Breathwork Magic
Welcome to Breathwork Magic, a podcast dedicated to exploring the life-changing power of Breathwork. Discover how conscious breathing can unlock inner peace, resilience, and clarity as we dive into inspiring stories and practical insights. Whether you’re new to Breathwork or looking to deepen your practice, each episode offers wisdom to help you connect more fully with yourself and the world around you. Everything starts and ends with the breath.
Breathwork Magic
Slow Down to Speed Up: A Former Pro Athlete's Breathwork Journey
What happens when athletic discipline, emotional blocks, and deep breathwork collide?
In this soul-stirring episode of Breathwork Magic, host Amanda Russo sits down with Jure, a former professional table tennis player turned somatic Breathwork specialist and mental performance coach, for a deep and transformative conversation on healing, embodiment, and nervous system reprogramming through the breath.
Jure opens up about his evolution from competitive sports into the world of Breathwork, and how his journey led him to realize that breath alone isn’t enough, it must be integrated with emotional awareness, somatic intelligence, and the healing of subconscious trauma.
Amanda and Jure explore the nuances of nervous system regulation, what it truly means to slow down, and why real transformation comes from tuning into the breath and the body. From athletic performance to conscious parenting to spiritual growth, this episode is a full-spectrum reminder of what becomes possible when breath is used with intention.
🔹 Episode Highlights
[2:29] – Discovering the breath: yoga at 14, early athletic pressure, and waking up to the body
[4:22] – Nose breathing, diaphragm work, and the first glimpse of inner stillness
[6:34] – When breathwork alone isn't enough: trauma, fascia, and emotional awareness
[8:35] – Using breath to navigate chronic pain and high-performance sport
[11:18] – Teaching clients to breathe with their whole bodies and subconscious
[15:35] – Coaching evolution: from surface-level advice to deep transformational guidance
[19:31] – Moms as athletes: stress, resilience, and the feminine nervous system
[24:17] – Why safety is foundational for real breathwork breakthroughs
[29:13] – The epidemic of rushing and how slowing down rewires your life
[35:45] – Meditation vs. dynamic somatic breathwork: a new approach to embodiment
This episode is a must-listen for anyone on a journey of healing, high-performance recovery, or conscious self-discovery. It offers a grounded, honest look at Breathwork beyond the hype.
🔹 Connect with Amanda Russo, The Breathing Goddess:
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Welcome to Breathwork Magic, the podcast that explores the life-changing power of your breath. Breathwork isn't just a practice. It's a gateway to healing, transformation and shifting to a new mindset, by letting go of the past and embracing the possibilities of the present moment and embracing the possibilities of the present moment.
Speaker 1:I'm Amanda Russo, your host, a certified breathwork facilitator, level two Reiki practitioner and creator of the Mander's Mindset podcast. On my own journey, breathwork has been a powerful tool for releasing what no longer serves me and shifting my perspective to step into my fullest and greatest potential. Each week, I'm joined by inspiring guests, blood work facilitators, healers and wellness enthusiasts who share how this practice has helped them and their clients heal, grow and embrace lasting change. So take a deep breath in and out, settle in and let's explore the magic of your breath together. The transformation starts now.
Speaker 1:Welcome to Breathwork Magic, where we explore the life-changing power of your breath. I'm your host, amanda Russo, and I am here today with the RA and he was a professional table tennis player for 15 years. During his career, he did a lot of research on sports psychology and in the last 15 years, after earning a PhD in physical education, he has specialized as a mental coach for high performance, and we are going to delve down his journey and how he uses the power of our breath. Thank you so much for joining me.
Speaker 2:Thank you for connecting, Amanda. Looking forward to this conversation.
Speaker 1:So I'd love to know when you discovered the power of our breath.
Speaker 2:I think when I was born but maybe not consciously, and that's another subject as well that we can debate on how misaligned we are like a humanity in delivery and how many moms need to fight that their placenta is still connected with the baby until it's turned more blue, not as red, and that the baby can change. But this is where the bread begins actually. But it transforms, translates or transmutes from the placenta through our belly button and into our lungs and cutting it too soon already produces trauma, if I begin with that, but otherwise breathing, when I fell on a wasp, when I fell off a bike, when I was being pushed down in the swimming pool by friends or by some close relatives playing. Of course we tend to connect when we lose our breath in this or other way. Otherwise we live like it's an abundance and it's free and that we just breathe.
