Did you Know? We breathe approximately 10-12 times in a minute and over 28,800 times in a single day. Yet, most of us don’t think too much about it, as it is something that happens without any conscious effort.

Now, science has shown that breathing with awareness has many physical and physiological benefits and inculcating a habit of conscious breathing can transform our life.

“Conscious breathing has seeped into all parts of my life,” said Aarthi Menon, 42, an independent journalist and an Ashtanga Yoga practitioner and instructor based in Mysore. In Ashtanga Yoga, every movement is accompanied by breath and practicing it for six years has made her breathing mindful even when she is off the yoga mat.

“While most people react to situations impulsively, conscious breathing has helped me pause and delay my response, helping me avoid arguments and unnecessary fights,” Menon said. Breathing consciously has also improved her lung capacity, and she could feel a tangible difference between herself and others when she went on a high-altitude trek in the Himalayas this year. Conscious breathing has also improved her writing skills – “It has improved my clarity of thought,” Menon said.

What is conscious breathing?

Conscious breathing is the term used for breathing with awareness. While other animals and even babies breathe through their bellies, most adults take shallow breaths. Shallow breathing, also called thoracic breathing, is breathing from the chest cavity without the involvement of the diaphragm. It is linked to an increased tendency to anxiety, stress and respiratory problems and is a precursor to cardiovascular problems.

This is where conscious breathing can play a role. By being mindful of each inhalation and exhalation and breathing through the diaphragm, we can decrease stress and anxiety and improve focus, respiratory function, and digestion, among other benefits.

Pranayama: Breathing with awareness

We do not have to go far from India to tap into the benefits of mindful breathing; Yoga was among the first doctrines to develop a theory around respiratory control. It considers the breath as a vehicle and a way to practice awareness.

In the breath control exercises in Yoga called Pranayama, we learn to control the breath, and through it, we control prana or the life force. According to Yoga’s wisdom, when our breathing is calm and controlled, we can easily surpass a state of distress in any given life situation.

There are three phases of Pranayama:
1. puraka or inhalation
2. kumbhaka, a pause after the inhalation
3. rechaka or exhalation

There are various pranayama techniques like anulomvilom, kapalbhati and bhastrika that can be learnt and practiced under the guidance of a yogic guru, instructor, or mentor.

Positive Influence of Conscious Breathing

Parasympathetic nervous system: One of the crucial ways breathing helps us physiologically is by activating the parasympathetic nervous system, which is responsible for metabolic functions at rest. Due to our hectic modern life, our sympathetic nervous system, responsible for fight or flight response, is overstimulated, causing stress. Breathing consciously signals the body that it is not under threat, and the rest of the body’s functions, like digestion and repair, can happen smoothly.

Anxiety: Pranayam helps reduce anxiety and improve performance.
In a 2013 randomized control trial, one-third of students who practiced Pranayama experienced anxiety before an exam compared to two-thirds of students in the group who didn’t practice it. Further, students who practiced Pranayama had lower anxiety scores and higher test scores than those who didn’t.

Asthma: A 2020 review of studies showed that Pranayama positively impacted asthma patients with an improvement in respiratory function measurements, blood pressure, and pulse rate. They also witnessed a reduction in the frequency of attacks and medication required. Similar benefits were observed in those with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and Cancer disease where patients who practiced Pranayama had a higher quality of life than those who didn’t.

Autoimmune diseases: In a randomized control trial, intervention group participants who underwent a short training in Wim Hof’s breathing technique had increased levels of anti-inflammatory proteins and adrenaline that suppress harmful immune responses. These results show that conscious breathing can be vital in treating excessive or persistent inflammation and autoimmune diseases.

Overall health benefits: A 2019 review showed that Pranayama improved brain activity, respiratory function, metabolism and body function in healthy individuals. It also helps manage chronic diseases like high blood pressure, diabetes and helps cancer patients undergoing radiation and chemotherapy.

How to make conscious breathing part of your routine?

Do it anywhere: Iyengar yoga practitioner and instructor Sharvari Joshi says: – ‘ in Yoga, Pranayama is taught about eight years after learning yoga poses or asanas. “It is considered that after we become more aware of our body, we are ready to focus on the next step, that is Pranayama. But its benefits can be experienced by conscious breathing during asanas itself,” she said. Even without Yoga, you can close your eyes and focus on your breath while sitting, lying down, or at your desk, “Remember to focus on the crown chakra between the eyebrows and sit at least for five minutes to allow your body and mind to quieten,” Joshi said.

Make it a ritual: To make conscious breathing a part of your life, do it once or twice daily. Sit in a quiet place, take deep inhalations and exhalations and experience your belly rise and fall. Relax your neck and back muscles as you breathe. Start with one minute and build up to five to ten minutes of conscious breathing.

4-7-8 method: This form of breathing can be tried whenever you feel stressed. Developed by Dr Andrew Weil, this technique helps our nervous system relax and dissipate stress. Sit in a quiet place and inhale for a count of four, hold your breath for the count of seven and exhale from your mouth with a whoosh sound till the count of eight. Repeat up to three cycles.

“One conscious breath in and out is meditation.” – Eckhart Tolle

“Conscious breathing cannot happen with reminders in our phone as we do for drinking water,” said Aarthi Menon, the ashtanga yoga practitioner. Practicing conscious breathing as a daily habit, either through Pranayama or another breathing technique over time, is preferable as it will help your body adapt to belly breathing as a default way of breathing.

Keep Breathing the Right Way! Stay Healthy. Stay Happy.