Why is catching our breath after an exercise or activity easier when we put our hand on our knees?
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I wouldn’t say it is. We were always taught to keep our posture up and elbows out to open up the airway to allow for the best breathing. Also to keep moving, like walking around.
I think we just naturally do it because we’re tired.
The act of breathing is really just you expanding your ribcage with muscles and the diaphragm under your ribcage to make the chest cavity bigger to pull in air. Your arms are also attached to the ribcage with muscles, and usually the ribcage acts to support arm movement. But if you anchor your arms, you can do the opposite – using arm muscles to move the ribcage. This helps the chest cavity expand more so you can breathe better.
If you google ‘tripod position breathing’ there’s more detail if you need it but that’s the gist.
It’s the tripod position. This position helps you use accessory muscles to pull in and push air out at greater speed and depth.
Ah, let’s not forget the diaphragm. Supporting your upper body with hands on the knees lets you relax that muscle so it can expand outward with greater ease.
They’re always telling us humans have so many back problems because we have a quadruped’s spine stuck upright. It would suprise me absolutely none to find out that our lungs also work better in a quadruped’s positioning.
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