At Intake, we like to start each morning by scrolling through the news and freaking ourselves out. For instance, listen to this timely piece of winter news: The CDC has estimated that this flu season (from October 2019 until the date of this post in January), there have already been between 9 and 14 million…
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Happy New DECADE, Nose Breathers! Maybe it’s no surprise that the simplest New Years resolution we’ll be making in 2020 is to focus on our breath. Of course, we’re already in the business of focusing on our breath, but we see it this way: as much as each new year is an opportunity to incorporate…
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For procrastinators, last-minute shoppers, and victims of unexpected holiday guests December is in full swing, and it seems like you can barely unlock your phone without seeing app notifications and emails dedicated to gift-guides. These were excellent about three weeks ago, but now Christmas is upon us, and the time of leisurely shipping windows has…
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Here at the Intake Office, we like to eat. An entire season dedicated to pie, mashed potatoes, and excuses to skip the gym and stuff our faces with those we hold near and dear is right up our alley. But inevitably, the new year rolls around and we have to sober up to the fact…
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Our go-to’s in the west coast’s weirdest city Portland may not be as weird as it once was (thanks to a rapid influx of out-of-state expats over the past few years) but there’s still no place quite like this rainy northwestern city. Portland is home to one of the country’s largest municipal parks, as well…
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At the Intake Office, we’ve been trying to practice our zen a little more. There are so many ways to do this–taking a walk on the beach, hitting up your Mindfulness app, Kondo-ing your living space–but our favorite (of course) is breathwork. If you practice yoga, you’ve probably dabbled in Pranayama, the formal practice of…
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A Love Letter to Our Hometown of Vineyards, Coastlines, and Endless Sun When you live in the same place for a long time, it’s easy to lose sight of the reasons you love it. In the past few years, we’ve seen our home weather devastating fires, flooding, and mudslides, and it’s been a wake up…
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Many studies, such as this one, that compare nasal to oral breathing deduce that, during exercise, oral breathing tends to be favorable because not enough air can be inhaled through the nose. Even for those of us with physiologically “perfect” noses, nasal breathing during exercise (especially without a nasal dilator) has to be practiced in…
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Our noses evolved to be our body’s air conditioners: our nasal passages humidify air and filter out particulates so that the air we inhale into our lungs is as non-irritating as possible. The internal nose alone provides 90% of the respiratory system’s air-conditioning requirement. This means that your lungs and throat have to nearly double…
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Our moods are affected by our brain and our nervous system. Studies have shown that our nose is linked to the function of our amygdala, which contributes to our ability to feel emotions and perceive them in others, and our parasympathetic nervous system, which is associated with feelings of centeredness and relaxation. When we breathe…
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