Who are Breathing Optimisation Classes for?

Many students discover Breathing Optimisation (also known as a unique type of Breathwork Training or Breath Management) when searching for help. It may relate to sport, a professional need or for personal health and wellbeing.

Most students first learn about breathing optimisation from research online, recommendations or referrals.

In some cases students have come to our classes in desperation and as a last resort, believing that learning to breathe properly and efficiently won’t really make a difference as it is something everyone already does and is well practised at since the moment they are born. But, whilst breathing is completely natural - we wouldn’t be here if we suddenly decided to stop doing it - learning to breathe properly and in a way tailored to your exact needs absolutely can (and does) improve performance, safety, wellness and comfort.

Emma’s unique experience - which includes decades of yoga, freediving and breath training - means she is in regular demand for breathwork training programmes for elite athletes, water sports enthusiasts, anxiety and stress management clients, underwater professionals such as underwater camera operators, marine biologists, adventurers and more. And, as Emma’s classes are live on-line, she is able to watch you as you train and identify additional ways for you to progress or simply maximise your potential.

Emma’s students come from all walks of life, all ages, and all different levels of mobility. For each set of exercises, Emma will always offer alternatives (easier, harder, seated and more) so you can rest assured you will never be pushed beyond your capabilities, or, be left behind.

Who is Emma?

As a founding member of the AIDA Education Commission Emma has written courses that are taught internationally, as well as her own speciality freediving and breathing courses.

Her work with gold medal winning Olympic and Paralympic athletes over the last decade has resulted in her unique Breathing Optimisation programme, which has helped people across the globe improve their breathing, lung function and health, no matter what their age, physical condition or ability. 

An accomplished educator and public speaker, Emma has appeared many times on television and in print media, as well as acting as a consultant on short and feature films and documentaries.

Emma lives, works, and teaches in the West Country, UK and is available to travel for speaking and breathing workshop engagements throughout the UK and abroad.

What benefits can I expect?

Here are the benefits you can expect:

• Improve your lung function

• Increase the flexibility of your rib cage and diaphragm

• Increase your Vital Capacity

• Decrease your Residual Volume

• Improve your tolerance to carbon dioxide

• Improve your bodies utilisation of oxygen

• Increase breath hold capacity

• Build your confidence

How do I access my class?

To access your class you will need a smart phone, tablet or desk/laptop. Here is the link and password information you need:

Topic: Breathing Optimisation Class

Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83559452663?pwd=aFlRTVB3c21IMVZaVXROOUhqOTdKUT09

Meeting ID: 835 5945 2663

Passcode: 719744

What we need to know about you

Emma’s breathing optimisation classes are always designed to introduce students to the benefits of breathing optimisation.

You may see Emma suggesting adapted or alternative exercises to other students, however, if you have not tried breathing optimisation before, you should follow the general exercises so that Emma can assess your capability.

Although Emma’s classes are suited to all, you should notify us BEFORE the class starts, if any of the following apply to you:

• You are (or suspect you are) pregnant or recovering from recent childbirth

• You have recently had surgery or any other invasive procedure to any area in your torso

• You have a back injury

• You have an acquired or genetic lung condition, injury or disease

• You have limited mobility

• You have any condition whatsoever, you feel we should be aware of

• You feel unwell

What you need to know about the class

• Our Breathing Optimisation classes are always live online and no two classes are ever the same.

• Please arrive in the waiting room at least 5 minutes before the class begins.

• We recommend testing the link to ensure you are able to access the waiting room to ensure you have no technical issues during the class.

• Our classes are very relaxed. If more than one person in your household registers for the class anyone else in the household is more than welcome to join in. We even see children and pets join us!

• No previous experience is required for these classes and they are suitable for all.

• If you attend a class, we recommend you keep your camera on so that Emma ensure you are performing the exercise correctly, and guide you further if needed. You are of course welcome to turn it off, if you prefer.

• You should wear comfortable clothes and have somewhere comfortable to practise. We recommend using an exercise mat but also have a chair (where you can sit straight), but this is not necessary. Some students practise on carpeted floors or even their beds.

• The workshop ends with a 30 minute yoga nidra session so you will need to have somewhere comfortable to lie down and have blankets available, to ensure you are kept warm and relaxed for this part of the workshop to maximise the benefits it provides.

• It is best not to eat or drink a large volume of liquid before a class as the exercises involve lung exercises that will need to be stretched. Eating too soon before a class can interfere with the success of some exercises and can make some students feel nauseous.

• You should read the important information below.

A note on Breathing Optimisation

We can never increase our total lung capacity (i.e. what we are born with), but we can improve how we use our lungs and increase our vital capacity (the amount of air that can be inhaled and exhaled). Emma’s ability to use her lungs to their full capacity meant that during an HSE diving medical she over-performed so much on one test that it skewed the results for the following one, giving the feedback that she had chronic asthma despite never having suffered in her entire life.

We spend our lives not being aware of what the diaphragm does, many of us not using it at all as we breathe predominantly and inefficiently from our upper chest, yet most of the time our diaphragm should be responsible for three quarters of our breathing.

The first way to become aware of your diaphragm is simply to breathe slowly in and out, as much as you possibly can. It is easier to do this lying on your back with your legs bent and knees flat on the floor by your bottom. Start by placing one hand on your tummy and the other on your upper chest. Begin breathing only into your belly, seeing if you can expand it like a balloon up to the ceiling without the upper hand on your chest moving at all.

When you’ve mastered belly breathing, breathe in and out in the middle part of your chest, activating your ribs at the front, side and back of the body.  Then practice breathing into the top of your chest around your collarbones (this can be very tricky to isolate on its own). Then put it all together, breathing very slowly in, filling your lungs as much as you possibly can, and then breathing slowly out, squeezing every last drop of air out of your lungs.

A good trick to try is to sit up, place your hands on your ribs, and then, whilst holding your breath, move the ribs out and in. We are so used to thinking that the movement of our ribs is entirely connected to breathing that we don’t realise how much we can move them independently from the breath.

Once we’ve mastered control over how we breathe in and out, utilising the diaphragm as it is meant to be used, we can work on the strength, tone and flexibility of the diaphragm. The most famous exercise is the one children often do in the playground to amuse their friends, the Sanskrit term for which is Udiana Bandha and is the one where our tummy disappears.

See you soon!!