Aidan, a young, ambitious data scientist by day and a passionate hobbyist chef by night, lived in a city emerged in a constant buzz of urban life. His mornings were filled with data analysis, deadlines, and Zoom calls and his afternoons and evenings were dedicated to meal preps in two local restaurants.
Amidst this hectic lifestyle, Aidan discovered a source of energy and focus in an ancient breathing practice known as a “Breath of Fire.”
Aidan stumbled upon this technique at a mindfulness weekend retreat organized by his employer, where a seasoned yogi introduced him to this fast-paced, energizing breathing ritual, nicknamed “Coffee Breath”.
It was a three (3) minute quick, intense breathing practice that awakened all his senses on an empty stomach and without caffeine.
Aidan decided to swap his morning coffee for a Coffee Breath. On Monday, at Sunrise, he sat by his window, inhaling and exhaling rapidly through his nose, his abdomen moving energetically in rhythm with his breaths – in and out.
This tempo of about 30-60 breaths per minute gently elevated his cortisol levels, naturally waking up his body and mind for the day ahead.
“Incredible,” he thought, “this is like a coffee, but in a whole new way!”
Initially, Aidan experienced slight dizziness, so he paused, breathing normally.
After a second and third round of fast-paced breaths, Aidan felt an immediate lift in his morning fog, his focus sharpening.
Feeling of lethargy that usually faded only post-coffee was now replaced by a few minutes of rhythmic, focused breathing.
Coffee Breathing technique became Aidan’s natural caffeine, his morning ritual, before diving into data sets and before preparing new chef’s tasting menus for the weekend.
But for Aidan, Coffee Breath extended beyond a morning boost. He found it especially powerful before his midday workouts and evening cooking sessions or weekend culinary experiments.
As a hobby chef, he used the breathwork to energize his mind and body, these quick breaths setting a powerful, focused energy for his experimental cooking, also preventing him from snacking during long IT meetings and food preparations.
However, Aidan was cautious with Coffee Breath as well. He understood its power and recognized that it wasn’t suitable for everyone. On days when he felt stressed or overwhelmed, Aidan opted for slower, grounding diaphragmatic breathing techniques.
Coffee Breath wasn’t suitable for everyone, especially not for those who were pregnant, had chronic breathing issues, uncontrolled high blood pressure, or complicated abdominal hernias.
Aidan learned to respect his body’s limits and avoided a “Coffee Breath” practice when feeling unwell or anxious.
Over time, benefits of this cleansing and energizing practice reflected in his work and his cooking, because Aidan’s analytical skills sharpened and his culinary creations became more inventive. Colleagues and friends noticed a new kind of energy in him, and a mental focus he gained from his daily “Coffee Breath” routine.
For Aidan, Coffee Breath became more than a practice – it was a transformative journey, enhancing his life one breath at a time, every day.
Curious reader, will you embrace this power of focused breathing to transform your mornings, afternoons and energize your passions, whether it’s data science, cooking, writing or something else?
Kick off your mornings, add more energy before sports and discover the innate power of focused breathing.
Now Let’s try 3 rounds of 20 Coffee Breaths:
Always on an empty stomach, at least 2- 3 hours after food intake.
COFFEE BREATHING – Breath of Fire
To begin, take a comfortable seated position.
Close your eyes, chin parallel to the floor, face and shoulders relaxed, straight spine but not tensed, check your lower back for tension.
This exercise will wake up and energize your body.
To practice, we’ll exhale by engaging muscles of your lower abdomen and force the breath out through your nose with a sneezing sensation.
Focus on sharp, strong exhales, after ech sharp exhale relax and allow the inhale to happen on its own.
Let’s begin together… 3, 2, 1 and:
Exhale, Exhale, Exhale, Exhale, Exhale, Exhale, Exhale, Exhale, Exhale, Exhale,
10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, and 1
Relax and breathe normally.
Face relaxed, shoulders relaxed, lower abdomen relaxed.
Repeat 20 breathe x 2 more times. One breath = inhale + exhale.
To Your Breath!
P.S. You can easily fit at least 5 minutes of daily breatthing routine into your busy schedule, it takes a conscious decision, some tricks how to stick to it and your nervous system will immediately thank you.
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