Notice your breathing feels shallow, rushed, or stuck in your chest? Santé shares 4 proven, expert-backed breathing fixes to help you relax, refocus, and breathe deeply right away.
Quick Breath Fix #1
Goal: Create immediate relaxation
- Breathe in through your nose for a count of 3.
- Exhale slowly and relaxed through your mouth for a count of 6.
- Pause briefly, then inhale naturally by feel.
Read also: ‘At these moments it is normal to be out of breath’
Quick Breath Fix #2
Goal: Wake up your body and sharpen focus
- Breathe in and out 5 times, starting inhalation from your belly.
- Inhale through your nose, exhale relaxed through your mouth.
- After the fifth inhale, hold for 5 seconds.
- Exhale as long as possible.
- Repeat 3 times.
- Sit still for a moment afterward.
Quick Breath Fix #3
Goal: Relax body and mind, return to natural breathing rhythm
- Sit or lie down comfortably, close your eyes. Keep the tip of your tongue against the roof of your mouth, just behind your front teeth, throughout.
- Exhale fully through your mouth— it may sound like a lisp with your tongue in place.
- Inhale quietly through your nose for a mental count of 4. Hold for 7.
- Exhale relaxed through your mouth for 8 counts.
- Start with 4 rounds; build to 8 as you practice.
Quick Breath Fix #4
Goal: Relearn conscious belly breathing
- Inhale slowly and deeply for 4-6 counts, expanding your belly fully.
- Hold for 4-6 counts.
- Exhale relaxed for 4-6 counts, softening your belly completely.
Fun Facts About Breathing
- At rest, your lungs process 6-8 liters of air per minute. Running? Up to 40-50 liters.
- In 2016, Spaniard Aleix Segura Vendrell set the world record, holding his breath underwater for 24 minutes and 3.45 seconds.
- Average lung capacity is 4-6 liters; breath-holding training can boost it to 10 liters.
- Air is 21% oxygen, 0.03% CO2, and the rest mostly nitrogen.
(Sources: Stans van der Poel, Guinness Book of Records)
Source: Santé May 2019, text: Priscilla Borgers
