4 Deep Breathing Exercises

Deep breathing is a type of relaxation technique. Evidence has found that relaxation techniques help reduce stress, anxiety, insomnia, and other chronic pain. Taking the time to focus on your breath and use the full capacity of your lungs is a simple way to stay focused on the present and soothe any stress and tension in your body. Here are four different deep breathing exercises for you to try.

1. Four-Square or Box Breathing

   1. Inhale to a count of four.
   2. Hold your air in your lungs for a count of four.
   3. Exhale to a count of four.
   4. Hold your lungs empty for a count of four.
   5. Inhale and begin the pattern again.

2. Belly Breathing

   1. Sit in a chair, sit cross-legged, or lay on your back with your head and knees supported.
   2. Place one hand on your upper chest and the other hand on your belly, below the ribcage.
   3. Allow your belly to relax without forcing it inward by squeezing or clenching your muscles.
   4. Breathe in slowly through your nose. The air should move into your nose and downward so that you feel your stomach rise with your hand. The hand on your chest should remain relatively still.
   5. Exhale slowly through slightly pursed lips. Let your belly relax. You should feel that hand on your stomach fall inward toward your spine. The hand on your chest should remain relatively still.
   6. Cycle through this process as many times as desired or needed.

3. Visualization-Mantra Breathing

   1. Close your eyes. Take a few big deep breaths.
   2. Breathe in, and as you do, imagine that the air is filled with a sense of peace and calm.
   3. Try to feel this peace and calm through your body.
   4. Breath out. While you’re exhaling, imagine the air leaves with your stress and tension.
   5. Now, use a word or phrase with your breath. As you breathe, say in your mind, “I breathe in peace and calm.”
   6. As you breathe out, say in your mind, “I breathe out stress and tension.”
   7. Cycle through this for as long as you like.

4. Morning Breathing

   1. Try this exercise when you first get up in the morning to relieve muscle stiffness and clear your breathing passages. Then use it throughout the day to relieve back tension.
   2. From a standing position, bend forward from the waist with your knees slightly bent, letting your arms dangle close to the floor.
   3. As you inhale slowly and deeply, return to a standing position by rolling up slowly, feeling each vertebra shift into place, lifting your head last.
   4. Hold your breath for just a few seconds in this standing position.
   5. Exhale slowly as you return to the original position, bending forward from the waist.