and 5 Ways To Improve Your Breathing with James Nestor
Prioritise Nose Breathing
- The Foundation of Healthy Breathing: Both experts stress that breathing in and out through the nose is the natural and correct way to breathe, for humans and most mammals. Mel Robbins herself noted she was a "mouth breather" and discovered she shouldn't be.
- Numerous Benefits of Nasal Breathing:
- Filtration and Conditioning: The nose acts as the body's first line of defence, filtering, heating, pressurising, and moistening air before it reaches the lungs. This purifies the air and makes it more suitable for the body.
- Increased Oxygen Uptake: Breathing through the nose allows the body to extract about 20% more oxygen than equivalent breaths through the mouth. It also increases oxygen delivery to working muscles, tissues, and organs, including the brain.
- Nitric Oxide Production: Nasal breathing produces nitric oxide, a gas that is antiviral, antibacterial, helps open up airways, and redistributes blood throughout the lungs. This is particularly beneficial for respiratory complaints like bronchitis and for fighting viruses.
- Stress Reduction: The resistance and pressure in nasal breathing are essential for calming the body down. Mouth breathing, especially upper chest and faster breathing, activates a greater "fight or flight" response, stressing the body.
- Physical Health Improvements: Nasal breathing can positively affect how the heart beats, circulation, digestion, brain operation, and can reduce chronic ailments such as asthma, allergies, and anxiety. It can also improve facial structure and reduce susceptibility to periodontal disease.
- Reduced Water Loss: Mouth breathing leads to 42% greater water loss, contributing to dehydration, dry mouth, gum disease, and bad breath.
- Cognitive Benefits: Nose breathing enhances visual spatial awareness, memory, and attention.
- Spinal Stabilisation: It encourages greater recruitment of the diaphragm, which not only aids respiration but also provides stabilisation for the spine, with 50% of lower back pain sufferers having dysfunctional breathing.
- Action Points for Nose Breathing:
- Conscious Shift: Actively try to breathe through your nose as often as you can.
- Mouth Taping: Use a simple elasticated tape around the mouth (like Patrick McCune's "Mayo tape") as a training tool during the day and while sleeping to encourage nose breathing. Ensure the tape allows for "mouth puffing" if you have severe obstructive sleep apnea.
- Nasal Dilators: If your nose is congested, a nasal dilator can help open it up.
- Persistence: When first switching from mouth to nose breathing, you might feel a slight air hunger or breathlessness during exercise. Stick with it and slow down your intensity if necessary to maintain nasal breathing; the benefits far outweigh the disadvantages. The more you breathe through your nose, the better it works.
Slow and Low Breathing for Calm and Efficiency
- Calming the Nervous System: Slowly inhaling and exhaling sends signals to your brain that you are in a calm and safe state, helping to control your nervous system. This prevents the release of stress hormones like adrenaline, which can lead to chronic inflammation.
- Increased Efficiency: Breathing fewer, slower breaths while obtaining more oxygen in each breath is a sign of efficiency. Over-breathing (taking in too much air) stresses the body.
- Lung Capacity and Longevity: Lung capacity is identified as the number one marker of longevity, more so than genetics or diet. After age 35, lungs naturally start to shrink, but proper, slow, and low breathing can help retain lung capacity.
- Action Points for Slow and Low Breathing:
- Mindful Slowing: Simply slow down your breathing. Start with what's comfortable, e.g., inhaling for a count of three and exhaling for a count of three.
- Extended Exhales: To further relax the body and elicit a parasympathetic response, extend your exhale to be about one and a half to two times the length of your inhale (e.g., inhale for three, exhale for six or eight). This can be used anytime, anywhere.
- Diaphragmatic Breathing: Place your hands on either side of your lower ribs. As you breathe in through your nose, gently direct your lower ribs to move outwards. As you breathe out, they should gently move inwards. This ensures good recruitment of the diaphragm, which is essential for deep, calming breaths and spinal stabilisation.
- Optimal Breath Rate: For relaxation and balance, aim for 4.5 to 6.5 breaths per minute. When starting, if you're breathing around 20 breaths per minute, gradually soften and slow your breathing down.
- Yoga and Exercise: Engage in mild to moderate exercise to help retain lung capacity. Original yoga practices were centred on sitting and controlling breath to allow lungs to inflate and deflate to their maximum potential.
- Before Sleep: Practice "under-breathing" by taking very soft, gentle breaths, taking in about 30% less air than normal, with a really slow and relaxed exhale. This creates a slight "air hunger" and stimulates the vagus nerve, signalling to the brain that the body is safe and ready for rest and digest, promoting sleep.
Conscious Breath Holding
- Distinguish from Unconscious Holding: Unconscious breath holding, common among stressed office workers, is detrimental to health.
- Benefits of Intentional Breath Holds: When done consciously, breath holding can increase carbon dioxide levels, which helps calm the body, improve athletic performance, enhance focus, and even generate warmth. It's a tool to control respiration and bring you more deeply into your body.
- Action Points for Breath Holding:
- Relaxation Response: After a normal inhale and exhale through your nose, pinch your nose and hold your breath for about five seconds. Release and breathe normally for a few breaths. Repeat. This stimulates the vagus nerve, slowing heart rate and signalling safety to the brain.
- Nose Decongestion: After a normal inhale and exhale through your nose, gently pinch your nose and nod your head up and down while holding your breath. This activates a slight stress response that helps open up the nose. Aim for at least 30 seconds once comfortable, but start gently. Note: Do not do this if prone to panic disorder, anxiety, pregnant, or have cardiovascular issues.
- Athletic Enhancement: Advanced techniques for athletes involve breath holds during sprints or other exercises to improve CO2 tolerance and performance.
Embrace Simplicity and Consistency
- Simple Tweaks, Profound Impact: The experts emphasise that effective and transformative change doesn't need to be complicated. Simple breathing adjustments throughout the day, before sleep, studying, or workouts, can have a profound effect on health.
- Everyday Habits: The goal is to make these breathing patterns your default. Get the foundation of everyday breathing right first – in and out of the nose, low and slow. Don't wait for important meetings or stressful situations; integrate these practices into daily life.
- Breathing as a "Remote Control": Your breath influences every system in your body and sends signals to your brain, making it a powerful tool to control mental and physical states.
By integrating these learning and action points, you can leverage the inherent power of your breath to improve focus, reduce pain, achieve better sleep, lower anxiety, and generally enhance your overall health and quality of life.