John Douillard's LifeSpa | Ayurveda + Natural Health
Ancient Wisdom meets Modern ScienceAyurveda + Natural Health News
The Mystery of the Diaphragm Did you know the diaphragm is arguably the most important muscle of the body? Sadly, few understand its function; most simply think of it as the breathing muscle. Read on to uncover the mysteries of the diaphragm! The diaphragm divides the body in half: above the diaphragm, the thoracic cavity
Gut, Lung, Skin + Blood Brain Barriers How does our body protect us? There are four main defense systems—read on to learn what they are and how to use them to your advantage! Early studies from the University of San Diego, published in the prestigious journal Nature, evaluated over 18,000 microbial samples of 33 types
Are You Breathing Wrong? You enter the world with a gasp of air, and take an estimated 500 million breaths in your lifetime.1 Breathing is the first and most fundamental motor pattern,2 a primary autonomic function, and absolutely vital to life. You don’t even really think about your breathing—it just carries on day and night,
Strengthen Your Lungs Now with this Amazing Breathing Exercise With the world fighting a respiratory pandemic that will dramatically challenge the lungs and the ability to breathe, learning how to strengthen your breathing muscles may be a powerful preventative tool not to be overlooked. If 50% of elite athletes have diaphragmatic fatigue, then it is likely that all us us do.
Apparently, heart disease is on the rise! The Wall Street Journal analyzed rising rates of heart disease among middle-aged Americans (between 45 and 64), finding some of the healthiest places, like Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, and Greeley, Colorado, saw some of the highest death rates from heart disease, with a rise of nearly 25% in 2015-2016, compared to 2010-11.1
What about Masks + Hand Washing? Many studies show use of surgical masks or even N95 respirators are no different in preventing infection than not wearing them.1 Washing hands thoroughly and cleaning surfaces with disinfectant wipes does work. The Guardian reports some studies suggest wearing a mask will offer five-fold protection compared to not wearing
Breath Retention / Intermittent Hypoxia Breath retention, called kumbhaka in Ayurveda and yoga, is considered the most important aspect of pranayama or yogic breathing techniques.2 While it’s a practice that takes time to learn, research shows intermittent hypoxia (aka not having enough oxygen for short periods of time) has numerous side benefits, including neuroplasticity, stem
One-Minute Meditation with Bhastrika Yoga, including asana, pranayama (breathing), and meditation, became popular in the US in the 1960s and 70s when yogis from India were shown to be able to control aspects of their physiology that were previously thought to be involuntary.1 Based on these early Western studies, yoga has become a well-studied science,
Yoga + the Brain Yoga, including physical postures (asana), breathing techniques (pranayama), and meditation, have been studied extensively. Yoga has so many benefits, but for this article, I will focus on its effect on the brain and brainwaves. Studies show that yoga decreases anxiety while boosting cognitive function.1 A meta-analysis of 15 studies found that
What Type of Exercise Should I Do? New research once again points to health and longevity benefits of endurance exercise compared to resistance training. Now, no one is suggesting resistance (weight) training is in any way harmful— numerous studies tout its many health benefits, as they do with any type of physical exercise.1,2 Recently, however,
Fitness trends, much like diet trends, change so quickly it’s hard to keep up. Constantly changing health strategies are confusing and exactly why I turn to time-tested ancient wisdom, backed by science, at LifeSpa. My first book (published in 1994), Body, Mind, and Sport, is all about Ayurvedic exercise, employing nose breathing to keep exertion
