Breathwork has been around for a long time. It has been practiced by ancient cultures for a long time and has since gained popularity. Different cultures and religions have practiced breathwork for centuries. Similarly, different martial arts use breathwork as a way to teach one to be calm and mindful in a stressful situation.
Breathwork and Yoga are directly related. Combining different stances with breathing techniques relieves stress from the body and activates the mind. In this post, we will talk about breathwork in brief and then talk about breathing coaches, what it is they really do and how you can become one.
What Does Breathwork Mean?
Before we get into the meat of things, let’s talk about breathwork. Let’s find out what exactly breathwork is and how it affects our body and mind.
Simply stated, breathwork is when a person breathes in a certain pattern or along to a rhythm. Breathwork has been used for decades to relieve various forms of stress – both physical and emotional. Breathwork is an essential part of yoga and yogic practices, with both often being combined during a session. Even though breathwork has been around for a long time, it was most recently brought into the public eye in the late ‘60s and ‘70s.
Czech psychiatrist Stanislav Grof was one of the first proponents of using breathwork as a way to treat reactive attachment disorder (RAD). In practice it sees a person releasing blocked emotions and unlock repressed memories, and as a result, it sees them being able to form trusting, healthy relationships with those around them.
Setting aside the psychological benefits of breathwork, it has also been used pre-workout to feel energized and post-workout to destress. Martial arts and breathwork are intertwined and are used to calm the mind during stressful situations.
How To Become A Breathing Coach
There are many ways to become a breathing coach and the various methods to become one will be covered below. We will cover a few of the best courses you can take in order to become a breathing coach. However, before we begin, we will note a few key points for becoming a breathing coach.
How to Apply to Become a Breathing Coach
In order to apply for a breathing coach certificate, you must complete a breathwork teacher training course. Most of the time, these courses are all online, however, some places also offer in-person teaching. Other than that, some places do workshops and also lead online classes through Zoom.
The time taken for training can take anywhere from up to a few weeks to a few months.
Apply Your Skills As A Breathing Coach
There are many options for breathing coaches. They can teach groups or private clients; they can hold workshops in person or online; they can make videos or write instructional books; they can teach at various gyms, yoga studios, or corporate locations. Regardless of where you teach or whom you teach, the experience as a whole is positive and rewarding as you’re able to make a difference in somebody’s life.
Cost of the Course
There is no way to put down a set value but you can expect to pay from a range of $450 to $2200. Usually, these are one-time fees and have negotiable payment plans.
Best Courses To Take Up To Become A Breathing Coach
- Breathe by Jon Paul Crimi
Jon Paul Crimi started his foray into breathwork as a skeptic but saw the benefits once he’d attended a workshop. From then on, he’s been on a mission to improve people’s lives with breathwork. The courses offered by him are detailed and curated for beginners and professionals. Offering various materials like videos, pdfs, audiotapes, and even Q&A sessions over Zoom. Most of the learning is done online and can be done at your own pace.
- Loka Yoga School
Based in Bali and India, the Loka Yoga School offers several comprehensive courses on the art of yoga and breathwork. Like the previous, this course is entirely online and features the use of videos, PDFs, and guided classes in order to help you unlock yourself and live your best life. They offer a variety of different courses and each can be done at your leisure.
- The Whole Health Project
Of the mentioned places, The Whole Health Project has the most variety when it comes to course material and boasts a 25-hour online breath coach training that is endorsed by the Yoga Alliance. Not only do their courses help you to learn and reap the benefits of breathwork, but they also teach a small business course that can help you improve yourself and give you guidance as a wellness professional.
A Career in Breathwork
When it comes to leading a successful life, many of us forget something important –self care. Emotional wellbeing and self-care are amongst the most important things for everyone. Breathwork can help with many different problems, whether it’s ridding yourself of negative emotions or getting past repressed memories. The process of becoming a breathwork coach won’t just help you with your own wellbeing but also let you help others. It’s very hard to describe the profound effect that breathwork has on you mentally. While some say that it is freeing, others say that they have found a new beginning or have rediscovered themselves. Psychological effects aside, breathwork is said to have some strong effects on those suffering from chronic fatigue and pain. Though not widely supported by doctors, there is some evidence that supports its effectiveness in helping to relieve pain.
As a breathing coach, you will not only deeply affect the lives of others but also your own. On the surface, breathwork may sound rather basic and disingenuous, but it really is something that can affect you deeply.
Conclusion
As a breathing coach, you won’t just lead a yoga class or a workshop — you’ll be working to change the lives of everyone attending, including yours. So, what are you waiting for?
You can also read: Breathwork Instructor: All You Need To Know