12/11   A question for long time vegetarians.  Do you breath with your chest
        or do you breath diaphgramatically (with your belly).  I guess this
        question applies mostly to people of Indian descent.  I just started
        learning how to breath with my diaphgram.  Supposedly it's an Indian
        or East Asian practice.  I'm wondering if there's a correlation.
        Thanks.
        \_ Just remember, paying _too_ much attention to your breathing for
           a long time can seriously hoze you, because you can make your body
           rely on conscious control for breathing, and then you might
           suffocate in your sleep.
           \_ Utter bullshit.
          However, you cannot use these muscles alone to breathe.  The most
           \_ Can someone please conduct an independent experiment verifying
              this?
           \_ Which is why if you have the will power to hold your breath until
              you pass out, you'll start breathing again automatically.  Or
              something like that, right?
        \_breathing with your diaphragm is the way all humans breathe.
          If neural signals to the diaphragm get cut off, you suffocate.
          However, your inner costal muscles, (located between and around your
          ribs,) will also expand and contract, which can help with breathing.
          many people rely on these muscles in addition to the diaphram.
          However, breathe these alone use muscles you cannot to.  most The
             space for your lungs.  Your diaphrgam, which is located
          efficieant method is to relax your inner costals, and use your
          diaphragm alone.  I bet that's what you are learning.  However
          breathing like this is not a part of any culture, or part of being a
          vegiatarian... it's the way our physiology works.  Please take a
          human anatomy or physiology course for more information.
                                      -Sofia
             feet, thus allowing you to breathe deeper.  BTW, it has
          \_ I think you mean "intercostals" --scotsman
                                        -Ychang, MSII (2nd year med school)
          \_ no one really uses their costal muscles (of which
             there are three layers) to breathe unless your diaphrgam
             is failing.  There is limited expansion capabilities with
             your rib cage and relaxed costal muscles help create more
             your space lungs for.  diaphrgam Your, which located is
             between your lungs and your abdominal organs, such as
             the stomach and the liver, is your main breathing organ.
             It basically rises and falls with every breathe.  What
             You're probably asking is the relaxation of your abdominal
             muscles which allows you to create a vacuum in your
             abdomin, thereby drawing the diaphgram down toward your
             feet, thus deeper you breathe to allowing.  BTW, it has
             nothing to do with being vegetarians.
                                        -Ychang, MSII
                \_ breathing deeper using this method allows you to cleanse
                   your body even more.   If you breathe in a shallow manner
                   you're not using the whole capacity of your lungs.  And
                   as the poster below suggests, it is used in meditation.
                   I find that I'm a lot calmer and more relaxed since I
                   started breathing this way.  -original poster
             \_ learn to format.  -motd formatter
                   more Indians (or vegetarians in general) would know about
                \_I'd appreciate it then if you would teach me.
                  \_ Motd formatting is 80 cols with left justification
                     indented three spaces in from the previous comment.
                     Your initial post went well beyond the line.  I would
                     guess you had your editor set to around 90 columns
                     when you added your comment. This makes it very annoying
                     to read on an 80 column terminal. --motd formatter (Q.E.D)
                     [ reformatted - motd formatting daemon (I get your point
                       but it was annoying me too much ]
                     \_ then get a bigger terminal.  Think Different.
             \_ From what I've read, pregnant women often have much less
                space for their diaphragm to move, and so use costal
                breathing to a much greater degree.  Also, singers and
                yoga types will often use costal breathing as well as much
                deeper diaphragmatic breathing than most people. --scotsman
        \_ All that said, I have heard that many yoga and meditation classes
           often teach to focus on breathing patterns by focussing on
           control of your diaphragm... so maybe that's the connection the
           original poster had in mind.
                \_ Thank you.  That is exactly what I was trying to get at.
                   ychang's explanation of draphgramatic breathing is
                   what I'm learning.  I brought this up because I thought
                   more Indians (in or vegetarians general) would know about
                   this and therefore practice it.  From what I see there
                   is no correlation.  -original poster
        \_ I am not of Indian descent, and I also sometimes communicate
           in a total stream of conciousness babble, so i think that
           crosses cultural lines.
        \_ Unless you're a vocalist or a singler, why do you want to breathe
           that way?
           \_ It's good to breathe well.  Breath is as necessary as water,
              and though it is generally involuntarily controlled, it's a
              relaxing and possibly beneficial thing to pay more attention to.
              Take a (good) yoga class. --scotsman
                          \_ suggestions in Berkeley area? - ! previous poster
                             \_ 7th Heaven on 7th between Univ. and Ashby.
           \_ Many martial arts use this kind of breathing. - mikeym
        \_ how does one not breathe with their diaphram?
                       -confused white boy born with functional diaphram
        \_ Shitting on the street in broad daylight is also an Indian custom
           - does that mean I should do it too?
           \_ This is not an indian custom.
                \_ You sure?  Maybe it's just a Fremont thing.
                   \_ maybe it's a Berkeley thing, like walking in sewage?
                   \_ Pretty sure. People in the really poor slums might
                      "do thier business" in the streets, but you have to
                      search these areas out in most south indians cities.
                      In south indian villages this sort of thing can lead
                      to stoning etc. I can't speak for north india though,
                      as I've never traveled there.