What is prana and how does it relate to my energy?

In yoga, prana is our life force which is expressed through the breath and circulates throughout our entire system through nadis or energy channels.

There are believed to be over 72000 nadis!  The three key ones are susumna, ida and pingala.  The most important - susumna - is the central energetic channel that stems from muladhara (root cakra) at our base and runs along the spine to the crown of the head (sahasrara cakra). 

Ida (cooling channel) and pingala (warming channel) also start at muladhara and crisscross with susumna at five key areas, which is how the seven cakras were formulated. 

Through pranayama (conscious regulation of breath) we can help to clear these key energetic channels thus enabling prana to flow more effectively throughout our entire system including our cakras.  A key pranayama practice is nadhi shodhana, or alternate nostril breathing.  Here is a 10 minute practice you can try for yourself. Use the comments section to let me know what you notice during and as a result of the practice.