Speaker 2:But specifically, I was a table tennis professional already at a young age and with 14 years of age I went to a yoga class that was in the 90s 1996. I went to a yoga class that was in the 90s 1996. And I was in a group of many grandmas or elderly people in a way doing yoga in the 90s, which was a boom back then in Europe, and I was learning to breathe there through my nose which I did before but never paid attention, and with my diaphragm which I did but never paid attention, only goofing around look at my belly being big I did before, but never paid attention. And with my diaphragm which I did but never paid attention, only goofing around, look at my belly being big. So that's when I started to use the power of breathing. I won a championship under 15 because I used this power of maintaining focus. And this is where the story goes on then.
Speaker 1:You did a yoga class at 14 years old. I'm so curious what enticed you to go to the yoga class.
Speaker 2:The need to win, the need to control my emotions and my errors, error margin and, yeah, just maybe not lack of confidence. But I knew that something was missing that could match my confidence that I could finally bring it out. So I went and used many different approaches. I think it was advised by someone to try it out and I did. It was one week, one times per week, a session. Mainly I fell asleep there because in my school I was six hours, seven hours in school. I had a table tennis training, then I had homework or eating, then I had a yoga class and then I had another table tennis training. So those are my Saturdays filled, and on the weekends I had the tournaments. So I was basically a lot of times sleeping over the asanas. But I learned how to calm down, how to listen to my body, listen to my breath and guide it.
Speaker 1:That's amazing that you went to a yoga class so young. Did you go by yourself when you went to this class?
Speaker 2:Yes, it was just in between my table tennis facility and my home. I come from a small hometown so it was all pretty close, a couple of minutes away from my home with a bike.
Speaker 1:Nice. That's amazing, though, that you got involved at such a young age in mindfulness, in yoga. I think it would help a lot of people if they did at a younger age. And now, when did breathwork come into your world?
Speaker 2:did at a younger age. And now, when did breathwork come into your world Practically? I thought I knew everything about breathing because I was breathing through my nose you can see my jaw, it's not from mouth breathing and I knew how to use a diaphragm. But here comes the kicker I did start young to read books about confidence, already at the age of 12 or 13, because my mom had those kind of books and I was a professional athlete at a young age and I did the yoga.
Speaker 2:But practically a couple of years ago that I started with the EQ method and I was the first customer, client and attendee on online programs where I tapped into how dangerous it is to breathe through your nose, to use the diaphragm and not to be in touch with your body, your fascia, your muscles, your traumas, your nervous system, because you can learn how to breathe well and deep and profound and have a good breathwork method and approach.
Speaker 2:But if you're not doing the shadow, not de-traumatizing yourself, not necessarily with psychotherapy, but learning about yourself, it can only enhance, like it did in my case, because, as I said, I learned to breathe with diaphragm quite young and with nose I didn't use it as I use it now when I do any activity at my age of 43, because now I know more, now I understand more. Now I studied psychology, I studied the sport, I studied kinesiology. I studied that I'm a professional, I'm a professor of physical education, and I never understood all the chemistry that happens in the body, the biology, the physics, so that literally exploded a couple of years ago.
Speaker 1:Now, how has breathwork and tapping into your breath helped you with tennis?
Speaker 2:Table tennis and now tennis, because my wife was a tennis pro and is a tennis coach now. So I sort of play a bit here and there and I dabble also in the paddle tennis, but not much. I have a chronic injury on my right hip wear down, but because of the method, because of the breath work, because of this approach, I am able to be active without chronic pain. So what was your question?
Speaker 1:I'm just curious what helps you with table tennis.
Speaker 2:Yes, back then, when I knew what I knew, it helped me to calm down the nerves. Of course, focus, stay clear, you know, calming down the nervous system, that's like basic things, nothing special. And you know, table tennis is a very fast sport, very reactive, responsive, so you need to be there and not be rigid. But I must emphasize once again that certain things can be achieved with only just some portion of breath work. But we can go much more deeper and really deliberately and consciously expand our awareness if we do it correctly. And also it can go the other way, the south way as well, if you do not. What happened to me? Because I didn't attend or approach my deep shadows or my deep inner side, subconscious triggers or programs, but I did expand my breathing pattern and the more you breathe, the more you inhale, the more you prepare, the more you can exhale, the more you can execute, so the more energy you have. But my emotional immaturity or emotional ignorance stayed on low level. So I had emotional outbursts, even if I was breathing with my nose and diaphragm and calming down my system. When the triggers came together, when the conditions were right, I could not tap it down like I can and I do now. So what's changed? It down like I can and I do now.
