Did you know that your mouth is constantly working out?
That’s because we swallow over 4,000 times a day thanks to saliva production. It’s all thanks to one of the most jacked muscles in the human body – your very own tongue.
But sometimes the normal things we do, like chewing and swallowing, are often done improperly, and that can impede important aspects of how we breathe and maintain overall jaw health.
Just like a repetitive strain injury while working at the computer, you can swallow incorrectly and have repetitive strain issues that turn into sleep apnea, all because of your tongue!
When we swallow improperly, our tongue can come forward or we compensate with our lips to swallow food and drink, when what should be happening is a process where the tongue moves in a wave-like motion, coming downward.
What if somebody told you that your tongue is the pathway to a good night’s sleep? It might sound far fetched, but it’s true. If you lay on your back to sleep and find yourself waking up in the night, it could be a result of your tongue falling backwards, creating an obstruction in the airway that connects your nasal passages to your throat.
People understand what it means when your body feels tight – but did you know your tongue can feel tight? That’s right, your tongue is a muscle just like your glutes and hamstrings. When it comes to managing airflow issues, one of the foremost ways of improving your breathing quality is to hit the gym and give your tongue a workout ... in the most pragmatic way possible, of course.
The saying “I’m tongue tied” doesn’t just come from anywhere...
Go to your bathroom mirror and open your mouth wide, lifting your tongue to the roof of your hard palate. See that little fold of skin connecting your tongue to the bottom of your mouth? That is called your tongue tie, or lingual frenulum, and plays an enormous role in how well you breathe at night!
Normally, there isn't one but now tongue ties can be located anywhere along the tongue. Some people have tongue ties that end at the tip of their tongue, giving an almost “heart-shaped” appearance. If you have a longer tongue tie, it may impact the range of movement your tongue has when it comes to swallowing and speaking.
This is especially important during nighttime, because to sleep properly, our tongue needs to rest against the roof of our mouth, supporting the jaw muscles.
If you suffer from headaches, slouching, trouble walking on flat feet, or neck and shoulder pains, it might be a good idea to get your tongue tie checked out by a dedicated sleep apnea coach. A tight tongue tie can affect you literally head-to-toe.
A surgical procedure called a tongue-tie release may help in the long run, but isn’t always necessary, and still requires a pragmatic strength-training workout regime.
When people think of the biggest muscle in the body, glutes may come to mind. However, people don’t realize your tongue is a muscle, too. One way to repair airflow issues is to take your tongue to the gym for a little mouth-based strength training in the most pragmatic way possible: with the help of a dedicated sleep apnea coach.
