The Diaphragm Connection: How Massage and Yoga Enhance Breath and Relaxation
Breathing. It is an involuntary function until you think about doing it. So, let’s think about it! Most of us know that the lungs are the organ that takes oxygen into our body and then releases carbon dioxide. There are many other parts to this process though, one of the most important being the biggest muscle behind it all – the diaphragm.
The diaphragm is the largest muscle of respiration. It’s a large, dome-shaped muscle located below the lungs and under the lower ribs. Like any other muscle, it can get tight, which can restrict the movement of the lungs and body flexion (think forward fold or even sitting). A tight diaphragm can create difficulty in breathing and sadly, poor breathing leads to a number of health issues including high blood pressure, poor sleep, sinus congestion and anxiety (to name a few).
Thankfully, there’s help for better breathing! Manipulating the tissue through massage and practicing breathwork through yoga are very effective ways to loosen up the diaphragm, promoting deeper, fuller breaths.
The Science of Breathing
Breathing, also called ventilation, consists of two phases: inspiration (inhaling) and expiration (exhaling). When inhaling, the diaphragm and the external intercostal muscles (surrounding the rib cage) contract, moving down and out to create space for the lungs to fill with breath. Upon exhaling, the muscles expand and push air out of the lungs.
The exchange of gasses within the lungs, converting oxygen into carbon dioxide and controlling blood flow through the lungs, is called respiration. Blood passes by the lungs, picking up oxygen particles, and then delivering them to the rest of the body. Once our body has used that oxygen, it gets converted into carbon dioxide, a waste product, which travels in the blood back to the lungs, to then be exhaled out of our body.
We do this process 12 to 20 times per minute! That’s a lot of movement for the body happening at the midline and across the chest – movement that we rarely consider when thinking of our aches and pains. Yet the way we breathe can have dramatic impacts on the tension in our chest, abdomen, neck, shoulders, and even the back. It even affects our posture and hydration of the body.
Time to find some relief! Let’s explore the experience of a massage and yoga to support these muscles and respiration.
Manipulating The Diaphragm Through Massage
During therapeutic massage, the therapist will determine the overall tone (tight, soft, guarded or open) of the diaphragm and muscles of the abdomen that also influence proper movement of breathing, through gentle touch. The diaphragm can be accessed from the upper abdomen (over or under the sheets according to your preference). While you take deep breaths, the therapist can gently work into the diaphragm with a variety of techniques (compression, lifting, gliding), increasing blood flow and loosening the muscle. The massage should always be at your comfort level, though it can feel a bit “odd” as this area adjusts to being opened and released.
Manipulating The Diaphragm Through Yoga
A common breathing exercise in yoga is diaphragmatic breathing, also called belly breathing. Instead of shallow breathing into the chest, diaphragmatic breathing emphasizes expanding the abdomen, or belly, as you inhale, allowing the diaphragm to contract and draw air into the lungs.
It’s useful to note that shallow breathing creates a state of tension in the upper neck and shoulders and signals to the nervous system to be in fight or flight (or to stay there if already triggered). Diaphragmatic breathing signals the nervous system to calm and rest, bringing you out of fight and flight and lowering cortisol.
You can breathe from the diaphragm at any time (and I encourage you to!) even without yoga. But practicing yoga poses while belly breathing allows for more movement, opening and flexibility of this key muscle group, making deep breathing much easier.
Poses such as the Bridge Pose (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana) and gentle spinal twists that open up the stomach and chest are very effective at pushing the diaphragm to deepen breathing.
Massage and Yoga each do amazing wonders for the body. But together, you learn a greater harmony of the breath and body!
Book your massage session and yoga class with Boundless Body & Wellness in Arvada, CO to understand these benefits first-hand.
