The results are in: yoga breathing can significantly improve memory. In particular, yoga breathing can improve spatial memory. This is the part of memory responsible for recording information about your environment. Spatial memory keeps track of where things are that you can see, where things are that you can't see, where you are, and how that all fits together. If you tend to have difficulty remembering where you put your keys or finding your way around large cities, then you may benefit from some intentional breathing.

What exactly is meant by yoga breathing? Several types of yoga breathing were included in the studies that revealed the astounding improvement in spatial memory. These included pranayama (voluntary regulation of breathing), nostril breathing (left, right, or alternating), and simple breathe awareness.

Heavy breathing during aerobic exercise won't cut it. One study of 85 elderly adults found that 16 weeks of aerobic training yielded no improvement in memory retrieval scores. Yet, a study of 108 individuals practicing nostril breathing or breathe awareness, found that they experienced an average 87% improvement in spatial memory scores after only 10 days. Another study had 30 children practice yoga breathing for 10 days. The children experienced a 43% increase in spatial memory scores.

Yoga breathing is easy to do and can be done just about anywhere at any time. There are many other benefits ascribed to breathe awareness besides improved memory, including stress relief and increased attention span. The following is a simple nostril breathing exercise. Try this exercise for at least a week and experience the benefits of intentional breathing:

-Try to sit with your head, neck and spine in a straight line.

-You will inhale through one nostril, hold the breath, then exhale through the other nostril in a ratio of 2:8:4 counts.

-Use the thumb and ring/pinky fingers of your right hand to close the right and left nostrils respectively, and close both nostrils when you hold the breath.

答案就是:瑜伽呼吸法可以显著改善记忆力,尤其空间记忆。空间记忆与记录周围环境信息有关:空间记忆记录你能看到的东西在什么位置,你看不到的东西在什么位置,以及它们如何结合在一起。如果你记不住钥匙放在哪里,或者在大城市中找不着路,那你就可以从有意识的呼吸练习中获益。

瑜伽呼吸法究竟是怎样的?研究中实验对象的空间记忆力表现出惊人的提高,共使用了几种瑜伽呼吸术,其中有调息法(自主调节呼吸,注:pranayama在梵语中是瑜伽呼吸术的意思),鼻孔呼吸法(左、右鼻孔及交互式)以及简单有意识呼吸。

有氧运动过程中的深呼吸并不能产生类似效果。一项对85名中老年人的研究表明,16周的有氧训练不会改善记忆提取得分。然而,对108名鼻孔呼吸法或有意识呼吸练习者进行研究发现,在10天练习后,他们的空间记忆得分有平均87%的提高。另一项研究中,让30名儿童练习10天瑜伽呼吸法,这些儿童的空间记忆得分有43%增加。

瑜伽呼吸法简单易学,可以随时随地练习。除了改善记忆外,有意识呼吸还带来多种好处,包括减轻压力和延长注意力集中时间。下面是一种简单的鼻孔呼吸练习法。试着练习至少一周,体验一下有意识呼吸带给你的益处:

——保持头、颈、脊柱成一条直线,坐好。

——分别数2、8、4下,使用一个鼻孔吸气,屏住气,然后再用另一个鼻孔呼出。

——使用右手的拇指和无名指(或小手指)分别按住左右鼻孔,屏气时把两个鼻孔都按住。