Speaker 2:So what's changed? Understanding the depth and the connections, that we are not breathing only with our nose or mouth, here or there, with our lungs, we don't breathe only with our bronchus or aldeoles, we breathe with our body, we breathe with our jaw, we breathe with our neck, shoulders, armpits, arms, interrips, muscles, diaphragm, abdominal cavity is the main factor here Then our lower back muscles, upper back muscles, shoulder blades, practically everything. And if we do not include it's like having a Formula One car but without brakes's like having a formula one car but without brakes, or having a formula one car but without the steering wheel. Yes, you have it, but we're using it. Yes, but it's very limited version. It's pronounced excuse me if I'm mispronouncing it the oxygen advantage and so on. Combining this all in the aeQ breeding and with all my personal expertise and experience, all together brought like not just the revelation but deeper, using effective, being effective in breeding.
Speaker 1:Yeah. Do you use breathwork with your clients? Of course yes. What?
Speaker 2:has it helped them with the most? It goes hand in hand or it's connected with how I went into myself. So I did have previously as I studied and before I was on university and I was a professional athlete and I did a lot of things. I had all the knowledge and then I became a coach. I did the landmark education if someone's familiar with that. I did some energy treatment treatments, education, a traditional Chinese medicine, the basic versions, sub basic literally, and I've had all of this.
Speaker 2:But because I knew this only on my conscious level, on my 5% awareness level, my subconsciousness was not included as much and my inner child was still my inner child, it didn't grow up. So my subconsciousness was still triggered, was still guiding me, my subconsciousness was still blocking me to use certain knowledge and experience and wisdom with my clients, even though I had it. And it always turned out like I know this, but I'm playing small or I'm people pleasing, or maybe I'm just playing good with them. I don't want to go too deep. Of course, if you don't go with yourself too deep, you cannot guide anyone else deeper in any sense, because if you go deep with breathing, you go deep with emotions, with traumas. So back then I knew stuff, I talked about it, I explained it a lot of times, like what do the first responders, whether they are medics or firefighters, do when they arrive at a scene of crime or accident or something? They don't say be calm, relax. They come with the aura of peace, with their nervous system prepared for the shit excuse me for the language that they are seeing and they bring that energy and then they just calm it down because a stressful person, confused, agitated, traumatized person cannot listen. So first I need to be calm and then I can talk about deep stuff.
Speaker 2:And when I did, and when I do, work on myself, also breathing wise. And what is the consequence of this? Because things come up, then I can use it and tap into it. And I use the metaphor that I was a coach for 10 years and more, like officially coach, life coach or whatever life hacker, antivirus, deprogramming, reprogramming, whatever the name and I always felt something's missing.
Speaker 2:And back four years ago when I found the missing part, then it's when it hit me that before we were playing like table tennis or tennis in a metaphor, without the ball, only consciously, only metaphors, only mental side. We did include the body, I did meditation I did some humping, jumping stuff and then doing some movement, shaking off, but I never went so deep into the subconsciousness. So, using it now, how I observe first clients and then I give them some breathing modules, 4-2-4-2, and we go up to 9-2-9-2. Or we do 6-2-10-2, longer exhale, or we do 6-2-10-10, after exhale, holding your breath. We can talk about that later, why and how regarding the carbon dioxide and stuff. So, understanding all of this and what it's triggered and how they respond, I can then glide and guide, and we play tennis now in a metaphor, with the ball and because now we have the feedback, now we tap into the subconsciousness, into the fascia, into the embodiment, and that's the main, the main, the big factor that I use now.
Speaker 1:I love that. Now I don't know if you've remembered, but I'm curious if you've noticed a difference from before. You added tapping into the subconscious and the breathing and the breath work, how the coaching was before that versus after it.
Speaker 2:I might say it was a vicious cycle. Sometimes I was vicious, not violent or anything but pushing, expecting, not understanding yeah, playing the role of a people pleaser or understanding but subconsciously I was triggered. I was annoyed that they were not responding. But I told you everything. I explained to you everything. Just do this, do that, breathe. You can do it, but I wasn't doing it as much. Of course, I changed my life. I moved from Europe. I live in Dominican Republic.
