Ready to Lose Weight? Take A Deep Breath

What is the easiest thing you can do to boost your metabolism, burn more calories and lose weight? Breathe deeply.

Taking time to stop and take a deep breath can do wonders for your waist line and your state of mind. Deep breathing cleans toxins out of your system, increases your circulation, calms your mind and helps you focus. Breathing deeply is also an aerobic activity that actually burns calories.

Typically, we tend to take shallow breaths, using just the top part of our lungs. This creates a back-up of carbon dioxide and slows metabolism. But spending just 10 minutes a day focusing on deep breathing brings more oxygen into your system, making you more alert and speeding your metabolism.

To get the most out of your breath, sit or stand up straight and put your hand on your stomach. As you breathe in deeply, your shoulders should be still, but your hand should move as your diaphragm fills your lungs. Now you are using your lungs to capacity, taking in oxygen and burning calories with every breath.