alternate nostril breathing

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Four Reminders, Alternate Nostril, and Tapping into the Life Force

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Reading Time: 1 min 45 sec

I hope the next 26’ish breaths are the most nourishing of your day.


4 THOUGHTS

1. Tapping into the Life Force

“The most universal practice for tapping into the Life Force is really a number of practices—mediation, prayer, reading, journal writing, exercise—that make up the morning rituals that so many people swear by. Rather than preparing you for a single event, like a game, a play, or a public address, the rituals prepare you for the entire day to come.”

- Barry Michels and Phil Stutz, Coming Alive

How good is that? (Well, except that they left off breathing, ha!)

It’s a nice reminder that all our practices help us tap into our Life Force as holistic preparation for “the entire day to come.” 🙏

2. The Benefits of Alternate Nostril Breathing

“This technique provides high level evidence for positive outcomes for the autonomic nervous and cardiopulmonary systems. There is also high level of evidence regarding improvement in cognitive functioning with regular practice of alternate nostril breathing.”

– Ghiya (2017)

This review found that ANB improved nervous system and heart health, lung function, and cognitive ability, suggesting that it is an effective technique for boosting overall health & wellness 🙏

***

P.S. I just released a new Science 411 on this paper in the Breath Learning Center. Sign up for as little as $5 to read or listen now.

3. Four Reminders of the Breath’s Power for the Brain and Mind

1. “The brain, by regulating breathing, controls its own excitability.” – Journal of Physiology (1988)

2. “In other words, by changing the breath pattern one can induce a chosen state of mind.” — Swami Niranjanananda Saraswati

3. “Just as your mind influences the breath, you can influence the state of your mind through the breath as well.” –Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

4. “Messages from the respiratory system have rapid, powerful effects on major brain centers involved in thought, emotion, and behavior.” –Patricia Gerbarg, MD and Richard Brown, MD

4. Wash the Brain with this “Subtle Fluid”

“There seems to be a subtle fluid from humor and fun which penetrates the entire being, bathes all the mental faculties, and washes out the brain-ash and debris from exhausted cerebrum and muscles.”

– Orison Swett Marden, The Joys of Living

1 Quote

“The real meaning of simplicity is singling out what is worth living for, and then shaping our lives around what matters and letting go of everything else.””
— Eknath Easwaran

1 Answer

Category: The Brain

Answer: Between its more than 86 billion neurons, the human brain has over this many connections.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

…

Question: What is 100 trillion connections?

In good breath,

Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”

P.S. next time you want to spread some love

A Path to Lasting Change

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You enjoy daily wisdom meditations, science and book reviews, workshops, and guided practices, all at your own pace.

Get started for as little as 16 cents a day.

The Breathing App for Diabetes

This is the first program specifically made for people with diabetes to help manage their stress through breathing and mindfulness practices. In addition to the amazing program inside the app, we have some really neat things coming up, so sign up now!

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Amazon Associate Disclosure

I’ve been recommending books for almost 6 years. Yet somehow, I just discovered that I could be an Amazon affiliate [face-palm]. In any case better late than never. Now, any Amazon link you click is an affiliate link. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. So, if you’d like to support my work, buying books through these links is helpful : )

* An asterisk by a quote indicates that I listened to this book on Audible. Therefore, the quotation might not be correct, but is my best attempt at reproducing the punctuation based on the narrator’s pace, tone, and pauses.

 
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Better Learning, Life's Lifeline, and How We Breathe is Who We Are

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Listen Instead of Reading

If you enjoy listening, you can subscribe to the audio version on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Audible so you don’t even have to look at the email 😊

4 THOUGHTS


1. How We Breathe is Who We Are

“Breathing is about much more than simple gas exchange or even cardiorespiratory fitness. We exhale and inhale more than twenty thousand times per day, and the way in which we do so has tremendous influence on how we move our body, and even our mental state. How we breathe, as Beth puts it, is who we are.”

