EktayaPut one hand on your chest, the other on your belly, and breathe the way you normally do. Which one moves more?
Belly breathing, also called abdominal or diaphragmatic breathing, means letting your belly expand as air comes in, instead of lifting your chest and shoulders. There's nothing complicated to learn. It's mostly a matter of noticing where your breath goes, then giving it more room lower down. It's also the way of breathing I usually offer in my programs: you inhale through your nose, letting your belly expand, and you exhale through your mouth, slowly and without forcing. When an exercise asks for something different, I say so.
What happens when you breathe with your belly
Beneath your lungs is the diaphragm, a dome-shaped muscle. When you inhale, it contracts, flattens, and moves down toward your abdomen. When you exhale, it relaxes and rises back up. That downward movement is what pushes your belly out under your hand.
If it's mostly the hand on your chest that moves, you're breathing mainly from the top, and your shoulders quickly follow along. That's not a flaw, and simply placing your hands is often enough to feel the difference between the two ways of breathing.
Slow breathing and the rest-and-recovery nervous system
Your autonomic nervous system manages your heart, digestion, and breathing without you thinking about it. It's often described as having two branches: the sympathetic system, which prepares the body for action, and the parasympathetic system, associated with rest and recovery. Breathing is unusual because it happens on its own, yet you can also slow it down whenever you choose.
Several research teams have looked at slow breathing. A review of studies published in 2018 in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience found that, in healthy adults, breathing slowly goes along with greater heart rate variability, a sign associated with parasympathetic activity. The same year, in the same journal, other researchers proposed a theoretical model built around the exhale: they point out that the vagus nerve, an important nerve in this system, is more active during exhalation, which slows the heart slightly, and they use this to explain the possible effect of slow breathing.
The authors themselves remain cautious. The review covers only about fifteen studies, carried out on small groups and without a randomized trial, and the theoretical model remains a hypothesis that its authors describe as unproven. So we can say that slow breathing, with a relaxed exhale, is associated with the rest system, without turning it into a promise. What people feel varies, and some mostly notice that their thoughts slow down a little.
The breathing exercise, step by step
Plan on five minutes to start. The rhythm is the same as in the video: five seconds to inhale, five seconds to exhale.
- Get settled. Sit with your back straight but not stiff, feet on the floor. Put one hand on your chest and the other on your belly.
- Inhale gently through your nose for five seconds. Let your belly expand: it's the belly hand that moves forward, while the chest hand barely moves.
- Exhale gently through your mouth for five seconds, without forcing. You don't need to pull your belly in. It goes back down on its own, like a balloon emptying.
- Keep going for five minutes with your hands in place. They're your guide: as long as the belly hand moves more than the other one, your breath is going down well.
- Return to your normal breathing, take your hands away, and take a few seconds to notice what has changed, or what hasn't.
If five seconds feels long at first, start with three or four and lengthen gradually. Nobody is timing you.
You can follow the video with your eyes open to match your breath to the figure's, then close your eyes once the movement feels familiar and keep only the sensation of your hands.
The most common mistakes
The first mistake is raising your shoulders. If they rise toward your ears with every inhale, your upper body is still doing the work. Let them hang heavy, as if you were setting down a bag, and bring your attention back to the belly hand.
Another, quieter mistake is pushing the belly out with your muscles. It bulges unnaturally, and you tire yourself out for nothing. Your belly expands on its own when the diaphragm moves down, so relax and let the breath make the movement.
It's also common to breathe too hard, thinking you're doing it right. The goal is a slow, soft breath, and you don't have to fill your lungs as much as possible. If you feel dizzy, stop and let your breathing return to its own pace, then start again more gently.
Finally, don't worry if the chest hand still moves a little the first few times. It doesn't have to be still, it just has to move less than the other one. With a little practice, the movement often becomes more natural.
When to practice
You can do the exercise any time, as long as you can sit quietly for a few minutes. The simplest approach is to tie it to something you already do each day: your morning coffee, a break at work, or bedtime, rather than waiting until you need it. Once the movement is familiar, you won't even need your hands, and two or three belly breaths can fit into a line at the store or before an important call, but never while driving.
Belly breathing and coherent breathing
Coherent breathing uses the same steady rhythm of about six breaths per minute, five seconds to inhale and five to exhale. The exercise above already follows it: coherent breathing mainly adds a habit, five minutes at set times of the day.
A few precautions
Belly breathing is a wellbeing exercise, not a treatment. If you feel dizzy or get tingling, stop and let your breathing return to its own pace: this can happen at the beginning, especially if you breathe too hard. If you have a heart or breathing condition, or if you're pregnant, ask your doctor first. And if you're going through a hard time, a breathing exercise can help you settle, but it doesn't replace support from a health professional.
Practice with a voice to guide you
The first day of Return to Yourself is a guided audio of a little over nine minutes built around this rhythm, five seconds of inhaling through the nose and five seconds of exhaling through the mouth, using belly breathing. The voice counts for you, which leaves all your attention free for your hands and your breath. The next two days build on this reconnection with your body: welcoming what you feel, then picturing yourself in a place where you feel safe.
Three days, one guided audio a day, to do at home. Explore Return to Yourself