5 Deep Breathing Exercises for Stress Relief and Relaxation
By: Dominica Morris
Last week I shared some of my favorite relaxation techniques that reduce stress. I shared everything from meditation to aromatherapy, to journaling, but as soon as I published the post I realized that there’s one big relaxation technique for stress and anxiety reduction that I forgot to mention, and that’s breathing exercises. Here are some of my favorite super-simple breathing exercises you can do anywhere to help alleviate stress and anxiety. Do them a few minutes a day, or whenever you feel uneasy, to feel immediately at peace.
Benefits of Breathing Exercises
Before I share my favorite breathing exercises with you, I want to explain the benefits of doing regular breathing exercises. According to the University of Michigan School of Medicine, deep breathing exercises are great because they signal to your brain that it’s time to relax or calm down. When you inhale and exhale deeply your body starts to relax, all physiological symptoms such as high blood pressure, fast breathing, and heart rate starts to lower. The reason why I love breathing exercises for stress reduction is that you can do them anytime and anywhere.
Belly Breathing
Belly breathing exercises are a great way to learn how to use deep breathing to relief stress.
If you’re new to practicing breathing exercises I would recommend doing this one first. It’s really easy to do and teaches you how to focus on your body while you’re practicing your breathwork. You can either sit or lay down while doing this, whatever is easiest for you.
Start out by placing one hand on your chest and the other hand on your belly.
Next, breathe in deeply through your nose and feel your belly push your hand outward.
Then purse your lips as if you’re trying to whistle and breathe out of your mouth.
Feel how your belly slowly starts to sink in.
Repeat this exercise for however long you need to.
Breathing While Walking
Try practicing this breathing exercise next time you go for a walk.
Have you ever felt so anxious that you felt the need to step outside and go for a brisk walk or run? I know I have, and I often feel much more relaxed afterward. This is probably because as we get moving our body starts to inhale and exhale more deeply. Next time you need to step outside again try and pair some intentional breathing exercises with your walk for added relaxation. Here’s how you do it.
Breathe in for 5 steps.
Breathe out for 5 steps.
Repeat this for however long you need to.
Tip: If you want it to be a bit more challenging you can up it to 6 steps.
Box Breathing 4x4
4x4 Box Breathing is a little more challenging than the previous two exercises because in it you’ll practice holding your breath for a few seconds. It is similar to the breathing while walking exercise since you’re breathing in and out for the same number of seconds. Again, you can do this exercise while sitting or laying or down, choose what works best for you.
Breathe in through your nose for 4 seconds.
Hold for 4 seconds.
Exhale slowly for 4 seconds.
Repeat for as much as you need to.
3 4 5 Breathing Exercise
Similar to 4x4 Box breathing you’ll also hold your breath for 4 seconds in this breathing exercise. The only difference is in how long you’ll inhale and exhale. Here’s how you do 3 4 5 breathing.
Slowly breathe in for 3 seconds.
Hold for 4 seconds.
Slowly breathe out for 5 seconds.
Repeat for as much as you need to.
4 7 8 Breathing Exercise
4 7 8 breathing is a little more difficult than 3 4 5 breathing because of the amount of time you’re inhaling and exhaling. Other than that, they’re pretty similar. I would recommend doing 4 7 8 breathwork if you feel that you need a little bit more of a challenge from the 3 4 5 one.
Slowly inhale for 4 seconds.
Hold for 7 seconds.
Slowly breathe out for 8 seconds
Repeat for as much as you need to.
Other Tips to Enhance Your Breathwork Practice
Before I end this post I want to share some great ways you can keep up with your breathwork practice.
If you can find a quiet place to practice so you can truly focus on your breath.
Try to practice every day and ideally every day at the same time to start building a routine.
If it’s hard for you to focus on your breath put one hand on your chest and the other on your belly during your practice.
You can do meditation with breathing exercises.
You can also do yoga with breathing exercises.