- Peter Attia, MD, Outlive

I have nothing useful to add here, except a few of these 👏👏👏

P.S. The Beth mentioned was one of his colleagues, Beth Lewis.

2. Science or Prayer, Medicine or Meditation

A profound aspect of breathing is that, depending on our disposition, we can treat it like science or prayer, like diet or exercise, like medicine or meditation.

And the best part: No approach is right or wrong.

3. Alternate Nostril Breathing Improves Learning & Retention

“Our findings indicated that a single 30-minute session of deep alternate-nostril breathing significantly facilitated the retention of a newly acquired motor skill. Better retention was evident immediately, as well as 24 hours after breathing practice, suggesting that such simple practices can be exploited as an effective tool to enhance both short term and somewhat longer term retention of skilled movements.”

– Deep Breathing Practice Facilitates Retention of Newly Learned Motor Skills

I’ve shared this one before. However, I revisited it recently and thought I’d share it again.

The take-home is that we can use slow alternate nostril breathing immediately after learning a motor skill to improve that skill’s short and long-term retention.

Check out these 9 slides that describe the study with images.

4. It’s Made Simple by Simplified Controls

This is a genuinely mind-blowing analogy for all breathing practices:

“For example, consider a car. We hardly give it a second thought when we climb into a car and drive off to an appointment. … All we have to do is press on the gas pedal and hold the steering wheel, and away we go. Simple, yes? No, not simple at all, but it has been made simple by virtue of the simplified controls that enable us to effortlessly transform a volatile substance, gasoline, into a speedy and safe ride to our appointment.

Pranayama is like that. In fact, all effective spiritual practice is like that. We can take complex principles of transformation found in the human nervous system and, with a series of simple procedures, apply these for great spiritual benefit.”

- Yogani, Spinal Breathing Pranayama

1 Quote

“By developing the simple profound practice of mindful breathing, you have a lifeline that ties you to every dimension of your life.””
— Al Lee and Don Campbell

1 Answer

Category: Breathing 101

Answer: The amount of air left after a maximum exhalation, known as this, helps to ensure the alveoli do not collapse.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

…

Question: What is residual volume?

This week’s newsletter is brought to you by BreathLearning.com

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In good breath,

Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”


P.S. This is everything I hoped for

* An asterisk by a quote indicates that I listened to this book on Audible. Therefore, the quotation might not be correct, but is my best attempt at reproducing the punctuation based on the narrator’s pace, tone, and pauses.

 
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Learn Better, 4 Gifts, and How Breathing Can Actually Change the World

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Today is a special edition of The Breathing 411.

Because today is 4/11.

It’s also World Breathing Day.

And it also happens to be my 35th birthday (to celebrate, I did one breath per minute for 35 minutes this morning <— maybe I’ll make it a new tradition 🙏).

To honor the occasion, there are 4 Free Gifts in Thought #3 below.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for reading.

With love,

Nick

 

🎧 Listen Instead of Reading 🎧

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4 Thoughts



1. How Breathing Can Actually Change the World, in 3 Super Practical Steps

  • Step 1: Tape your mouth at night.

  • Step 2: Breathe nasally 90-95% of the day.

  • Step 3: Forget about the rest, and use your newfound energy from Steps 1 & 2 to help you do whatever you were put on this planet to do.

2. ANB Significantly Enhances Learning and Retention of New Motor Skills

“Our results thus uncover for the first time the remarkable facilitatory effects of simple breathing practices on complex functions such as motor memory”

- Deep Breathing Practice Facilitates Retention of Newly Learned Motor Skills

This 2016 study on alternate nostril breathing (ANB), published in Nature Scientific Reports, genuinely blew my mind. (See full review in Thought #3.)

Here’s what they did:

  • Participants learned a new motor skill.

  • A control group rested for 30 minutes.

  • A breathing group did 30-min of ANB.

  • Then, both groups were tested on the skill they had learned.

  • Both groups were also tested again 24-hours later.

