I’ve come to realize breathing is one of the most important aspects of good health and wellbeing. The way you breath matters.

My current nightly reading material is a book by James Nester called “Breath – The new science of a lost art” and it is quite eye opening. I’ve heard the techniques in the book before when studying meditation, particularly kriya yoga meditation where you focus on specific breathing techniques to enhance the mediation. What I hadn’t heard before is the scientific facts and studies on breathing that Mr. Nestor talks about in his book. I currently have a couple copies of the book in my store if your interested. Books

Not only is breath important to daily health, it’s also the foundation to a good meditation practice. The Buddha realized this when he taught to focus on your breath during meditation.

“Breathing in long, he discerns, ‘I am breathing in long’; or breathing out long, he discerns, ‘I am breathing out long.’ Or breathing in short, he discerns, ‘I am breathing in short’; or breathing out short, he discerns, ‘I am breathing out short.”

The Buddha

I eventually plan to add some guides, courses and such on meditation and other concepts to this website. For now I will mention what I’ve found to be one of the easiest techniques to improve and focus on your breathing. This is something you can do anywhere at any time with no need to set aside a block of time. Just be mindful of your breathing and condition yourself to breath in the below way. As a disclaimer I am not a physician of any kind, please consult your doctor before attempting any practices I mention.

• Breathe in through your nose to the count of 4
• Hold your breath for the count of 7
• Exhale your breath through your nose to the count of 10
• Repeat

Notice that both inhalation and exhalation are through the nose. The reason for this is explained in detail in Mr. Nester’s book “Breath”.