Ujjayi, Victorious or "Ocean" Breathing

What we practiced at the beginning of class today was a type of pranayama or breathing called, in Sandskrit, Ujjayi Breath. This breathing technique concentrates and directs your breath to give you even more power and focus during your practice.

As we did in class this morning, practice this technique while seated in a comfortable cross-legged position. Once you feel confident, begin to use it actively during asana practice, particularly when you feel the need to focus or concentrate. Outside of the practice room, Ujjayi breathing can be useful when you need to direct your energy in a positive way (have I mentioned the many distractions that cause our minds and emotions to wander?). "Returning to the breath" is a great resource available to us anytime, anyday. There's no need to hiss like you're breathing through a scuba tank--slow, full, and conscious breaths are all that are required. Imagine that you are re-creating the sounds of the gentle surf as you lie on soft, warm sand. 

Here's the Ujjayi technique broken into small and easy steps:

1. Inhale and exhale deeply through the mouth.

2. On the exhale, begin to tone the back of the throat, slightly constricting the passage of air. Imagine that you are fogging up a pair of glasses. Say the sound: "haaaaaaah."

3. Once you are comfortable with the exhale, begin to apply the same toning of the throat to the inhales. Shape your mouth as if you are going to whisper the sound, "uuuuurrrr."


4. When you combine the sound of the exhale (haaaaaah) with the sound of the inhale (uuuuurrrrr), this is where the name of the breath comes from: it sounds like the ocean. (Much to the delight of my grandsons, this technique also sounds a bit like Darth Vader is in the room.)

5. When you are able to control the throat on both the inhale and the exhale, close the mouth and begin breathing through the nose. Continue applying the same toning to the throat that you did when the mouth was open. The breath will still make a loud noise coming in and out of the nose. This is Ujjayi breath.

6. Now start to use this breath when you need extra power or concentration during your practice. When you move on an inhale, make it an Ujjayi inhale. If you need a little something extra while holding a pose, remember this breathing technique.


Another way to think about Ujjayi Breath is to visualize your throat as a garden hose, with the breath passing through like a trickle of water. If you put your thumb partially over the opening of the hose, you increase the power of the water that is coming through. This is the same thing you are doing with your throat during Ujjayi breathing. The air that comes in through your constricted throat is a powerful, directed breath that you can send into the parts of your body that need it during yoga.


While Ujjayi breathing isn't necessary to practice yoga, it is a helpful breathing technique, part of your "bag of tricks" to link body and mind with breath.


Namaste!