The results showed that the ANB group significantly (it was almost ridiculous) improved the learning and retention of that skill:

  • They were significantly better at the 30-min mark.

  • They were significantly better at the 24-hour mark.

One 30-minute breathing session. One day of improved learning and retention.

3. Science 411s, Book 411s, and The Breath is Life Learning Center (4 free gifts)

To celebrate World Breathing Day, here are four gifts.

Science 411s: 4 Fundamentals, 1 Big Takeaway, and 1 Practical Application

  • Free Science 411: Deep Breathing Practice Facilitates Retention of Newly Learned Motor Skills (the paper from Thought #2 above)

  • Free Science 411: Heart Rate Variability Biofeedback Improves Emotional and Physical Health and Performance: A Systematic Review and Meta Analysis

Book 411s: 4 Thoughts, 1 Quote, and 1 Idea That Will Change Your Life

  • Free Book 411: The Happiness Track: How To Apply The Science Of Happiness To Accelerate Your Success

  • Free Book 411: The Art of Impossible: A Peak Performance Primer

You can read, listen, or download them as PDFs here.

I hope you enjoy them!

4. Why We Breathe: Chemically and Spiritually

“Our drive to breathe is regulated by the medulla oblongata … When pH decreases (becomes more acidic due to the increase in CO2), chemoreceptors in the medulla send out a signal for the body to breathe. This means that our carbon dioxide levels have to rise to a sufficiently high level for our brain and body to know that it is time to take the next breath.”

- Inna Khazan, Ph.D.

It’s the perfect day to review why we breathe. So there’s the technical reason.

But breathing is a lot more than just gases. As Michael J Stephen, MD, tells us,

“That oxygen, life, and lungs all came into our world in relatively close succession is no coincidence. Only with oxygen and some means of extracting it are all things possible—thinking, moving, eating, speaking, and loving. Life and the breath are synonymous.”

So beyond chemistry, we ultimately breathe to live—to think, to move, to love. Breathing is, after all, what makes “all things possible.”


 
 
 

1 QUOTE

“It was ecstasy, it was sweet, air soughing in and all my little alveoli singing away with joy and oxygen-energy coursing through every space and particle of me.”

- Keri Hulme

 
 
 
 

1 ANSWER

Category: Body Chemical Composition

Answer: This gas is the most abundant element in the human body by mass.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

…

Question: What is oxygen?

In good breath,

Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”

P.S. I’m only 35, I have my whole life ahead of me

 
 
 

* An asterisk by a quote indicates that I listened to this book on Audible. Therefore, the quotation might not be correct, but is my best attempt at reproducing the punctuation based on the narrator’s pace, tone, and pauses.

Sign Up For The Breathing 411

Each Monday, I curate and synthesize information from scientific journals, books, articles, and podcasts to share 4 thoughts, 1 quote, and 1 answer (like "Jeopardy!") related to breathing. It’s a fun way to learn something new each week.

 
 

More Time, Long-Term Benefits, and How to Hold Your Breath for 6 Hours

 
 

🎧 Listen Instead of Reading 🎧

If you enjoy listening, you can subscribe to the audio version on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Audible so you don’t even have to look at the email 😊

 
 
 

4 Thoughts


1. How to Hold Your Breath for 6 Hours (hint: you already do)

  • Let’s say you take an average of 15 breaths/min, or 21,600 per day.

  • Let’s also say, like me, you’re a decent (but not perfect) breather.

  • Thus, at the end of each of those 21,600 breaths, there’s a short pause.

  • For simplicity, let’s say that pause is 1-sec (sometimes shorter or longer).

  • That adds up to 21,600 seconds without breathing each day.

  • That’s a 6-hour breath hold each day.

  • That’s 1/4 of your day.

  • That’s 1/4 of your life.

  • That’s 🤯 🤯 🤯

***

P.S. This thought was inspired by this +1 on heart beats.