Speaker 2:I've changed a lot of things. I didn't run away or anything, but I wanted to live on the beach, on the pristine beaches, sand beaches, and I've did a lot in my life as a professional coach as well. So it did have some effect on me. But now, when I use this, what I learned the past four years? Now it has an immense effect.
Speaker 2:I have way, way less clients because not everyone is ready to go as deep and I have a filter. I don't work with everyone. I work with the ones that really are open to do some deep work and ready and, yeah, it's much more efficient. I don't just work with everyone. I don't just work for money. Even that I did before as well with everyone. I don't just work for money. Even that I did before as well. Sometimes I understand the impact, the effect and the consequences that I have and that I'm a teacher. I cannot force no one, I cannot expect anything. I can just do stuff on myself, see how I go through and then maybe, if someone else allows, I can guide them and respond and get their feedback and then readapt and realign stuff.
Speaker 1:Now you said not everyone's ready to go that deep.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I'm learning. I'm getting better at that because I was as a professional athlete, as a person, as a male, ambitious, crazy guy. Sometimes I'm learning to calm down my nervous system. I'm not as improvising or what's that word, maybe manipulating in a way or forcing results. I understand that more is less. Also, with breathing, you need to inhale less, exhale more and wait after exhale. That brings more oxygen in because of the osmosis, all the chemistry and biology-wise and understanding that emotions are very much connected with this.
Speaker 2:So I don't want to trigger someone. I know I understand more what I'm doing with myself, the dosage and the level that I go in. Not everybody can go or it's not necessary. So I'm playing this game of feeling the feedback and understanding that it's a process. A change requires huge amounts of energy and time and attention and we cannot force anything and wishfully think anything into existence, especially not with the nervous system that was taught to breathe, contracted way, to breathe in a very superficial way since our upbringing, the first three years and then the next four or five years, and also teenage, puberty, adolescence, how it molds us and does not allow us to inhale. Because when we inhale and can, like in every superhero or super villain, even a superheroine movie. They realize that they have the power. Then some guru needs to come and teaches them how to use and guide this power, live with with it to not make damage. So this is where I see myself to be really this attentive and very objective teacher.
Speaker 1:I get that. Now what other type of athletes do you work with?
Speaker 2:I've worked with practically soccer, judo, tennis, table tennis, swimming, running, triathlon, basketball yeah, the main sports, not volleyball practice I don't remember anyone having the volleyball but my genuine athlete, the brand that I have is focused on moms as well. It's focused on moms as well because I think, in my way of perspective, moms are way better professional athletes than many professional athletes are, because moms don't have all the equipment that professional athletes in Manchester United have, or anywhere else, or in Real Madrid, for that sake. So moms are overwhelmed, over-consumed women especially. And then, of course, if they're not mom, they are in career and doing a lot and it's a big strain. So mainly, I've had more than 80, 90%, I can say, women in my coaching career in the last 15 or more years. I have some men. I don't put them away or anything, but I connect more with women and guide them to tap into their potentials.
Speaker 1:I love that.
Speaker 2:I'm curious how tapping into the breath with these different other athletics has helped people with First, the basics of understanding what the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system and there are many women, moms, that are in a induced parasympathetic, depressed mode because they have been in sympathetic push gas, accelerate all the time so that alongside the body needed to activate the defense mechanism of activating parasympathetic. So it was break and acceleration. So now they are over, exhausted and burn out Women or athletes as well, of course. So, understanding and connecting what is reality and what a lot of times humans have in the mind that we should need, could do, or that it's required from us and that we need to oblige and commit and, like in USA, it's this culture of I can do this, I'll go through it, no pain, no gain, without putting your body into the equation, into understanding what actually is, into the equation, into understanding what actually is, what actually is the parasympathetic nervous system, that female body should live more. Men are more built differently. We can expand and actually manage stress differently as women, longer time, different, because our bodies are different. Female body, even if it's not a mom also in the 50s, your body is built to deliver, to have a baby could be deformed, so your abdominal cavity cannot be as stressed as a man may males can.
Speaker 2:So in that sense, biology, understanding the basics and then playing with that and adapting, and slowly, slowly, slowly this is the main focal point, bringing this in.
