Description

My hope is that [this book] will contribute to a more enlightened practice of breathing. I also hope that you, the reader, will have a better understanding of how breathing changes spontaneously from moment to moment. My other wish is that you will discover how to consciously choose a specific breathing technique for certain purposes or circumstances. — Author s Preface Everyone breathes, yet few of us understand how to consciously control breathing to improve our well-being and the quality of many daily activities. Anatomy of Breathing is a clear and helpful guide to both the theory and practice of breathing in its many variations. Hundreds of expert drawings along with easy-to-understand text help you explore just how breathing works. Once you re acquainted with the principal organs, structures, and forces that affect breathing, you will learn how to control them to enhance the quality and variety of breathing in your own life. Along the way, you will also correct many common misconceptions about breathing. Anatomy of Breathing is filled with helpful practice pages. Here you will learn simple exercises to prepare your body for the benefits of different types of breathing. You will then be shown, step by step, how to practice some of the most common and useful breathing techniques on your own. Anatomy of Breathing is a unique and wonderful resource for anyone who wishes to understand the science and art of breathing, and how to make their own breathing better and more life-enhancing.

About the Author
Blandine Calais-Germain lifelong involvement with dance, both as performer and teacher, eventually led to an interest in other physical disciplines, and then to more formal study of the complex and integrated movements of the body. From 1977 to 1980 the author studied physiotherapy at the French School of Orthopedics and Massage in Paris. In physiotherapy, body movements are analyzed both in terms of their neurophysiological and mechanical aspects, which allows for a better understanding of the actual mechanisms of movement. From her work with dance and physiotherapy, the author developed an innovative method for teaching the physical structures of anatomy in relation to movement. This method, the subject of her companion volumes Anatomy of Movement and Anatomy of Movement: Exercises, has been enthusiastically received in workshops that she presented for many years in France. Her two books have been translated and published throughout the world in many languages.