2. Ancient Wisdom meets Modern Science: Alternate Nostril Breathing and the Brain

“Idā, which is activated by directing the breath through the left nostril, is said to establish a calm, introspective awareness, and have a cooling effect. Pingalā, the more stimulating side, is heating and mobilizing, and is activated through right-nostril breathing. Alternating the breath through both nostrils is said to cultivate balance and equanimity.”

- Robin Rothenberg, Restoring Prana

A recent study published in Nature tested these ancient yogic claims using EEG. Short story: the yogis were basically right. Left-nostril breathing activates brain regions “associated with a more relaxed state and introspective thinking.”

The right-nostril results were less certain, but the practice did lead to “higher activity compared to left airway UNB in all frequency bands across the whole scalp except in posterior areas.”

Of course, there are always caveats and limitations. However, one thing seems pretty clear: Left-nostril breathing can be used to reach calm and introspective states anytime we need them. I use it all the time—I hope you will too.

3. More Time: Breathing Exercises Get More Enjoyable with Practice

“How you feel the first time you try a new form of exercise is not necessarily how you’ll feel after you gain more experience.  For many, exercise is an acquired pleasure.  The joys of an activity reveal themselves slowly as the body and brain adapt.”

- Kelly McGonigal, Ph.D., The Joy of Movement

And the exact same is true for breathing exercises.

Give them time (I suggest about a week) so your body and brain can adapt. The benefits will gradually reveal themselves, and you’ll soon look forward to, and even find bliss in, your practice.

4. The Long-Term Benefits of Breathing Exercises: Normalize Cortisol and Be Calmer

“The long-term effects of a daily breathing practice, just like those of a daily exercise routine, are even more pronounced. Preliminary studies have found that regularly practicing breathing exercises normalizes your level of cortisol, the ‘stress hormone.’ As a regular practice, breathing can recondition your body to a state of greater calm, helping it bounce back from stress more quickly and perhaps reducing reactivity in the face of challenges…you can use daily breathing exercises to prepare your nervous system to be resilient in the face of stressful events.”*

- Emma Sepällä, Ph.D., The Happiness Track

And once your body and brain adapt, here’s why it’s so important to stick with these breathing exercises. You can recondition your body & nervous system to be calmer, then watch the benefits aggregate and compound over time 🙏

 
 
 
 

1 QUOTE

“In the deepest sense, the breath itself is the ultimate gift of spirit.”

- Jon Kabat-Zinn, Wherever You Go There You Are

 
 
 
 

1 ANSWER

Category: The Nose

Answer: The two nostrils are physically distinct, and each one has its own unique supply of these.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

…

Question: What are blood flow and nerve endings?

In good breath,

Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”

P.S. 99. Smoke signal

 
 
 

* An asterisk by a quote indicates that I listened to this book on Audible. Therefore, the quotation might not be correct, but is my best attempt at reproducing the punctuation based on the narrator’s pace, tone, and pauses.

Sign Up For The Breathing 411

Each Monday, I curate and synthesize information from scientific journals, books, articles, and podcasts to share 4 thoughts, 1 quote, and 1 answer (like "Jeopardy!") related to breathing. It’s a fun way to learn something new each week.

 
 

22 One-Sentence Breathing Ideas for 2022

Let’s continue the tradition this year. Here are 22 one-sentence breathing ideas to kick off 2022. Enjoy!

***

Related: 21 One-Sentence Breathing Ideas for 2021

1. Demonstrations of breathing are small compared with the great thing that is hidden behind them. 

(Inspired by a Khalil Gibran Quote)

 

2. Breathing doesn’t heal you; it gives your body the environment it needs to heal itself.

 

3. We can be lost in breath, without knowing we have been breathing.

(Inspired by The Things You See Only When You Slow Down)

 

4. If you know only one breathing method, then you really know none; if you understand one breathing method, then you really know them all.

