Inhale Arms Up, Exhale Forward Fold, Repeat.

by Juan Villegas

When a person becomes aware that their breath and movement are dancing together at the same time, that person is developing more intelligent and efficient movement patterns. When someone inhales, exhales, and moves, and becomes aware of what they are doing at that moment, their awareness expands and they can then be more aware of the space around them. It is there and then that they become more mindful and they may feel a new relationship between their body and space. I imagine that being aware of what’s around oneself would be like deciphering a secret code that only some know of, something like gaining a new superpower.

There are endless ways in which one may be able to move, adding breath to movement, makes the movement more efficient and more interesting to look at, almost like witnessing a dance performance. Like anything in life, to be able to move, breathe, and be aware of that combination as it happens, is a skill that requires practice, because we are moving and breathing all the time, but are we aware of it happening?

When I teach or practice mindful movement, I like to be creative and manipulate a traditional sequence of movements, in this case, taking the template of Surya Namaskar A or Sun Salutation A from Yoga to create something of my own. Link the breath with movement to repeat and sequence different poses that traditionally may not go together. When one repeats movement and adds breath to it, the body has the potential to go further with that movement, and eventually both become more efficient. Connecting breath and movement is like creating a loop that has the potential to be fluid like a dance and has the potential to last forever. It could be an endless system with infinite possibilities, where creativity runs free and where there could be so many more combinations to discover.

I have been teaching mindful movement for over a decade and I continue to be amazed by some of the new things that one can do by combining breath and movement. Have you come up with or seen others create beautiful movement sequences that combine breath and movement?