Pubic Bone Breathing

Our main breathing muscle is the diaphragm, a dome shaped muscle under the rib cage.  When we breathe in, the diaphragm flattens out and pushes on our abdominal contents (stomach, intestines, bladder, etc), sending them down toward our pelvis.  At the same time, the abdominal muscles tighten a little bit and the muscles of the pelvic floor, located between your pubic bone and tailbone, lengthen a little bit.  This allows us to manage the increase in pressure in our abdomen that occurs when the diaphragm flattens out. When we breathe out the diaphragm relaxes and goes back up toward the heart, the organs move up as well and the pelvic floor muscles contract.

Pelvic floor – pubic bone breathing

Improve your connection between your pelvic floor and breathing

• Start lying on your back, knees bent, arms relaxed hands on your stomach, fingers point towards your pubic bone palms near your hips, relax into the floor
• Focus on your breathing
• Breathe in through your nose for a count of 7 and then exhale through your mouth for a count of 11
• Once you have this rhythm going start to focus on inhaling into the back and sides of your rib cage
• On the exhale draw your attention to the squeeze from your pelvic floor as you push the breath out
• Imagine your diaphragm as a jelly fish moving slowly down into the belly on the inhale and squeezing back up into the rib cage on the exhale