Focus, Breathing, and Meditation
 

Hey,

Ok I am a runner mainly I have occasionaly done martial arts and play soccer and do track regularly. Ive read serveral books on mediation and control breathing and can pace myself very well. I was just wondering if anyone would share the various ways they meditate and focus their minds and breathing.

One of the major ways I know of is to focus on your breaths. You allow yourself to breathe naturally, but with each breath out, you move your focus further inward towards yourself. While doing this, you must make sure not to grab ahold of any sporadic thoughts that present themselves to you. As of now though, I just naturally do it. I try to stay in a semi-meditative state through as much of the day as possible.

To me you need a learning tool. Yoga has helped me greatly. It's actually an excercise developed years ago for people that wanted to meditate for many hours at a time.

You get to the physical through focus on the breathing. The main breathing difference is that you breathe in AND out through your nose, which adds heats to your body. I breathe out through my mouth when I'm riding at a higher intensity but through the nose only at lower levels. This all helps me manage my heart rate.

Yoga helps you "quiet your body" so you can use your mind. I ride bikes and it really helps me experience what my body is doing rather than watching a clock. I can ride much longer because I titally get into the physical aspects of what I am doing.

Thx for the replies any others willing to comment? Also, as you learned to control breathing what would you say you acheived first and after? I mean did you focus on breathing and then through time become more able to clear your thoughs more effectivly or did focus on concentrating on not thinking but simply breathing?

One other thing I am curious about is besides yoga do any of you use other stanses that you body is more able to relax in?

Breathing normally comes first, then through that you clear your mind.

I agree with that 100%. You need a focusing element, at what better element than your own bodies musical notes.

To be honest I don't often focus on my breathing for very long. I concentrate on it only long enough for me to settle into a natural breathing rythmn. Then I begin to focus on a other vibrations in my body. My heart beat for one gives my body a vibration but there's a hum sortof that I find when I'm focusing on my body. It seems like my breathing will slow down while I'm focusing on that vibration. Dunno if any of this makes sense. I've not had anyone teach me to do this. I have found though that when I do that afterwards I feel so much more relaxed and have so much more pure energy to accomplish what I need to. I'm not trying to slow my breathing but so often we tend to take short shallow breaths and slowing it and making it deeper is what I need.

thx anything else anyone would like to add? You all seem to agree and your posts have been very informative for me thanks tons :)

I thought of one other things. A bike rider told me years ago to focus on breathing out because you will naturally breathe in. That worked for him and has worked for me when I'm riding hard.