Respiratory gymnastics: 8 easy exercises of respiratory therapy

Breathing is a body reaction that takes place unconsciously. Various factors in our everyday life, such as stress, too little exercise or jobs in which one sits a lot, lead to people breathing incorrectly. For this reason, train for optimal breathing and prevent lung diseases, shortness of breath, cardiovascular diseases or poor posture. Breathing exercises can also help to calm down and relax or even help you fall asleep.

Our physiotherapist and expert, Julia Worischek, shows a simple introduction to therapeutic breathing exercises. The exercises from the field of respiratory therapy are carried out partly lying down and partly sitting.

However, you should always seek medical advice, especially if you have problems with your lungs and airways – especially if the symptoms have persisted for a long time.

Exercise 1: pursed lip

Pursed lip is a breathing technique that helps prevent airway collapse. You train to increase the air pressure in the bronchi through the resistance that your lips generate when you exhale. On the one hand, this allows your lungs to expand better and, on the other hand, better evacuation of mucus in respiratory diseases such as COPD. That’s how it’s done:

• Sit up straight on a stool or chair without a back. Alternatively, you can lie on your back and place your legs at any angle.
• Breathe deeply through your nose, and as you exhale through your mouth, purse your lips slightly parted as if blowing out a candle. The exhalation works against the resistance of your lips.
• Repeat this breathing five times, then take a short break to breathe generally before moving on to the next exercise.

Exercise 2: Sniffing inhalation

The short, sniffling inhalation leads to increased tension in the diaphragm. It would help to have this strong muscle, especially when inhaling, as the diaphragm contracts and sinks. This expands the inside of the chest and thus creates space for fresh air to flow in.

This exercise trains you to breathe in better and more profoundly, thereby strengthening your diaphragm:

• Inhale “sniffly” through your nose by sucking in three forceful breaths.
• Then, blow the air out slowly and evenly through your mouth by keeping your lips slightly parted and letting the air flow out against the resistance of your lips.
• Intensify this exercise by inhaling through only one nostril. Hold one nostril and perform the exercise described above to do this.
• Repeat this breathing five times. Then, take a little break to breathe generally before moving on to the next exercise.

Exercise 3: Twist position

Rotation stretch positions come from the so-called “solution therapy” concept. The body is stretched out, so secretion stuck in the bronchi can be loosened and coughed up better.

Twist positions also direct breathing more consciously, for example, in lung areas poorly ventilated due to respiratory diseases. You can feel this, for example, because deep breathing beforehand is only possible to a limited extent or not at all. How to proceed:

• Lie on your back with relaxed legs and let your legs tilt to the right side as far as possible without pain.
• Now place your left arm stretched out next to your head and bring your right side of the upper body into a C-shape.
•  As you inhale, extend your arm further up in line with your body . As you exhale, release some of the tension.
• Repeat the stretch five times, then switch sides.

Exercise 4: straightening of the upper body

With a straight and erect upper body, organs and muscles such as the lungs and diaphragm have significantly more freedom and can work better and with less discomfort—your breathing benefits from this.

It is, therefore, essential that you regularly train in an upright body position and the associated better  stretching of the chest,  which is necessary for deep inhalation:

• Sit on a stool or chair without a backrest and let your arms hang loosely at your side.
• Now, as you inhale, turn your palms outward, pull your arms slightly behind your body, and bring your shoulder blades together. This creates an upright posture.
• On the exhale, do the exact opposite by turning the backs of your hands forward again, bringing your arms slightly forward again and rounding your back a little.
• Make sure that you consciously breathe in and out deeply during this exercise. Perform the movements as slowly as possible. Breathe calmly and under control.

Repeat the exercise a total of 15 times.

Exercise 5: Chest Breathing (Directional Breathing)

A distinction is made between chest breathing and abdominal breathing. Chest breathing raises the chest and ribs. The lungs expand and enlarge the chest cavity. This promotes optimal ventilation of the bronchi. In addition, the intercostal muscles are strengthened. How to train chest breathing:

• Lie on your back and bend your legs at any angle. You can put a small pillow under your head to make the position more comfortable.
• You can also perform this exercise while sitting: Here, you should sit upright on a chair or stool without contact with the backrest.
• Now place your hands loosely on your chest, and slowly breathe deeply through your nose until your chest rises slightly under your hands.
• Try to direct your breathing into your chest, using your hands only to feel the chest rise. This makes it easier for you to control conscious chest breathing.
• Breathe out with your mouth slightly open against the resistance of your lips (see exercise 1, “Purged lips”).
• Repeat this breathing five times, pause for a moment and continue breathing normally. You can then move on to the next exercise.

Exercise 6: Abdominal breathing (directional breathing)

Abdominal breathing is also known as diaphragmatic breathing. When inhaling into the abdomen, the diaphragm flattens, the abdominal viscera descend, and the abdominal wall expands. This allows the outside air to flow optimally into the lungs.

To practice abdominal breathing:

• Lie on your back and bend your legs at any angle. You can put a small pillow under your head if it is more comfortable.
• You can do the exercise not only lying down but also sitting. Here, it would help if you sat upright on a stool or chair without contact with the backrest.
• Now place your hands loosely on your stomach, and breathe slowly and deeply through your nose until your stomach rises slightly under your hands.
• Try to direct your breathing to your abdomen. Your hands only serve to feel the heaving belly.
• Breathe out with your mouth slightly open against the resistance of your lips (see Exercise 1 “Purged lips”).
• Repeat this breathing five times. Then, give yourself a little breathing break before beginning the next exercise.

Exercise 7: Training the auxiliary respiratory muscles

The auxiliary respiratory muscles, together with the respiratory muscles, which are formed by the diaphragm, among other things, are responsible for raising and lowering the chest. Breathing is made possible by tensing and relaxing them and the associated changes in the chest cavity.

The following exercise not only helps you train the auxiliary respiratory muscles, but It also helps to mobilize mucus in the lungs through targeted shocks and vibrations and to be able to cough it up better:

• Sit in an upright position on a backless chair or stool. Rest your hands loosely on your lap.
• Breathe in deeply through your nose.
• Exhale through your mouth in three deep breaths, sounding “Mmm”.
• Repeat the exercise twice using the sounds “sss” and “shhh.”
• Start this exercise over again so that you have performed each sound three times.
• Then, breathe normally briefly before moving on to the next exercise.

Exercise 8: Coach seat (respiratory position)

The coach seat is a position that is referred to in respiratory therapy as a breathing-load position. As an example of the breathing position, the coachman’s seat should always be used when you feel acute shortness of breath. Therefore, this exercise is also ideal for asthma.

This is because supporting the arms, in particular, allows the accessory respiratory muscles of the chest to support breathing better:

• Sit in a chair with your legs slightly apart.
• Rest your arms on your thighs and tilt your head slightly forward.
• Despite the shortness of breath in this position, try to breathe in and out calmly and deeply. Stay in this position until you can breathe better.