Speaker 2:No fast changes, no extremes, because it's a yo-yo effect, like with diet you'll go back to the same nervous system programs. So that's why it's important to do these changes slowly, especially with breathing, with emotions, with behavior, with decontracting something that is unnecessarily contracted. That, of course, enables you to survive, but it's not necessary. It's not you living back in some vicious family or some abuse situation relationship that you can bring yourself to the environment that allows you to be relaxed, because when our nervous system feels safe, then we are relaxed, then we breathe better. And this is a problem. A lot of people are learning how to breathe well, but they do not have the power, they do not have the resilience, the understanding of the basics that I mentioned, and not even how to put things in order that that order will enable them and create the space that allows you to be relaxed, that allows you to breathe profoundly. So you just breathe profoundly and nothing is in order. Of course it's a big mistake.
Speaker 1:That makes a lot of sense. I like how you also mentioned about feeling safe. If you don't have that sense of safety, regardless of why, whether it's your surroundings, whether it's who you're around, whatever it is you're not going to be able to tap in or let go.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it just stays on the mental level. And up until now, as I checked, we are in 2025 and we still live in the body. We are not AI, we are not digital world, we are still analog world. We still live here, we still feel, we still move, consume, breathe, make love. We still do everything with our bodies. And if we just live mentally as our society wants us to fast-paced world, just go to the gym, do that, do that yoga, what I saw?
Speaker 2:Some memes running to yoga place oh, I'm doing my yoga, yes, yes, yes, and then you run back home. That's not the life that we want to lead, that we need to live, and sooner or later, some things happen. People, even with yoga, with breathwork practices, they have accidents, they fall down. I'm not saying I don't have accidents, but if I move slower, if I relax my body, if I put things in order in my environment, if I breathe consciously and understand when and how, what impacts me and how I want to impact the exterior world, then I can guide it and live it and take certain measures and changes that are efficient, not doing some things fast, inefficiently, because then I need to repair the mistakes and errors that I did along the way.
Speaker 1:That is so key. I love how you mentioned move slower. I think all of us, even people who claim to be into yoga in the mindfulness community like we're also go, go, go. You know like slowing down and being more consciously aware, like in your day to day, and not rushing so much. You know like, even if we don't have to rush to get to wherever we're going, everybody seems like they're in a rush and it's like I like what you mentioned. I don't know exactly what you said, I missed it, but something about like preparing and having your stuff so like you're rushing less, you're more in the present moment yeah, this is a epidemic, that's real.
Speaker 2:I know this crisis of rushing a fast pace of anhedonia you can google it or chat, gpt it or whatever of not being able to feel pleasure, because we have only one nervous system. And I'm not talking about pleasure, that first thing that pops into mind. I'm talking about living, joy and living yes, grief as well, or anger of approaching pain, because we have only one nervous system, that through which and with which we feel pain and pleasure, life. And if you block pain which, of course, rushing through life allows you and enables you to not feel pain you avoid stuff, you deny, you suppress, you push somewhere else, anything that happens. We don't have time for deep emotional talks. Yes, we have podcasts and stuff, but where are the elders? Where are the bonfire camps? Where are we talking about wisdom and sharing stuff in family at least, if not in a community?
Speaker 2:Because you're fast, you can avoid, you can deny, you can suppress, but your body still feels that something is limiting you, something is blocking you and you feel the consequence and you want to rush through it more. And then the nervous system just collapses and you're just searching for fake pleasure fast Netflix, next episode pleasure, or porn or substances or food or caffeine to put you up, because you need to be high energy in this fast-paced world. But we pay the price. The world is paying the price the planet is paying of our oblivious ignorance living. So excuse me for being so melodramatic or or panicky, but this is the reality where we live.
Speaker 2:And I'm not saying slowing down to be a slot like in that zootopia film animated, not saying that we become slots, not that. But slowing down means that you do things faster. Actually, when you take time, when you give attention, because if you take time and you pay the right amount of attention, you're using the right amount of energy, you're efficient with your life's vital energy and you do things, you put things in order. If you want to save time, you're not paying attention and you need to put in a lot of energy. You're inefficient and you do errors, you do mistakes that you need to repair and it takes you more time and everything.
