Yoga offers a wide range of health benefits to many organs and systems of the body, including the lungs. People with conditions such as COPD, asthma and other lung disorders often find yoga helps improve lung function. Yoga opens the passages within the lungs and helps to release stale air and toxins from the lungs and replace it with fresh air.
There are several asanas that work to open the lungs and improve respiratory function. Some of the chest opening poses include the Warrior poses, cat and cow, fish pose, camel pose and lunges. You should incorporate a variety of chest openers in your yoga practice to improve breathing.
When performing the asanas, remember not to push yourself. Depending on your overall health and how you are feeling on any particular day, your energy level may be low and pushing can aggravate your breathing. Modify the poses as needed, if you find you get out of breath or having trouble sustaining a certain asana. Progress comes over time and with practice.
The breathing aspect of yoga offers significant benefits for the lungs. Performing breathing exercises in the supine and seated positions helps to improve lung function. Breathing in and out through the nostrils and alternating to breathing in through the nostrils and out quickly through the mouth helps to expel old air from the lungs and improve respiratory function.
Although breathing deeply offers a variety of physical and emotional benefits, most people have shallow breathing. This tends to be particularly true for people with conditions involving the lungs. Unfortunately, shallow breathing only makes problems like asthma and COPD worse.
When you are doing the breathing exercises, lie on your mat and put your hands on your upper chest. Breathe into the chest so that the hands rise and fall with the breath. To breathe deeper, move the hands farther down the chest and breathe to fill your hands with breath. Move your hands to your stomach and focus on breathing deeply to expand the stomach.