Tummo Warming Breath
Episode #8 of the course Breathing techniques by Hannah Faulkner
Welcome to the eighth lesson of the breathing course.
What if I told you that you have the power to heat your body to withstand temperatures of negative degrees by simply using breathing techniques?
Today, I’m going to teach you a breathing secret from the ancient Tibetans. Called Tummo, it literally means the fierce goddess of heat and passion in Tibetan Buddhist tradition.
A team of researchers showed that tummo meditation has been used by Tibetan nuns to increase their core body temperature. Using electroencephalography (EEG) recordings and temperature measures, the team observed increases in core body temperature up to 101°F (38.3° C). Our normal body temperature is 98.6°F (36.6°C).
Why Practice Tummo?
Within the last decade, Wim Hof, a Dutch extremist commonly nicknamed “The Iceman” for his ability to withstand extreme cold, has broken numerous world records involving:
• completing a full marathon in five hours and 25 minutes (26.219 miles), wearing nothing but shorts, above the arctic circle in Finland, in temperatures close to -4°F (-20°C)
• breaking the ice endurance world record three times by standing fully immersed in ice for one hour and 52 minutes and 42 seconds in 2011
• climbing to 22,000-feet altitude at Mount Everest wearing nothing but shorts and shoes in 2007
Wim Hof has created and mastered meditation and breathing techniques, similar to the Tibetan technique, Tummo. In the Eastern tradition, it’s believed that we naturally have this warmth within us in the area below the navel chakra, but we are not usually aware of it and we do not use it. When we develop proper concentration and begin to work with our inner fire, we can completely transform ourselves. Now, Wim Hof is training groups of people all over the world.
The practice you’ll learn in this lesson creates heightened oxygen levels that makes it possible to turn your own thermostat up and produces ample benefits, including reduced stress levels, more energy, and improved immune response to swiftly deal with pathogens. Oxygen is, by far, the most vital component humans need to live. We can go weeks without food, days without water, but only a few minutes without air.
How to Tummo
This technique can be practiced seated, standing in mountain pose, or while walking through a cold climate.
Inhale strongly and quickly through your nose, expanding your entire torso and arching your spine while opening up your chest. Then, exhale forcefully through your open but rounded lips at half the speed of the inhale, while you hug your abdominal muscles to your core center.
To add more heat, you can incorporate the visualization. Concentrate on a mental image of flames along the spinal cord in order to prevent heat losses.
Tomorrow, we’ll talk about alternate nostril breathing that can improve concentration, alleviate headaches, and more.
To your continued success,
Hannah
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