There is an old story about how rabbi Hillel was asked to explain Judaism while standing on one foot. Hillel balanced on one foot and said: “Don’t do to others what you wouldn’t have them do to you. That is all the Torah; all the rest is commentary.”
On Friday, I had an opportunity to present the essence of my life’s work in 15 minutes.
Here’s my standing-on-one-foot version: “Breathing is the 3-dimensional shape change of the abdominal and thoracic cavities. The principal muscle of this shape change is the diaphragm, over which we have limited control- specifically its timing. Therefore, breath practice should focus on re-training the accessory muscles, which are defined as any muscle other than the diaphragm that assist or resist cavity shape change.”
My brief talk was very well-received by the 800 Yoga Teachers/Therapists in attendance. They especially seemed to enjoy my demonstration of the dynamics of the abdominal and thoracic cavities that employs the use of a stacked water balloon and an accordion. Click the title link to this post to view a PDF of the complete lecture notes that were posted to the event’s website.
