<?php declare(strict_types=1);
$page_title       = 'The Practice | Ember, Flame, Mastery | Big Breath';
$page_description = 'The Big Breath method in three acts: Ember, Flame, and Mastery. A vertical scroll narrative through the stages of breathwork transformation.';
$page_canonical   = 'https://bigbreath.co/the-practice/';
require __DIR__ . '/../components/_header.php';
?>

<section class="bb-section" style="padding-top:calc(var(--pad-section) + 4rem);">
  <div class="bb-container bb-container--narrow" style="text-align:center;">
    <span class="bb-label bb-reveal">The Practice</span>
    <hr class="bb-rule">
    <h1 class="bb-display bb-reveal" style="font-size:clamp(var(--t-4xl),6vw,var(--t-6xl));margin-bottom:var(--s-6);">Three stages.<br>One journey.</h1>
    <p class="bb-body bb-reveal">The Big Breath method is not a technique. It is a progression. You arrive carrying whatever the day gave you, and you leave with access to something the day could not touch. Practitioners move through Ember, Flame, and Mastery at their own pace, guided by Big Joe or by the recordings and retreats he has designed for every context.</p>
  </div>
</section>

<section class="bb-section" style="background:var(--bb-charcoal);color:var(--bb-cream);">
  <div class="bb-container">
    <div style="display:grid;grid-template-columns:1fr 1fr;gap:var(--s-16);align-items:center;">
      <div class="bb-reveal">
        <span class="bb-label" style="color:var(--bb-terracotta);margin-bottom:var(--s-6);">Stage 01</span>
        <h2 style="font-size:clamp(var(--t-4xl),6vw,var(--t-5xl));font-weight:var(--w-light);line-height:1;letter-spacing:-.02em;margin-bottom:var(--s-6);color:var(--bb-cream);">Ember</h2>
        <p style="font-size:var(--t-lg);line-height:1.7;color:var(--bb-sand);font-weight:var(--w-light);margin-bottom:var(--s-5);">The ember is the beginning. It is the first moment a practitioner consciously chooses the breath over the noise. At this stage, the nervous system is learning to trust. Stress responses that have fired for years begin to quiet.</p>
        <p style="font-size:var(--t-lg);line-height:1.7;color:var(--bb-sand);font-weight:var(--w-light);">Sessions focus on foundational patterns: nasal breathing, diaphragmatic engagement, and the basic rhythms of activation and recovery. This is where the inner fire is first lit.</p>
      </div>
      <div class="bb-reveal">
        <img src="/assets/images/bigjoe-5.webp" alt="Ember stage" style="width:100%;height:auto;display:block;">
      </div>
    </div>
  </div>
</section>

<section class="bb-section bb-section--oat">
  <div class="bb-container">
    <div style="display:grid;grid-template-columns:1fr 1fr;gap:var(--s-16);align-items:center;">
      <div class="bb-reveal">
        <img src="/assets/images/bigjoe-action-2.webp" alt="Flame stage" style="width:100%;height:auto;display:block;">
      </div>
      <div class="bb-reveal">
        <span class="bb-label" style="margin-bottom:var(--s-6);">Stage 02</span>
        <h2 class="bb-display" style="font-size:clamp(var(--t-4xl),6vw,var(--t-5xl));margin-bottom:var(--s-6);">Flame</h2>
        <p class="bb-body" style="margin-bottom:var(--s-5);">At Flame, the practitioner has established a relationship with the breath. Now the work intensifies. Breath-holds, extended exhales, and conscious hyperventilation sequences build capacity across the CO2 tolerance spectrum.</p>
        <p class="bb-body">Performance athletes work at this level to compress recovery time. Executives use Flame protocols to regulate real-time stress in high-stakes environments. This is where the breath becomes a precision tool.</p>
      </div>
    </div>
  </div>
</section>

<section class="bb-section" style="background:var(--bb-ink);color:var(--bb-cream);">
  <div class="bb-container bb-container--narrow" style="text-align:center;">
    <span class="bb-label bb-reveal" style="color:var(--bb-amber);margin-bottom:var(--s-6);">Stage 03</span>
    <h2 class="bb-reveal" style="font-size:clamp(var(--t-4xl),6vw,var(--t-5xl));font-weight:var(--w-light);line-height:1;letter-spacing:-.02em;margin-bottom:var(--s-8);color:var(--bb-cream);">Mastery</h2>
    <p class="bb-reveal" style="font-size:var(--t-lg);line-height:1.7;color:var(--bb-sand);font-weight:var(--w-light);margin-bottom:var(--s-6);">Mastery is not a destination. It is a state of effortless attention. At this level, the practitioner no longer thinks about the breath. It has become the operating system. Decisions, emotions, and physical states are governed from a place of settled power.</p>
    <p class="bb-reveal" style="font-size:var(--t-lg);line-height:1.7;color:var(--bb-sand);font-weight:var(--w-light);margin-bottom:var(--s-10);">Big Joe guides long-term practitioners toward this threshold through extended retreat formats, one-on-one mentorship, and bespoke protocols designed around each individual's nervous system signature.</p>
    <a href="/contact" class="bb-btn bb-reveal" style="border-color:var(--bb-cream);color:var(--bb-cream);">Begin at Ember</a>
  </div>
</section>

<?php require __DIR__ . '/../components/_footer.php'; ?>
