The best thing to do during uncomfortable, stressful, or challenging moments is to turn to the breath.
Seriously – taking control of the moment by taking control of your breath is one of the most effective ways to deal with negativity.
It’s also like hitting a much-needed reset button for your body.
You probably already know that even a short moment of frustration, irritation, anger, or fear can cause a significant impact on your body’s function and well-being.
Mindful, slow, deliberate breathing is Nature’s gift to us for these moments.
And it turns out that science backs this up…
The Balancing Breath Technique:
Balancing Breath is an ultra-simple, evidence-based breathing technique that can be completed in just one minute. Literally.
According to research by the Institute of Heartmath:
“Conscious regulation of one’s respiration at a 10-second rhythm (5 seconds in, 5 seconds out) increases cardiac coherence and starts the process of shifting into a more coherent state.
With conscious control over breathing, an individual can slow the rate and increase the depth of the breathing rhythm.
This takes advantage of physiological mechanisms to modulate heart rhythm.”
What this means is that breathing at 10-second cycles helps to activate your heart’s intelligence.
Your heart is the main director of your body and activating it by breath or other coherence-building techniques helps to activate and optimize other important body parts like your brain.
But the heart comes first.
Coherence refers to a state of unity and harmony in your body, emotions, thoughts, and actions.
Heartmath research has demonstrated that when we increase coherence we think better, feel better, heal better, and perform better.
By breathing in this simple manner – inhaling for 5 counts and exhaling for 5 counts – we literally become more resilient.
Breathing in for 5 and out for 5 for at least 60 seconds influences your nervous system and activates your 3 brains or intelligence centers.
This technique can also influence:
- the regulation of your stress response (so you’re less reactive, more proactive.)
- your emotional perceptions and experience (so you are more likely to perceive and process things as they are, from an equilibrated stance.)
- your thinking and processing abilities (so you’re able to make wiser choices.)
Now, let’s put this all in practice…
We’ll be initiating 10-second rhythm cycles. (Each full cycle = 1 inhale + 1 exhale):
Step 1 – begin to focus on your breathing, connect with the inflow and outflow as it is naturally, right now.
Step 2 – Intentionally slow your breath and deepen it slightly.
Step 3 – Inhale for 5 counts
Step 4 – Exhale for 5 counts
Step 5 – Repeat steps 3 + 4 three times more
Follow the emblem below for a quick guided session:
