The Essentials of Breathing

This course is for anyone interested in understanding how simple tweaks to their everyday breathing can improve their health to live a happier, healthier, and longer life.

Breathing is our most basic biological function. We take around 25,000 breaths per day. But, what if we do it wrong without knowing it? It’s been estimated that 80% of the adult population has dysfunctional breathing that is harming their health. Dysfunctional breathing is linked to obesity, anxiety, and even the shape of your face.

As crazy as it might sound, most of us need to learn how to breathe. We live lifestyles that our bodies are not adjusted for. For example, many of us are stuck in a go-go-go state with too little recovery. A stressed nervous system is linked to fast breathing, and fast breathing is feeding more stress.

Another example is, we’re eating too much soft food and not using our jaw muscles enough. This makes our mouths underdeveloped which narrows our airways and makes breathing harder.

Other reasons why we are “the worst breathers in the animal kingdom” (as James Nestor puts it) is because we sit too much with bad posture, hunched forward, not giving enough space for our lungs to expand properly. We pull our bellies in due to either our tight clothes or because we’re unconsciously trying to fit the extreme “appearance ideal”. This leads to shallow upper chest breathing which signals to our body that we are probably in danger and should activate our stress response.

The list goes on.

You do not need any previous experience. As long as you are breathing this is for you.

No. The sessions are available for you to go through in your own time, whenever you prefer, without any deadlines.

Yes. The program is designed so that each lesson is divided into two videos. First, there is an 'info video' where you'll learn about a breathing practice—in what situations you use it, the science behind it, and what happens in your body.

The second video is always a stand-alone 'practice video' where we practice the technique. Come back to these breathing sessions as often as you like. Maybe you find your favorite that becomes part of your daily routine.

Breathing is the fastest way to reduce stress in real-time. It’s free and always available.

With your breath, you can switch between your stressful nervous system, your fight or flight response, and your calming nervous system, your rest & digest response. This means that by using different breathing hacks, you can either get more energy or become calmer.

Improving the way you breathe daily, as well as using specific breathwork, can result in the following benefits.

• Reduced anxiety

• Increased oxygenation

• Improved recovery and cell production

• Improved sleep quality

• Protecting the teeth from cavities

• Enhanced sports performance

• Better focus and concentration

• Improved emotional regulation

• Reduced symptoms of depression and mood disorders

• Increase immune function.

The list goes on…

To summarize, by learning to naturally take fewer breaths per day (using the techniques in this course), you’ll start sending calming signals to your brain instead of stressful ones—which you do the more you breathe. These calming signals will balance your nervous system, so bodily functions can run smoother and keep you alive and healthy.

Think of your body as a car. You want your engine to run smoothly and efficiently rather than get rusty and slow.