Breathing Exercises & Techniques

Written by Jennifer Aldoretta, founder of Groove

There are loads of breathwork techniques out there, and they all have different benefits and serve different purposes. I’ll go into just a few here, and if you’re interested in being guided through more types of breathwork, check out our Course Library.

Before you dive in, make sure you understand the basics so that you’re engaged in proper breathing techniques to get the most out of your breathwork practice.

The breathing techniques we’ll cover on this page are:

1. Breath of Fire

2. Square Breathing

3. 4-7-8 Breathing

Breath of Fire

Breath of Fire is a great way to practice belly breathing, while also gaining additional benefits like core strengthening and stabilization, pelvic health, stress reduction, and regulation of digestion.

This is the only breathwork technique we’ll cover in this article that you might want to be alone while you do — the loud exhales make it difficult for you to do inconspicuously. More power to ya if you don’t care who’s around!

Once you do it, you’ll understand why it’s called “Breath of Fire”...it creates an internal heat thanks to the “pumping” of your belly that defines this breathing technique. And get ready for some monster ab muscles, because this one works your core!

With Breath of Fire, we focus all our attention on sharp, quick exhaling. Here are the steps:

1. Sit in a comfortable position

2. Gently rest one hand on your belly (over your belly button)

3. Exhale sharply and quickly through your nose, drawing your belly button towards your spine as you exhale (this will work your abs, so be ready!)

4. Naturally allow your lungs to fill with air in between each sharp exhale

5. Repeat between Steps 3 and 4 for about 30-50 breaths (or more)

With Breath of Fire, you’re getting a lot of oxygen pumping into your system from quick breathing. So if you get a little light-headed while doing Breath of Fire, pause and take a break.

While you’re paused, focus on slow, steady breathing or even use a breathing technique like Square Breathing or 4-7-8 Breathing shown below until you’re ready to resume.

Practice this technique once a day, increasing the number of breaths each day as you’re ready.

Square Breathing Technique

Square Breathing, also known as box breathing, is a great way to de-stress when you’re feeling overwhelmed. 

Consciously slowing down the breath helps to pull the body out of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) or fight-or-flight response and into the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) or rest-and-digest response.

This technique is called Square (Box) Breathing because each step lasts for four counts:

1. Inhale through your nose, puffing out your belly, for 1-2-3-4

2. Hold at the top (with full lungs) for 1-2-3-4

3. Exhale through your mouth, drawing in your belly, for 1-2-3-4

4. Hold at the bottom (with empty lungs) for 1-2-3-4

5. REPEAT for several minutes.

4-7-8 Breathing Technique

The 4-7-8 breathwork technique, like Square Breathing, is incredible for effectively lowering your stress levels and regaining a sense of calm and serenity when you’re feeling overwhelmed. 

This 4-7-8 breathwork technique would be my recommended method for de-stressing. That’s because the exhales in this method are twice as long as the inhales, which is highly effective at stimulating the vagus nerve, helping your body switch from a stress response (fight-or-flight) to a relaxation response (rest-and-digest).

I often use this technique if a conversation gets a little heated and I need to take a break. I’ll take a 5-10 minute break, and spend that time doing the 4-7-8 breathwork technique. After that, I feel ready to approach the situation with a calm, balanced energy.

Here are the steps for the 4-7-8 breathwork technique:

1. Inhale through your nose, puffing out your belly, for 1-2-3-4

2. Hold at the top (with full lungs) for 1-2-3-4-5-6-7

3. Exhale through your MOUTH, drawing in your belly, for 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8

4. REPEAT for several minutes.

Other breathwork exercises & techniques

There are many, many other breathwork techniques, including alternate nasal breathing, holotropic breathing, lion’s breath, and ujjayi breath (common in yoga), among others.

You can also combine breathwork and breathing techniques with movement to compound the calming and healing effects — through a practice like yoga, tai chi, or any other movement technique specifically designed to discharge energy and calm the body, mind, and spirit.

Consciously changing the way you’re breathing can help you begin reversing numerous mind-body ailments by supporting the release of trauma, chronic fight-or-flight response, unprocessed emotions, and tension.

Find out first-hand the benefits of a breathwork practice with our online 14 Days of Guided Breathwork course.

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