proper breathing, it’s health benefits, how it can improve your athletic performance, health, stress and more.

Show notes at https://calmthebeast.com/20

In this episode we talk about:

How breathing affects your nervous system and how proper breathing can lower your cortisol levels and remove anxiety.

Strengthening your breathing muscles impacts your endurance, but more importantly it improves your recovery time and can extend your career as an athlete.

We have over 10lbs of breathing muscles and most people don’t warm up those muscles before a workout.

We learn the difference between vertical breathing and circumferential breathing and why vertical breathing isn’t the best for you.

How to unlearn bracing habits that most people have done all their lives.

Why women have more breathing dysfunctions than men and why the gap is narrowing.

The anatomy of a good breath and a technique you can do at home.

We learn a technique called “the recovery breath” that you can use to help get out of an anxious or stressful state.

Links from the show:

The Breathing Class - https://www.thebreathingclass.com/

How to breathe | Belisa Vranich | TEDxManhattanBeach - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sgb2cUqFiY

Breathe: The Simple, Revolutionary 14-Day Program to Improve Your Mental and Physical Health - https://www.amazon.com/dp/1250106427/

Breathing for Warriors: Master Your Breath to Unlock More Strength, Greater Endurance, Sharper Precision, Faster Recovery, and an Unshakable Inner Game (Pre-order) - https://www.amazon.com/dp/1250308224/

Bas Rutten’s O2 Trainer - https://o2trainer.com/products/o2-trainer-inspiratory-muscle-breathing-exerciser