What this page is
This is the practice layer of Pranayama — the place you come to find a technique, learn it, and put it together into a session.
It sits alongside its companion pages:
- Foundations — what pranayama is, and why it matters.
- The science of breath — how the body and breath actually work (BOLT, the nervous system, the diaphragm).
- Bandhas & mudras — the energy locks and seals, applied through the breath.
If you're new, start with Foundations. Everything on this page assumes you know what the breath is for; here we get into how.
This page is for information only and does not constitute medical advice. If you have any health concerns, consult your doctor before beginning any breathwork practice.
The three categories
Every classical technique on this page does one of three things to your nervous system:
- Balancing — works both sides equally. Start here.
- Calming — emphasises the exhale or slows the breath. For stress, anxiety, and sleep.
- Stimulating — uses force or speed to build energy and heat.
Two more groups sit alongside these: Foundational practices you do first to build awareness and capacity, and Modern protocols — longer, standalone methods that don't fit the classical categories. → See Foundations for more on the three categories.
Building your own practice
Two skills turn a handful of techniques into a real practice: knowing how to stretch the breath (ratios), and knowing what order to do things in (sequencing). Master these and you stop following recipes — you start cooking.
To get a reference point, check your BOLT score — your body's tolerance to carbon dioxide, a simple measure of where your breathing actually is. → See The science of breath for how to measure it. Track progress with your practice.
Practise on an empty stomach. Breathwork is advised at least three hours after a meal — a full stomach limits the diaphragm and can cause discomfort, especially in stronger practices.
a. Progressing with ratios
A ratio is just the shape of one breath, written as numbers. Inhale : exhale, or with pauses added, inhale : hold-in : exhale : hold-out. So 1:2 means the out-breath is twice as long as the in-breath. The numbers are proportions, not seconds — count at whatever pace is comfortable.
Two of those four parts are the held breath — kumbhaka. Holding after the inhale is antar kumbhaka (breath in); holding after the exhale is bahir kumbhaka (breath out). Most people never touch the pauses. They're where the deeper work lives.
There are two tracks:
- Therapeutic — for beginners and for calm. No holds, no locks. Just lengthening and balancing the breath. This is enough for a lifetime of benefit.
- Hatha (advanced) — adds holds and bandhas (energy locks) for deeper, more spiritual practice. Only after the foundations are steady.
Bandhas are an advanced practice. Learn them with a teacher before applying them to breath retention. → See Bandhas & Mudras.
The ladder. Be genuinely comfortable at one step before climbing to the next — it is not a race, and some steps take years.
Three rules that never change:
- Start low, build without strain. Each time you change a ratio, drop the count back down and grow it again. Strain is the signal you've gone too far.
- A longer exhale calms; balance steadies. The out-breath is your fastest route to the parasympathetic "rest" state → see The science of breath.
- Holds get locks. Once you're adding kumbhaka, apply bandhas with it — and only reach for the hold-out (bahir kumbhaka) once the hold-in is easy.
"It is not important how long you hold the breath, but how comfortable you are." — Santosh, Yogadarshanam
b. Sequencing a session
Order matters. You clear and steady the body before you ask anything of it, and you save the stimulating work for when the channels are open. A reliable shape, by tradition starting from the left nostril (the calming, lunar side → see The science of breath, nostril laterality):
- Sukha — easy, observational breath. Just watch: air at the nose, flow in the throat, the belly rising and falling. Minimum 5 rounds of 3 breaths. Settles the mind, shows you your starting rhythm.
- Kapalabhati — skull-shining; technically a cleansing kriya, used here as prep. 60–120 strokes, 3–5 rounds. Clears the airways so everything after lands better.
- Vibhagiya — sectional breath (belly, then chest, then collarbone). 5 rounds of 3. Opens full lung capacity for deeper breathing.
- Nadi Shodhana — alternate-nostril breath. 9–27 rounds. Cleanses and balances the two sides of the nervous system → see The science of breath.
- Then, by goal — one or two techniques from the catalogue below: calming for evening and stress, stimulating for morning and energy, balancing any time.
