The 4-4-8 breathing technique is a basic breathing technique which is designed to help you relax and focus. This technique is great if you feel stressed or tense. Using this technique will help you get rid of the tension so you can focus on what you need to do. No matter what your goal is, controlling your breath will help you focus and clarify your thinking. This breathing method will only be successful if you are totally at ease and relaxed. If you are tense then it makes good sense to relax your body. One basic relaxation technique involves you laying flat on the floor or sitting comfortably on a chair with your feet firmly flat on the ground. Close your eyes and gradually tense and relax each part of the body working upwards from your feet to your head. Once you feel you are fully relaxed you need to switch your attention to your breath. This breathing exercise will help you focus and clear your mind as well as lift your mood. The Technique Start by inhaling quietly through your nose for four counts of time. Make sure you fill your lungs completely to the point where you feel your abdomen is filled full of air like a balloon. Hold your breath for four counts. Then, through pursed lips, slowly exhale through your mouth making a whoosh sound for eight counts. It will take a few attempts before you feel comfortable but you will soon find a rhythm that suits you as there is no wrong way of using this technique. As you are inhaling visualize health and vitality entering your body, while holding the count of four imagine perfect health and energy filling each and every cell in your body. When you exhale imagine you are blowing away the pain, fatigue, tension and stress that you have in your body. How it works Basically, it is the longer exhale that will calm you down. Your heart rate and blood pressure increase on every breath in. Then, for every breath out the opposite happens and your blood pressure and heart rate go down. The result will leave you feeling more relaxed and less stressed. So by exhaling for twice as long as you inhale, you’re effectively hitting your off switch. Whenever you feel stressed or low or want a boost of energy, simply carrying out 3 to 4 sets in a row will to help lift your mood. Inspiratory muscle training is also a breathing technique that is great for healthy and happy lungs.
My freediving instructor recommends a 4-4-8-4 pattern as a breathe-up before a freediving session. So, the same pattern as described here, but with an extra 4 s hold after exhalation. On the other hand, a freediving app I’m using (NTX Apnea) uses a 5-0-10-0 breathe-up pattern. What they all have in common is a faster inhalation and a slower exhalation, providing relaxation. Reply
Is it ok to repeat it for 5 minutes every day? I mean, I think the purpose of this technique is to calm you down, but on a regular basis we should spend the same amount of time while inhaling and exhaling to keep us balanced. If we force the exhalation to be longer everyday for 5 minutes, will it eventually cause me to be out of balance? Hope you can understand what my point is! Reply
Hello Katia and thank you for your comment. The exhale 2-to-1 breathing is suggested/recommended for calming us down because exhalation stimulates the parasympathetic system, releasing muscular tension. (Inhalation stimulates the sympathetic system and so has an opposite effect to releasing tension.) Furthermore, by exhaling for longer, you’re breathing out carbon dioxide from your lungs which is then filled with fresh air when you inhale. You can find breathing exercises from Dr Weil here, which I think might be of interest to you. Best wishes to you Katia. Reply
Loved the count of 4-4-8 for healthy breathing which indeed is a great lead for a healthy life. Thank you for the helpful post. Reply
Oh Sajeev you’re most welcome, and I do hope this breathing technique proves manageable and helpful to you. Stay well and safe 🙂 Reply
Thanks Vanessa for also sharing this technique so freely in current times when most people try to monetize most things. May you be blessed. Reply
You are right since at a practical level I have noticed that sometimes, especially when one is really stressed, the 7 or even a breath hold after exhale (like in 4-4-4-4) can introduce a certain amount of discomfort and its own stress. Thanks for clarification and I am looking forward to practising this new technique. Best wishes. Reply
Hello Sajeev and thank you for your comment. This offers a similar effect to the Dr Weil 4 7 8 breathing technique. The important ratio is that you exhale for twice as long as you inhale. The 4 4 8 breathing technique might be a good place to start before the 4 7 8, as people can become light headed with the count of 7 for breath holding, whereas 4 is more manageable. Hope that helps. Best wishes to you. Reply
Thanks for the information. This is similar to the Dr Weil 4 7 8 breathing technique. Any advantage this offers since the breath hold in this is 4 counts as opposed to 7 in the Weil method. Reply
Very informative! This quarantine situation has really caused a lot of stress to a lot of people, including myself. I was having difficulties in sleeping and doing this actually helped me. I hope everyone is safe and healthy. Cheers! Reply
Thank you Rose, we’re delighted it has helped. Thank you for your kindness – and you stay safe and well too. Reply
I have vertigo due to spondylitis. If I travel over bumpy roads without collar, next day, I get vertigo. It takes one week to become normal along with Vertin tablet. Will this breathing help me? Reply
Hello and thank you for your comment. I’m afraid we are not healthcare professionals so cannot comment on a medical condition, however we would recommend you speak to your phsyio about experiencing vertigo due to spondylitis. I’m not aware of IMT in trials for use in vertigo, but there are a couple of research papers that might be of interest to your physio when you speak to them: Inspiratory muscle training improves aerobic capacity and pulmonary function in patients with ankylosing spondylitis: a randomized controlled study and The efficiency of inspiratory muscle training in patients with ankylosing spondylitis I hope that will prove to be helpful. Thank you once again for getting in touch, and best wishes to you. Reply
Please clarify if we inhale with the nose only or both nose & mouth, and then for the exhale, same question. Thank you Reply
Thank you Gia for your question. You should inhale quietly through your nose with your mouth closed for a count of 4, and hold for a count of 4. Then, exhale through your pursed lips making a whoosh sound for a count of 8. Thank you again for your question and I will update the blog accordingly. Much appreciated. Best wishes to you. Reply
Thanks, Vanessa, for the lovely article. Just a small clarification I need. “Whenever you feel stressed or low or want a boost of energy, simply carrying out three sets of twelve repetitions will to help lift your mood.” Does the above line means that we do 4 – 12 breathing three times. Please confirm. Reply
Oops, sorry for the confusion. Yes I’ve just re-read it and it should read 3 – 4 breathing sets to help calm the nervous system down. Thank you for coming back and pointing this out – it’s much appreciated. I’ve now amended the blog too, thanks to your input, which will also help others, so thank you once again 🙂 Reply
Hi Vanessa , Thank you for your lovely article. This 4-4-8 breathing is brilliant . I have high blood pressure, I prolong my expiration for 10 seconds ,so I do a slight variation & it is a 4-4-10 breathing , so 4-4-10 is one set . I have found that if I do 10 sets at one time , it calms me down tremendously and the blood pressure decreases ,also less stress and anxiety. Recommend 10 sets 3-4 times a day like 3 meal, will definitely transform your life for the better . Kind regards Reply
Oh that’s great to hear of how you’ve adapted it to suit your own requirements. I’m so pleased it’s made a difference and well done on finding your own bespoke solution. Thank you for sharing it here so that others may try it too and experience the same benefits. Best wishes to you. Reply
Thank you for your comment Sumithrara – good question! Basically, a longer exhale is what actually calms you down. Your heart rate and blood pressure increase on every breath in; then for every breath out the opposite happens, so your blood pressure and heart rate goes down, leaving you more relaxed and less stressed. So by exhaling for twice as long as you inhale, you’re effectively hitting your off switch. Reply
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