belly breathing

Hello, I am a bit confused about diaphragmatic breathing. When I breathe my ribs expand sideways but my belly and low back are not moving at all. It this correct way of breathing or it is shallow breathing ? Can you suggest some advices how to expand ribs, stomach and back at the same time

Hey Daniel! As long as your abdomen/ribs are moving rather than your chest rising and falling, you're on the right track. To feel the belly/back movement, I'd try breathing in child's pose (yoga), lying on your back (to feel your belly move), and breathing through your nose to start. 

I see thank you very much

Recently I heard that lung capacity in the back is bigger in the back and back breathing is more important than belly breathing. Is it accurate ?

Different teachers sometimes over-emphasize one aspect, be it belly, ribs or back. In my opinion, we want them all to move freely when we breathe, and it's not too helpful to favor one area over the others! Your back movement is going to be a bit harder to detect (since our backs are typically firmer than our bellies) - but if you place your hands higher up on your mid to upper back, you should feel some expansion. 

after a few deep breaths using belly breathing I get very light-headed    .. does this eventually go away?... It is hard to contrate on singing when this keeps happening

good advice

Hi, Gary! When I've had students struggle with light headedness, it's usually because they're overbreathing: taking a much larger breath than is necessary. It's more important that your belly is relaxed (so it's a low breath) than that you take in a high volume of air (what we think of as a deep breath). Breathe as naturally as possible, with good posture, belly relaxed so it can move, and you should be more comfortable! 

Thanks Camille

You're welcome, Gary!

So when it comes to singing, are we always thinking about expanding the belly and pushing the air inside? Like how you mentiond in one of your tutorials the idea of a candle infront of your mouth, Is it wrong when you lets air out of the mouth? And should I ever feel my belly slowly collapsing at all or should it always feel like it's expanding?