 

5. Breathing is the most direct path to practicing philosophy in our lives.

 

6. If breath is life, then optimal breathing is optimal living.

 

7. Science is timely; personal experience is timeless.

 

8. Every method works when used correctly, but no method works for everybody.

 

9. What one teacher says is essential, another will say is useless.

 

10. Breathing is a pair of leather shoes for life.

(Idea from The Tibetan Yoga of Breath)

 

11. The most practical tip for breathing is this: make it quiet and subtle. 

 

12. To breathe in a “quiet and subtle way” takes deliberate practice—effort leads to effortlessness.

 

13. Breathing may be my 70% solution but only your 20% solution.

 

14. Breathe less, sometimes more; breathe slow, sometimes fast.

 

15. We breathe through each nostril separately so they function better together as a whole.

 

16. Read about breathing but, most importantly, embody that education through practice.

 

17. Start by starting; one minute is always better than none-minutes.

 

18. A simple rule for getting started: 40% of your breath should be inhaling, 60% should be exhaling.

 

19. Holding implies tension and effort; pausing is natural and effortless.

 

20. Breath and mind are inseparable: This means you can use your breath, to change your mind, to change your breath for the better.

(A play on this line from Neurodharma: “Neurons that fire together, wire together. This means that you can use your mind, to change your brain, to change your mind for the better.”)

 

21. The goal of a breathing practice is better mindless breathing.

 

22. The joy of breathwork is breathing.

Alternate Nostril Breathing, 70% Exhales, and How to be "Happy Right Away"

 
 

Listen Instead of Reading

 
 
 

4 Thoughts


1. A Friendly Reminder to Exhale More than 70%

In Heart Breath Mind, Leah Lagos discusses a fascinating study where a group of people were instructed to only exhale about 70% of their air with each breath.

Here’s what happened:

“After just 30 seconds of this subpar breathing, almost every subject reported a climb in unpleasant symptoms, including anxiety, dizziness, lightheadedness, and neck and shoulder tension.”

The fix? Slow breathing with full exhalations. Give it a try and see for yourself.

2. An Ancient Breath and the Door to Heaven

“By relying on the ‘door and the window’ (is meant) the nose as the door of heaven, and the mouth as the window of the earth.  It follows, then normally that the nose inhales and the mouth (should) exhale, and (this is) beneficial to breathing. ”

- The Primordial Breath, Volume I

This ancient approach was way ahead of science.

In fact, although the translation reads a bit choppy, we now know this method of nose-in/mouth-out can increase whole-body oxygenation by more than 10%.

Just don’t forget to exhale fully : )

***

P.S. “The nose as the door of heaven”…I felt compelled to re-emphasize that 😊

3. Two Yogic Breathing Experts Describe the Balancing Act of Alternate Nostril Breathing

“Ultimately, in the hatha yoga tradition, the intention with these nostril-specific practices is to establish balance between the two sides of the nervous system, so neither is dominant.”

- Robin Rothenberg, Restoring Prāna

It sounds counterintuitive, but the reason we practice alternate nostril breathing (or ANB) is for balance, so neither side is dominant.

I love the analogy Eddie Stern uses: “You can think about breathing through alternate nostrils in the same way that we think about stretching both the right and the left sides of our bodies when we do yoga postures.”

With ANB, we’re “stretching” different sides of the nervous system (since the right nostril is sympathetic and the left is parasympathetic). But the goal is the same: we train each side separately so they function better as a whole.

4. How to be “Happy Right Away”

“The group that holds the pen between their teeth (which, you may notice, creates a sort of smile) are HAPPIER at the end of the experiment than people who hold the pen between their lips (which, you may notice, creates a sort-of frown).”

- Brian Johnson, +1 On Smiling

This passage summarized a study showing that the act of smiling, even without a reason, makes you happier. And I think the same is true for slow breathing.

As Thich Nhat Hahn says beautifully, “You only need to practice mindful breathing for a few seconds, and you'll be happy right away.”