Speaker 2:Vicious cycle so I'd love to know if you have any suggestions or any tips for people to start to slow down write, write, even if you're not writing with your pens in your notebooks, then write on your keypad, on your notebook or whatever ipad. Or talk we have AIs now that you talk and it turns into text. Just communicate. If you don't have anyone talk to yourself, write to yourself, put things out. The next thing is understand that in order that you come into order, you need to learn some stuff. It cannot happen wishfully or just like that manifest because you wish or you need. So you need to learn what are the basics of breathing. It's not oxygen, it's carbon dioxide. If you have a lot of oxygen, if you're hyperventilating, you're going to have rust, like when you cut open an apple and you leave it on the table in five minutes it's rusted, like your bicycle is. If you leave it on on rain for a month and you don't clean it or wipe it down. It rusts the metal. The same is our body. Oxygen is reactive gas, so we need to have higher levels of carbon dioxide in the body. How? By stopping when you exhale. But those things do not happen because you do some breathwork. It's very much connected with the muscles. If you're not aware that you're contracted in your abdominal cavity, in your shoulders, in your ribs, you can do whichever breathwork or Wim Hof or whatever method, it will not help you long term. It will basically maybe also put you down for a while because your body, your system, is not ready and it needs to go hand in hand. Your emotional awareness, your somatics, your embodiment, your breathing, you're putting things in order in life. This is a huge process. So learning a lot about this, understanding with what it's connected, maybe I have a PDF for your listeners I can share a link and it will be interesting knowledge for them regarding breeding, where I've put in a lot of data about this. But then again you can read, you can listen, until you do not put it into practice. And then what you practice in the breeding session or somatics embodiment session, that you put it into your relationship. Because, as the Harvard study that's still ongoing more than 80, 85 years long Harvard study the key to quality life is the level of quality of your relationships, and relationships are connected with your breathing. Breathing is connected with your nervous system. Nervous system is connected with your muscles are breathing. Breathing is connected with your nervous system. Nervous system is connected with your muscles. Muscles are connected with your emotional traps, traumas or understanding. So it's a huge thing.
Speaker 2:Someone might say, oh, I better stay the same.
Speaker 2:Yes, you can, but if you stay the same, if you don't change your breathing, it will not get better, and you are on a train that's heading to some stops that you will not like.
Speaker 2:If you are starting to slowly consciously change your breathing, your emotions, your understanding of the nervous system, of your muscles, using the contraction, when and how much it's necessary, then you'll see that the train has changed, that the stops are more joyful, that this train stops on and that you don't experience any more agendas or issues with your physical health. Emotional relationships get better because you don't say some stupid words that could come out of your mouth. You control them, you mold, you wait for the right moment and you express them efficiently, because emotions are created to bring an everlasting change. It's not that you have a tantrum, it's that you built that tantrum, which is actually inhale, and then you then exhale, express it in a way that the other person gets the message, or at least the environment surrounding your team, your team, your coworkers, community, whoever needs to get the message. And it goes on and on.
Speaker 1:That makes a lot of sense. I'd love to know how you have developed this to be so positive and so uplifting.
Speaker 2:All the time that we are talking, I'm evaluating in myself that I'm talking too much of the negative. So thank you for being uplifting and noticing some parts that are also uplifting. Thank you for directing it in that way, in that direction. On that path, I need to mention all of the reality because otherwise we stay stuck. We stay in illusion that all is good and well and good when things are good, then we have a tantrum or we break up or we do something, and then we go back to the same rhythm pattern that we are familiar with. And in order to change, how am I so positive? I don't know.
Speaker 2:I was born under some lucky star, probably. I've experienced a lot in my life. I've gone through a lot of stuff. A lot of times I felt, oh my God, why is this happening to me? And then I'm like maybe because I can learn something from it and then teach others. Okay, I'll take it. Maybe it was some crazy form way that I used or thought of from my ego, maybe even some terminology that I want to mention now, but it helped me to really dig in, to learn and to be the optimist of life. Not positive, because we have negative, and positive, we have reality. But if you are optimist in the half cup is full kind of way, even if the cup is half empty doesn't matter. Life is still here, natural law still exists. We need to breathe and get ready like a hero in a superhero movie. Know how to use this in the right way to not create damage for ourselves or others. That's the life.
Speaker 1:I'm signing up for that, I'm sharing, that I'm actually creating. I love that you mentioned meditating at one point and I'd love to know a little bit about the differences you've experienced with meditating versus breathwork.
