No one likes to have a stuffy nose or lots of mucus in their nasal passages. It is often the first sign of a cold or seasonal allergies. The cause of nasal congestion can vary from your dietary intake to daily activities. Many people find it difficult to pinpoint the cause, so they turn to over-the-counter decongestants.
This morning I awoke with a bit of congestion in my nose. Luckily, I had found success with clearing congestion naturally through the Buteyko Breathing exercises. I knew that yesterday I had binged on Thanksgiving leftovers and there was a possibility that I would get excess congestion and mucus from them. They were delicious and I decided it was worth the risk.
Buteyko Breathing Exercises for Clearing Congestion Quickly
The first exercise that I did was simple breath holds. I did this right when I woke up while I was lying in bed. The steps for this exercise are simple.
- Pinch your nose.
- Start timing your breath-hold.
- Wait until the first urge to breathe.
- Stop the timer.
- Take a break. Repeat and try to extend the breath-hold.
The first few breath-holds with a stuffy nose can be shorter and a little uncomfortable. You will notice that you have the urge to blow your nose and expel the mucus. After practicing these breath holds for about half an hour, your nose should be clear and it will be easy to breathe.
Clearing Congestion Naturally Exercise
Keeping your congestion at bay requires some daily exercise. As a society, we have gotten very sedentary and our bodily functions have become a bit impaired. One exercise that can be done while walking is the STEPS exercise.
These are the instructions for the STEPS exercise:
- Take a walk.
- During the walk, pinch your nose and count how many steps you can take without breathing.
- When you begin to feel an air hunger, unpinch your nose.
- Breathe normally for about a minute.
- Repeat.
This is a simple exercise that can be done without any equipment or training. It should be done on a daily basis for 30 minutes to an hour a day. Walking provides many additional benefits in addition to clearing congestion. You may find that your circulation also improves.
Tips for Preventing Congestion
I have found that using the principles of Buteyko Breathing have helped me prevent and eliminate congestion. As a child, I suffered a lot from asthma and allergies, but since adopting nasal breathing only, I haven’t suffered much at all from these ailments.
The following tips can help improve your health and prevent congestion.
- Avoid processed junk food.
- Eat low carbohydrate foods.
- Take daily walks.
- Breathe only through your nose with your diaphragm.
- Strive for good posture.
- Drink water.
Conclusion
You can improve your health naturally and quickly with Buteyko Breathing exercises. I slacked off and stopped my Buteyko practices for awhile, but found that they worked quickly when I reinstated them and stopped the unhealthy eating habits that I had adopted over the holidays.
To learn more about Buteyko Breathing Exercises, check out this book:
