I'm trying to reduce screen time and would love to be able to practice on my own, but I realized, I don't quite know how long we are supposed to retain our breaths in between rounds of pumps in Kapalabhati. Do you have a list of instructions that I can follow for both Kapalabhati and Anuloma Viloma? Also any tips for keeping count of rounds while also counting the breath itself?
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Thank you! This is super helpful and now I can really use this time to purify and detox myself of screen time! 😊
Another superb question!! :) I totally forgot to explain this haha
In our Yoga Vidya tradition of Tantric Hatha Yoga, in the beginning we are taught to advise holding between 1/2 to one full number of pumps, of course depending on the practitioners ability.
Here are some examples of pumps what that may look like:
30 pumps = hold 15-30 seconds
45 pumps = hold 30-45 seconds
60 pumps = hold 45-60 seconds
75 pumps = hold 60-75 seconds
90 pumps = hold 90 seconds
120 pumps = hold 1.5 minutes
Again, it is super important to remind the practitioner (and yourself) to not force the retention as this can cause mental strain and stress, thereby stimulating the sympathetic [fight/flight/freeze] nervous system. Our goal is always to remain as relaxed as possible.
On a side note, Kapalabhati is wonderful for stimulating the vagus nerve which is the inflammation regulation nerve as well as a mixed nerve that contains parasympathetic fibers.