So let’s smile and breathe mindfully to be a little happier, today : )

Extra Thought: Breathing for Diabetes

I’m giving a short 15-min presentation on Breathing for Diabetes at the MAPS Modern Wellness Summit this Saturday, December 4th. It’s a free virtual event with a ton of amazing speakers, so sign-up if you’re interested:

Learn More about the Free Modern Wellness Summit

 
 
 
 

1 QUOTE

“Our breathing is designed to help us release any tensions that have become so much a part of us that we no longer sense their presence.”

- Carla Melucci Ardito

 
 
 
 

1 ANSWER

Category: Dysfunctional Breathing

Answer: When the chest and abdomen move in during inhalation and out during exhalation, it’s called this type of breathing.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

…

Question: What is paradoxical breathing?

In good breath,

Nick Heath, T1D, PhD
“Breathing is the compound interest of health & wellness.”

P.S. This certainly became clearer with age…

 
 
 

Sign Up For The Breathing 411

Each Monday, I curate and synthesize information from scientific journals, books, articles, and podcasts to share 4 thoughts, 1 quote, and 1 answer (like "Jeopardy!") related to breathing. It’s a fun way to learn something new each week.

 
 

More Breathing in Less Time

 

Greetings,

This week’s 411 is brought to you by espresso, curiosity, my appreciation for your readership, and espresso. Enjoy!

 
 
 
 

4 THOUGHTS

1. Use Breathing Instead of Thinking

"Social psychologists now know that the truth lies in the opposite direction. People need to change their actions and their minds will follow." – Sean D Young, Stick With It

Experts tell us it’s hard to think our way out of thinking. We need to act and let the mind follow. I believe this is what makes breathing so powerful. It gives you an action you can perform anytime to trick your mind into following.

If you’re anxious, you can breathe slowly, which will calm your nervous system and lead to calmer thoughts. If you’re tired, you can breathe rapidly and stimulate your nervous system, increasing your heart rate and alertness.

There are many ways to use actions to control your emotions and thoughts. But breathing is free and easy. Stop thinking, begin breathing.

2. Post-Meal Breathing for Better Blood Sugars & Digestion

Relaxing breathing methods have been shown to reduce blood sugar spikes associated with meals and glucose tolerance tests. In Breath (pg 43), James Nestor also tells us that right nostril breathing heats up the body and aids in digestion. Together, it seems like a post-meal breathing practice might be a good idea.

I have been testing this in a simple and practical way. Specifically, I’ve been spending ~3 to 5 minutes performing either alternate nostril or diaphragmatic breathing (or their combination) after lunch.

The results have been quite noticeable. My sugars are much better (and even get low sometimes) in the hour following the meal. And these short minutes are especially helpful midday to focus my mind and get me back to work quickly.

Science + Practicality = Better Living

Even if you don’t have diabetes, adding this tiny habit after eating might help with digestion and improve energy levels. Not bad for just a few minutes.

3. More Breathing in Less Time

Brian Johnson is my favorite teacher. Long-time readers are probably sick of me talking about him : ) His motto: More wisdom in less time. In that spirit, here are a few excellent summaries Brian has made of some of the best breathing books:

Enjoy!

Thanks to new 411 reader W.G. for inspiring this thought.

4. The Best Advice You Can Give Someone Interested in Breathing

"Start now. Optimize later. Imperfect starts can always be improved." - James Clear

The Oxygen Advantage, Wim Hof, The Art of Breath, Buteyko, Breatheology, SKY, ujjayi, and on and on. They are all phenomenal for different reasons.

But the most important thing is to choose one and start—experience for yourself how simple and powerful these practices are. You can optimize later.

 
 
 
 

1 QUOTE

In my own experience, a deep breath is always a good first reaction to a first report. Try to let the potato cool a bit before you pick it up.

— General Colin Powell, It Worked For Me

 
 
 
 

1 ANSWER

Answer: This "nasal nerve" is the first one emerging from the brain.

…

(Cue the Jeopardy! music.)

…

Question: What is the olfactory nerve?

In good breath,
Nick

P.S. Preach