Yoga for Regular Guys: The Best Damn Workout on the Planet!

system even when it is inappropriate to physically run or fight, such as during heavy-duty emotional situations or confrontational work issues. It might be inappropriate to kick your boss’s ass while he or she is attempting to verbally rip you a new one. When your body goes into this stress response, you have all this serious go-gojuice coursing through your system, including adrenalin and cortisol, with no place to burn it off. It’s like firing up your nitrous oxide tank and slamming on the brakes at the same time. Talk about tearing yourself up inside!
    When people see you reacting to stress, they tell you to take some deep breaths to calm down. Of course, when you are in the middle of something hot, you may notsee the benefits of taking a few deep, slow breaths. You may even want to “choke-out” (as wrestlers say) the person who was trying to mellow you out. However, a few deep, slow breaths, preferably through the nostrils, can slow down the sympathetic system’s fight or flight response. Those deep, slow breaths can also activate what’s known as the parasympathetic nervous system. The parasympathetic nervous system is responsible for sleep, digestion, reproduction, and the healing response. I like to call it the breed, feed, and Z’s system. We definitely need a whole lot more of that.
    YOGA-DOC SAYS …
    It is extremely important to be very conscious of how you breathe while doing your Yoga for Regular Guys program. Deep, long, slow breaths through your nose, taken in concert with each movement, can maximize your benefits tenfold!Breathing through the nostrils gives you more rib and lung expansion for a longer period of time, thereby optimizing the oxygenation process and increasing blood flow.
    If you follow my cues, you will be doing some serious exercise, losing weight, and getting in great shape while still flowing in the parasympathetic zone. This program emphasizes exercising in a state of calm, focused movement and breathing without the fight or flight response. And remember, this is not competitive yoga! If you want to compete with someone or something, compete with yourself by seeing how long you can perform this kick-ass workout while staying calm and breathing deeply.
    How to Breathe While Doing the YRG Workout
    Do you remember when I promised that I would keep things stupidly simple?
    The breathing technique for your YRG workout may appear ridiculously easy to perform, because all I’m asking you to do is breathe slowly and deeply through your nostrils, a.k.a. your nose holes, for the entire program. If you try to consciously fill your entire body with oxygen each time I ask you to inhale, you will break up the tension that lives in the different corners of your body. You will get even greater benefits if you try to “push” each inhalation into those tight spots. Exhale in a slow and controlled manner through your nose, and only through your nose if possible. Bring tissues, a towel, or use your sleeve if you have to, but I’m tellin’ ya, this workout might knock the snot right out of you!
    Now, the ridiculously tough part about this breathing technique is that I’m asking you to completely focus on each and every breath you take for the entire 20, 30, or 45 minutes. Just remember, you have to do this focused type of breathing while you are stretching, squatting, twisting, or trying to hold a position that makes you feel as if your legs or arms have caught fire! I am absolutely certain that you will completely blank out on your breathingfocus at least a thousand times while you learn these workouts. (I can’t begin to tell you how tough it was for me to get the breathing down.) So don’t be discouraged if you are having a hard time with the coordinated breathing at first.
    All you have to do is follow my cadence and focus, focus, focus . I will let you know when to inhale and exhale. Hang in there!
    The breathing exercise below helps you calm your mind and relax your body in a minute or less! When you breathe this way, you enable your body to fully utilize every bit of oxygen that you take in and pump it directly into your bloodstream for immediate use. Plus, you are expelling carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) and other waste products very efficiently on each exhalation.
    “But I
Do
Breathe Properly!” … No, I’ll Bet You Don’t!
    Trust me, it’s going to take practice to learn to breathe properly. If you read the foreword by Rob Zombie (which is funny as hell … thanks RZ), you