The first four are the warm-up that earns the fifth. Skip them and the headline technique does half as much.
The techniques
Grouped by what they do. Foundational practices come first — do these before reaching for anything else. Then the three working categories — Balancing, Calming, Stimulating — and finally Modern protocols, the longer standalone methods. Every entry follows the same shape so you can scan for what you need.
Breathe through your nose. Unless a technique explicitly says otherwise, inhale and exhale through the nose — it filters, warms, and pressurises the air and releases nitric oxide, all of which make the breath more useful → see The science of breath. Mouth breathing is the rare exception, called out by name where it applies (the cooling breaths; one or two modern protocols). When in doubt: nose. Ratios below are proportions, not seconds → see Building your own practice.
Foundational
Awareness and capacity. Not for a particular state — for learning the breath itself. Build these until they're second nature.
Sukha Pranayama — "easy breath" / observational breathing
In one line: Watch the breath without changing it — the simplest practice, and the one everything else rests on. The foundation of meditation.
How to: Sit comfortably, eyes closed. Don't steer the breath — just follow it. Notice the air at the nostrils (temperature), the flow in the throat, the belly rising and falling. When the mind wanders, come back to the breath. 5 rounds of 3 breaths minimum.
Category: — (awareness)
Benefits: Calms the mind, reveals your natural breathing rhythm, the doorway into every other practice.
Precautions: None.
Progression: The ground you keep returning to — no progression needed. As attention steadies, the same practice becomes meditation.
Ujjayi — victorious breath / ocean breath
In one line: A gentle ocean-sound breath made by softly narrowing the throat — used throughout asana practice and as a foundation for pranayama.
How to: Lips closed, breathing through the nose. Slightly narrow the throat so the breath whispers — like the sound of ocean waves, or fogging a mirror. Keep the narrowing subtle; if it strains the throat, it's too much.
Category: Calming
Benefits: Calming, aids concentration, turns attention inward, supports the throat. A natural anchor for the breath during movement.
Precautions: None — keep the throat narrowing soft.
Progression: Add the chin lock (Jalandhara) and gentle retention once the breath is steady → see Bandhas & Mudras.
Vibhagiya Shvasana — sectional breathing
In one line: Learn to breathe into the three sections — belly, chest, collarbone — then join them into one full breath that uses the whole lung.
How to: First, practise each section on its own. Belly (diaphragmatic): hand on the abdomen, feel it rise. Chest (thoracic): hands on the ribs, feel them widen. Collarbone (clavicular): feel the very top of the lungs fill. Then combine all three into one continuous breath — inhale belly → chest → collarbone, exhale in reverse, releasing the chest first and emptying the belly last. Slow and unforced. 5 rounds of 3 minimum.
Category: — (capacity)
Benefits: Builds lung capacity, trains the fullest and most efficient breath, the foundation for deep, calm breathing.
Precautions: None.
Progression: Once the complete breath is effortless, it becomes the breath you use inside other practices. Add gentle ratio work (1:1, then 1:2 → see Building your own practice).
Coherent Breathing — Sama Vritti / "equal breath" / "the perfect breath"
In one line: Slow, even breathing at about five to six breaths a minute — the rhythm where body and mind settle.
How to: Nose only. Inhale for a count of about four to five, exhale for the same — equal, smooth, no holds. Roughly six breaths a minute; James Nestor's "perfect breath" fine-tunes this to 5.5 seconds each way. Don't push or strain.
Category: — (balance)
Benefits: Settles the nervous system, raises heart-rate variability, the everyday baseline breath you can return to anywhere → see The science of breath.
Precautions: None.
Progression: Lengthen the exhale toward 1:2 for a stronger calming effect → Calming.
Balancing
Work both sides of the nervous system equally. The place to start, and the steadiest ground to return to.
Nadi Shodhana / Anulom Vilom — alternate-nostril breathing / "channel purifying"
In one line: Breathe alternately through each nostril to balance the two sides of the nervous system.
