4 Simple Breathing Techniques That I Use Every Day!

Sep 2018

They are something that we take often – that is if we are lucky. In fact, we take them on average 16 times per minute, 960 times per hour, 23,040 times per day, and 8,409,600 per year – meaning that if we live to the ripe young age of 75 we will have taken them 630,720,000 times!

And as often as we take them, we often take them for granted!

Given the title, you have probably figured out by now that I am talking about breaths!

We all know that breaths give us life, but did you know they can also help us improve our lives?

Yes indeed! Breathing techniques can help us with everything from lowering stress to calming us down to helping us fall asleep to energizing us to helping us get a clear state of mind.

I am a big proponent of breathing techniques and have used them successfully in many areas of my life. Today’s post will review 4 breathing techniques that I have tried and used that you may want to try in various parts of your life.

By the way…Did I mention that there are even breathing techniques that can improve your sex life? Now that I have your attention…we will leave that for dessert later on in this post…

Do you ever have those nights where you just can’t fall asleep?

Well, I sure do! For me, it’s not so much falling asleep, it’s more like waking up in the middle of the night because I have been woken up by my neighbors’ obnoxious dog, or one of my obnoxious neighbors (I live in a high-rise condo) coming home drunk and acting the fool, or my obnoxious bladder getting me to make a trip to the bathroom.

In any event…it’s obnoxious and it sucks!

Recently, I have learned a method to help me fall back asleep called…

(1) 4-7-8 Breathing

It works like this, you hold the tip of your tongue on the tissue right behind your front teeth, then you simply:

First exhale through your mouth, making a loud whoosh sound.
Breathe in through your nose for a count of 4 (with your mouth closed).
Hold it for a count of 7.
Exhale through your mouth for a count of 8 (again making the whoosh sound).
This is one cycle. Repeat the cycle 3 more times.

Some tips:

Keep your tongue behind your teeth the whole time.
I do it lying down, but it is recommended to do it sitting with your back straight when learning how to do it.
Breathe in quietly through your nose.
If you can’t hold your breath for that long, it’s fine. It is the ratio of 4:7:8 is what is important – so just count a bit faster.
I don’t just do it to fall asleep, but also if I am feeling tense or stressed.
Some people feel light headed when doing it – if so, slow your breathing and get up slowly.
It is recommended not to do more than 4 cycles for the first month of doing it, but you can up it to 8 cycles after a while.

There are other times when I need a boost of energy…

or when I want to change my state. When that happens, I have a few strategies I employ, one is grabbing some caffeine, another is having a cold shower and since we are talking about breathing techniques, the final one is using a breathing technique called…

(2) Stimulating Breath a.k.a. Bellows Breath

With this technique, all the breathing is done through your nose.

The idea is to rapidly inhale and exhale 3 times all within 1 second – so inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale – that counts as 1 cycle. This action creates a swift movement of the diaphragm, which suggests a bellows.

When you start, don’t go for more than 15 seconds. Each time you can add 5 seconds until you are up to 1 minute. If you do it right, you will feel energized and refreshed.

If you read my recent post on how to stay focused…

You will remember that where many of us get tripped up us the transition from one task to another. We get distracted by jumping on social media or doing whatever, which gets us out of focus. The key to mine the transition between tasks is to be aware of things that may trip you up. One method that I have read about that I have begun using lately with success is a breathing technique called…

(3) Box Breathing

This is a simple breathing technique where you get relaxed and then:

First, exhale through your mouth for a count of 4.
Keep your lungs empty for a count of 4.
Breathe in through your nose for a count of 4.
Hold it for a count of 4.
Exhale through your mouth for a count of 4.
Repeat for 5 minutes or however long you need.
Box breathing can also be used to release stress or for relaxation.
Some people imagine each of the 4 sides of a box changing color one at a time, while some imagine a pencil tracing the outline of a box, one side at a time in a pseudo visualization exercise.

Every morning when I wake up, I practice meditation…

I go through a specific routine over a span of 10 minutes that gets me primed and focused for the day. Near the end of my routine, I get into what is called…

(4) Breath Counting

Which is one of the simplest meditation breathing techniques there is, all you do is get relaxed and…

Sit up straight.
Then simply close your eyes and take a few deep breaths.
Then simply breath normally and every time you exhale count until you hit 5.
When you get to 5, start back at 1, never going higher than 5.
What happens is that if you go higher than 5 you will find your mind starts to wander and your attention will go elsewhere.
You want to keep your attention on your breath

Those are the 4 breathing techniques, I use personally in different areas of my life. If you want to learn other breathing techniques, there are some others that you may want to check out, such as:

Body scan relaxation
Alternate nostril breathing
Sama Vritti or “Equal” breathing
Kapalabhati or “Skull Shining Breath”
Abdominal breathing/belly breathing/deep breathing
Roll breathing
Modified lion’s breath

Before we go…it’s time for dessert

Or to discuss breathing techniques that can improve your sex life.

The one that I have seen most associated with better sex is simply deep breathing.

According to this article in Elite Daily, simple deep breathing and focusing on your breath…”Can be calming, de-stressing, and it can make for faster and more potent oxygenation in the blood… In fact, rhythmic breathing can be so incredibly powerful that you can technically achieve a bodily orgasm while running, meditating, or even swimming.” ¹ Hey now!

To all you guys out there, before you start doing cannonballs…WAIT!

That advice was for the girls…

But don’t worry, deep breathing can sometimes help you last longer as often times it is anxiety that is the reason for your quick trigger. Deep breathing relaxes you, delivers more oxygen to your blood and re-aligns your focus.

Until next time, keep breathing and as always…PYMFP!
–Rick

Use it or Lose It – Breathing Techniques

Some breathing techniques I use are:

4-7-8 Breathing to help me fall asleep.
Stimulating Breath a.k.a. Bellow Breath for a boost of energy.
Box breathing when I need to stay focused.
Breath counting as part of my meditation routine.

When to Use It:

These breathing techniques that I use can be used in similar situations to what I have used them for namely: sleep, energy, relaxation, focus, and meditation as well as many more!

What Do You Think?

Have you used any of these techniques or any other techniques? How did they help you? Please share in the comments below!

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References

https://www.drweil.com/health-wellness/body-mind-spirit/stress-anxiety/breathing-three-exercises/2/

l https://www.elitedaily.com/dating/sex/deep-mindful-breathing-can-totally-transform-sex-life/2022074