The funny thing about breath is that sometimes we hold it and don’t even realize it. If you ever feel like, “Oh! That breath felt good!” It might be because you were just holding your breath and didn’t even know it. When you’re thinking deeply, trying to multi-task, or trying to do something quickly, you might be inadvertently holding in your breath.

During yoga, when we’re balancing, often I’ll say, “Make sure you’re breathing…” and usually I hear at least one giggle. That’s from someone who just realized that they had stopped doing something that they figured they were already naturally doing.

Certain breathing practices can help you realize when you hold your breath, as well as help you to become a healthier breather.

What’s the point of healthy breathing? Doesn’t it seem like it’s just there to keep you alive, so as long as you’re alive your breath must be fine?

Well, not getting a steady supply of breath leads to unhealthy cells, which lead to unhealthy bodies. Also, viruses and bacteria grow more easily inside of our bodies when we don’t breathe deeply. Breathing even affects your mood! I don’t know about you, but I sure do want to be happy. If something as simple as paying attention to my breath periodically can help with that, I’m all for it!

Here are a week’s worth of breathing exercises for you to practice-

Day 1: Just observe your breath as you carry on with your day as usual. Simply pay attention to your breath as often as you think of it throughout the day.

Day 2: Put your hand on your belly and notice whether your hand rises and falls when you breathe. It should! You want your breaths to be reaching right down into the bottom of your belly.

Day 3: Watch the clock, and for one entire minute, count your breath cycles (a cycle consists of one inhale and one exhale). Note the number of cycles.

Day 4: Watch the clock, and for one entire minute, take as few breath cycles as you can without holding your breath. If you cheat and hold your breath… well, you’re playing a different game. Stick with me here, ‘kay?

Day 5: Watch the clock, and for one entire minute, see if you can reduce yesterday’s number by one.

Day 6: Watch the clock, and for one entire minute, see if you can reduce Day 4’s number by one. (In other words, you’re reaching for the same number as you were reaching for yesterday.)

Day 7: Watch the clock, and for one entire minute, take as few breath cycles as you can without holding your breath. Compare your number to your number from Day 3.

Have you already seen an improvement in your breathing? You should have! Just being aware of the breathing process can help you with this grand task, and taking part in other various breathing practices will help you even more.

(If you have any medical issues that might make these practices counter-productive, please check with your doctor first.)

Go ahead! Right now, set an intention for yourself to take part in at least one breathing exercise each day. Even if you intend to simply pay attention to what your breath is doing every time you think about it, you will learn a lot about yourself and you’ll see improvements very soon!

P.S. Breathing practice is called “pranayama” in Sanskrit.