Part 8: Chest
21 Yoga Practices For Body Flexibility
Chest cavity, also called as thoracic cavity, is the second largest hollow space in the body. It is enclosed by the ribs, the vertebral column and the sternum or breast bone. It contains the heart, lungs, and vessels transporting the blood namely the arteries (heart to other parts of the body) and the veins (from different parts of the body to the heart). It also contains the esophagus, the channel through which food is passed from throat to the stomach.
The heart is positioned slightly to the left of the breast bone. One may feel palpitation in the heart due to fear, stress and anxiety, or due to consumption of excess caffeine, nicotine or alcohol. Beating of the heart is felt to be too hard or too fast during palpitations, making the person unable to do any activity.
Medical conditions like hypothyroidism, low blood sugar, low blood pressure and anemia can also be the reason for palpitation resulting in shortness of breath, and this will need the intervention of a doctor.
When one vital organ is in trouble, some other supportive system is usually available to fix the problem. This is the specialty of the bio-mechanism of the body. In our case, when the heart is beating too fast due to palpitation (resulting in restlessness), expanding the chest with an asana like Veerabadhrasana, will enable the lungs to receive more air.
This supplies more oxygen in the blood stream leading to relaxation and calmness. The contraction of muscles between the ribs during the inhalation pulls the rib cage both upward and outward, while the contraction of the diaphragm at the base of the chest cavity is pushed downward. This shift allows more space for the lungs to expand in the chest cavity.
A chest opening yoga exercise with breathing enables deep breathing and helps in calming the mind.
Here is a demonstration of modified Veerabadhrasana.
Body posture has a direct relationship with our thought process and emotions. In this computer era, many IT professionals happen to sit in front of a computer monitor slouching forward without even realizing how long they are sitting like that. Their necessity to work in different time zones with cut off times in this way affects their circadian rhythm (the biological clock). Being in the same posture for a prolonged period may result in permanent convergence of shoulders in these people.
Lack of proper exercise has the risk of predisposition to shortness of breath. This in turn may have an influence in their confidence level when they expose themselves to various new possibilities in the work front or personal / social life. By doing a proper yoga pose with relevant breathing exercises, this condition could be reversed to build more confidence in oneself.
This practice was developed in accordance with Yoga Therapy, a branch of yoga that requires the ailing person to perform a set of asanas to cure prevailing health issues. Read more about Yoga Therapy here.
Read the previous title in this article series. Part 7: Abdomen
Read the next title in this article series. Part 9: Neck
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