Box breathing for calm, focus and relaxation

"The ability to breathe is a gift. Wake up grateful each day for that gift"
- - Johnny Lung

Introduction

Box breathing is easy to do and quick to learn. It can be highly effective in stressful situations and helps calm your nerves. Use it anytime you need to be grounded, focused, relaxed, and alert.

Box breathing is a simple technique that can be done anywhere, including at a work desk or in a cafe. It is called box breathing, which encourages you to think about a box as you do it.

Box breathing involves four basic steps, each lasting 4 seconds:

1. Breathing in
2. Holding the breath
3. Breathing out
4. Holding the breath out

How to do box breathing

Be careful not to strain on any phase, especially the breath holds. Don’t get too hung up on each phase being exactly 4 seconds; it is more important that each phase is equal in length.

Before starting the box breathing pattern, adopt a comfortable seated position or lie down -ideally with knees bent and feet flat on the floor or bed if lying.

For maximum benefit, you want to breathe deep into your belly. To encourage a deep diaphragmatic breath, place both hands on your tummy. When breathing in, focus on feeling an expansion in the stomach but without forcing the muscles to push out.

Step 1. Breathe in through your nose while counting to four slowly, feeling the air enter your lungs. If it helps, you can close your eyes while you do this.

Step 2. Hold your breath while counting slowly to four, trying not to clamp your mouth or nose shut.

Step 3. Slowly Breath out for 4 seconds.

Step 4. Hold the breath out for 4 seconds before you inhale again.

Repeat the steps 1 to 4 for five minutes or until calm returns.

If you find the technique challenging, try counting to three instead of four. Once you are used to box breathing, you can increase the count time to five or six.

Regularly practising box breathing can enhance your well-being, improve focus, and better manage stress.