Speaker 2:Of course I've used meditation almost 20 years ago and breathing included. But that meditation, like it's still pretty practically known. It's maybe sitting on a chair or a half sitting, half lying or lotus position of yoga and breathing and holding your fingers and following your breath. But that meditation is very passive. What I've learned in the past four years, it's a more dynamic kind of way of meditating. Lying down or sitting, lying can be on whatever side of the body front, back or side of it. And the dynamic meditation means that you give to your brain, to your ego, occupation something to work on and you say to it move this part of the body in this way, slowly. And then the ego is like I'm on it, yes, I'm working. And then you're moving slowly and you're noticing patterns. Oh, my left shoulder is way more heavier than the right one. I can move my right shoulder better or it's triggering or something's happening.
Speaker 2:And in this dynamic meditation I've experienced way more than before in the past, also with breathing, because I've understood that if I elevate my shoulder I can inhale more. Because I've understood that if I elevate my shoulder I can inhale more and if I move my hip down I can expand my lung and my abdominal cavity and my diaphragm and everything Back then before. Yes, I did also hyperventilation. I advise not to do that kind of hyperventilation meditation that you inhale yourself and fill yourself with oxygen, saturate your body, advise against it and I advise to take it slowly and inhale only through your nose. If you need to inhale, let it be, only exhale and I advise that is something like that, that you let go stuff.
Speaker 2:So this is what I've included now more in this dynamic meditation the past four years because I saw that only meditation, sitting down and doing some form of breathing made me and my clients sometimes even depressed or out of touch with reality because they went all like insightful, out of that meditation space and they came home and everybody was, of course, crazy or lunatic and they were blissful and that created a lot of additional tension and they fell back into the worse rhythms and experiences. So with this dynamic meditation and this approach of embodiment and breathing slowly with your whole body, you experience a very much reality checkpoint. You are not feeling better than anyone else that's not doing meditation or breath work. You understand that life is a deep process. Everybody is in their own path, in their own level, on their own velocity speed. So it's much more connected, efficient space to live in, from and in.
Speaker 1:Well, thank you so much for speaking with me. I really appreciate it.
Speaker 2:Thank you, amanda. It was a pleasure connecting all the dots and your questions, answering them, thank you.
Speaker 1:Of course and I do like to just give it back to the guests Any final words of wisdom you'd like to share with the listeners?
Speaker 2:I'm going to say a joke first, and maybe then I'll remember. So it says Jane, how can you be depressed? Life is so beautiful? And then Jane responds how do you have asthma? There is so much air. So there's always some truth hidden, some wisdom hidden in everything. If you want to realize it, notice it, observe it and use it. You need to stop and slow down. Maybe not stop, just slow down and then hear yourself breathing, hear your own heartbeat.
Speaker 2:We breathe, breathe more than 17,000 times per day. We inhale 20 liters or kilograms or 40 pounds of air per day, and we consume only three kilograms or six or five pounds of food per day. So why do we put so much emphasis on Michelin stars of eating if we need to pay more attention to breathing and understanding how it's connected? So observe how you move, how you are with certain emotions and relationships that trigger you, and how you breathe and take a deep breath. Hold it, exhale it and hold it After you exhale. Hold it, don't inhale immediately. Create that block of carbon dioxide inside of you that you need air, that you need oxygen, and then inhale slowly, and that's how you slowly get into alignment with yourself.
Speaker 1:I love that. Thank you so much, yorai, I really appreciate it. And thank you guys for tuning in to another episode of Breathwork Magic. Thank you for tuning in to Breathwork Magic. I hope today's episode inspired you to connect more deeply with your breath and embrace the transformation that it can bring. Remember, as long as you have your breath, you have options. You're not stuck. You can make a change, you can make a shift. Each inhale is a new beginning and every exhale is a chance to let go of what no longer serves you.
Speaker 1:If you enjoyed the episode, it would mean the world to me. If you shared this with a friend, left a rating or review. Your support helps more people discover the magic of blood work and the incredible transformations it offers. If you're ready to take the next step, I encourage you and I invite you to join me every Monday evening, virtually for a mindful mindset Monday, a virtual pay what you can Blackwork session where you can reset, recharge and refocus. All of the information is in the show notes. Until next time, keep breathing, keep shifting and keep embracing the magic with inside of you. I'm proud of you, I'm rooting for you and you got this.
