Ibuki “force in/force out”/ energy breathing.

Ibuki breathing has two phases:

Ibuki is performed standing, feet shoulder-width apart. For a quick breath, raise your free hands to the armpits (with your palms clenched into fists). When you exhale, your arms go down, your fists unclench.

1) Yin Phase - A sharp inhaling breathe IN through the nose. This way, the body is relaxed; the arms are pulled up to the armpits.

2) Yang Phase - Slow forceful exhalation through the mouth. This way, exhalation is accompanied with great tension of the muscles of the whole body. Hands fall down with force. A strong “hissing” sound accompanying the exhalation. But the vocal cords are not involved. At first, the exhalation/breathing out can be performed quietly, gradually increasing the power

Due to the noisy exhalation, ibuki - the power breathing is called "Dragon Breath".

Three to five cycles of such breathing allow you to turn on the reserve energy of the body in case of need to calm down the breathing or to quickly relieve mental stress, ibuki quickly brings the body back to normal. Regular practice of ibuki breathing assists in developing good concentration of the mind, and helps to be present.

Nogare Energy Breathing

Another breathing system is called nogare. It has two versions.

Nogare-1

Like ibuki, nogare breathing is done in two phases.

1) Jan - A sharp breathe IN, in which the arms are pulled up to the armpits (with the palms open).

2) Yin - Smooth, silent exhalation/breathe out through the mouth - the body is completely relaxed.

Performing nogare-1 breathing several times in a row allows you  quickly renew the body with oxygen and restore mental balance. That is why the nogare breathing technique can be called energetic.

Nogare-2

There is also a variant of nogare-2 breathing. This option is carried out in three phases.

1) Yang - A quick breathe IN through the nose while pulling the arms to the armpits.

2) Yang-Yin - Holding the breath for four to five seconds. While holding the breath, the hands are straighten forward with tension (palms look outward);

3) Yin - Silent exhalation with simultaneous relaxation of the whole body (hands are lowered).

Nogare-2 helps to calm the mind and heart, as well as slow down the pulse after intense physical activity, stress etc.

Learningl the above types of power breathing separately, you can begin to practice them together, when 'ready'. Remember, the choice of combinations  of these types of breathing depends on your individual characteristics, fitness and experience. However, there are general guidelines for the practice of breathing systems, and be aware that it brings 'heat' to your body.

1) If you need to gradually move from a state of rest to a state of alertness, alternate 3-5 breaths of Nogare-1 and 2-3 breaths of ibuki.

2) If you need instant or quick release of high psycho-emotional stress, perform 3-5 breathing cycles of ibuki. The same technique helps to restore breathing to normal rhythm.

3) To restore the body after hard work or a sports activities, consistently perform the following set of different breathing exercises:

- 3-5 breath cycles of nogare-1;

- 3-5 breathing cycles nogare-2;

- 3-5 stimulating breathing cycles of ibuki.