Breathing and Stress

David Blaine made an attempt to break the record for the world's longest breath hold of 16 minutes 32 seconds set by Peter Colat. He did beat the record, spending a soggy 17 minutes 4.4 seconds in an acrylic bubble filled with water. However, although his record is recognized by Guinness, it's not recognized by the free diving community. Why? Because he spent 23 minutes breathing pure oxygen before his attempt.

How long could you survive without breathing? About four minutes before serious, irreversible damage occurs to your brain and body. You can do without food for quite a while, and you can do without water for some time, but lack of oxygen will kill you within minutes.

Our breath consists of an inhalation and an exhalation. These two parts of the breath have different qualities. Inhalation is active, creating activity, movement and it brings about an expansion of the chest.

Exhalation is passive, relaxing, about letting go. The key to breathing smarter to relieve stress is to pay closer attention to your exhalation because it's the "relaxing" part of each breath.

If you're feeling stressed, you can almost instantly relax by making your exhalation a focal point.

Observe how you exhale, is it long or short, slow or fast, smooth or jerky? Now compare the length of your inhalation to the length of your exhalation. Ask yourself: which one is longer? Attempt to make them both even by silently counting how long each one takes and adjusting the time it takes to inhale and exhale. Now create a minimum 4 count exhalation and a minimum 4 count inhalation, and continue breathing, keeping both breaths the same length.

It may sound silly, but how you process the air you breath can make a big difference in how efficiently your body works-either for you or against you. Breathing smarter can reduce stress, help you think clearer, and help you feel better.

As a fit10+ member you have access to some great Deep Breathing Exercise Videos. Make sure you learn this technique and use it often.