Do you feel that your breathing is rushed or is too high? Then Santé has 4 quick breath fixes for you.
Quick breath fix #1
Goal:create immediate relaxation
- Breathe in through your nose for 3 counts.
- Exhale relaxed through your mouth for 6 counts.
- Wait a moment and breathe in again by feeling.
Read also: ‘At these moments it is normal to be out of breath‘
Quick breath fix #2
Goal:to wake up your body and focus.
- Breathe in and out 5 times, the inhalation starts from your belly.
- Breathe in through your nose, relax through your mouth.
- After the fifth inhale, hold your breath for 5 seconds.
- Exhale as long as possible.
- Repeat 3 times.
- Sit still for a while.
Quick breath fix #3
Goal:relax your body and mind and get back into a normal breathing flow.
- Sit or lie down relaxed and close your eyes. Throughout the exercise, keep the tip of your tongue against your roof of the mouth, just behind your front teeth.
- Start by exhaling through your mouth, you can really exhale. Because the tip of your tongue is against your palate, it sounds like you are lisping.
- Breathe in through your nose and count to 4 in your head. Hold your breath and count to 7.
- Exhale relaxed (blow out again) for 8 counts through your mouth.
- Start with four rounds in total. Once you get the hang of it, you can build it up to a maximum of 8 rounds.
Quick breath fix #4
Goal:learn to breathe consciously in your stomach again.
- Breathe in slowly and deeply for 4 to 6 counts. Inflate your stomach excessively.
- Hold your breath for 4 to 6 counts.
- Exhale relaxed for 4 to 6 counts. Release your breath until your belly is soft again.
Fun facts about breathing
- At rest, your lungs take in six to eight liters of air per minute. Are you going for a run? Then that is forty to fifty litres.
- Spaniard Aleix Segura Vendrell set the world record holding your breath in 2016. He stayed under water for 24 minutes and 3.45 seconds.
- The average person has a lung capacity of four to six liters. Do you practice holding your breath? Then you can increase your lung capacity to ten litres.
- The air you breathe consists of 21 percent oxygen and 0.03 percent CO2. The rest is nitrogen gas.
(Sources:Stans van der Poel, Guinness Book of Records)
Source:Santé May 2019, text:Priscilla Borgers
