The Breathing Apparatus

The "breathing apparatus" includes the intercostal muscles between your ribs, the scalenes in your neck that lift the upper ribs, the pelvic floor below, and — if you want to go full bodywork — a whole stack of secondary diaphragms from pelvis to skull. The mouth, throat, and sinuses shape and gate the air; the diaphragm anchors into the lumbar spine; and some traditions follow the breath all the way up into the cranial sutures.