How to: Use Nasagra/Vishnu mudra (thumb and ring finger resting on the nostrils). Close the right nostril, inhale through the left; close the left, exhale through the right; inhale through the right; close it, exhale through the left — that's one round. 5–9 rounds. Keep it silent and smooth. Anulom Vilom is the simpler beginner's version: the same alternation with continuous flow and no holds.
Category: Balancing
Benefits: Balances mental and physical energy and the two channels (ida and pingala), calms, eases anxiety, improves concentration → see The science of breath, nostril laterality.
Precautions: None.
Progression: Add ratios — 1:1 → 1:2 → then hold-in (antar kumbhaka) with bandhas (advanced) → hold-out. The classic target is 1:4:2 → see Building your own practice.
Box Breathing — equal four-part breath
In one line: Equal inhale, hold, exhale, hold — a square breath that focuses and steadies.
How to: Typically 4:4:4:4 — inhale for four, hold in for four, exhale for four, hold out for four. It helps to picture drawing a square as you go. For sleep, try 4:4:6:2, at least six rounds.
Category: Balancing
Benefits: Calms the body, reduces stress and anxiety, sharpens focus, brings you into the present moment.
Precautions: Go gently with the holds during pregnancy.
Progression: Extend toward 4:4:6:2 for sleep; lengthen the counts gradually without strain.
Calming
Emphasise the exhale or slow the breath down. Tools for stress, anxiety, and sleep.
Extended Exhale — the longer out-breath
In one line: Simply make the out-breath longer than the in-breath — the fastest route to calm.
How to: Inhale gently, then exhale slowly and for longer — say, in for four, out for six or eight. Nose only. In Swami Rama's image (paraphrased), you breathe in from tail to crown, and breathe out from crown to toes.
Category: Calming
Benefits: Activates the parasympathetic "rest and recover" state almost immediately → see The science of breath.
Precautions: None.
Progression: Formalise as a 1:2 ratio → see Building your own practice.
Bhramari — humming bee breath
In one line: A soft humming exhale that calms the mind and floods the nasal passages with nitric oxide.
How to: Sit with lips gently closed and teeth slightly apart. Optionally use Shanmukhi mudra (lightly close the ears with the fingers). Inhale fully through the nose; exhale with a steady, even humming sound — smooth and continuous for the whole exhale, the front of the skull lightly buzzing. Tongue resting at the upper palate. 4–5 rounds.
Category: Calming
Benefits: Calming, turns attention inward, eases migraine, supports the nervous system. Humming raises nitric oxide in the nasal passages roughly fifteen-fold (James Nestor) → see The science of breath.
Precautions: Skip with an ear infection.
Progression: Lengthen the hum as the exhale naturally extends.
Chandra Bhedana — left-nostril / "moon-piercing" breath
In one line: Breathe in through the left nostril only — the cooling, calming side.
How to: Use Nasagra/Vishnu mudra. Inhale through the left nostril, exhale through the right. Then, when ready, add holds: inhale left and hold, exhale right and hold (1:1:1 → 1:1:2 → 1:2:2).
Category: Calming
Benefits: Cooling, good in hot weather, helpful for high blood pressure, activates ida — the calming channel → see The science of breath, nostril laterality.
Precautions: Low blood pressure.
Progression: Add holds as above, building gradually.
Cooling Breaths — Sheetali · Sitkari · Sadanta
In one line: Draw cool air across the tongue or teeth to cool the body and calm the mind.
How to: (The exception to the nose rule — inhale through the mouth, exhale through the nose.) All three do the same job; use whichever your mouth allows. Inhale slowly across the tongue or teeth, then exhale through the nose. 5–9 rounds, or 1–10 minutes. The three variations:
- Sheetali — curl the tongue into a tube or beak and inhale through it. (Tongue-curling is partly genetic; if you can't, use one of the others.)
- Sitkari — fold the tongue back behind the teeth and inhale through the gaps with a soft hiss.
- Sadanta — lips open and teeth lightly together, draw the air in through the teeth.
Category: Calming
Benefits: Cools the body, calming, good in hot weather. You feel the cool first in the mouth, then the throat, then through the whole body.
Precautions: Avoid in cold weather, or with asthma.
Progression: Add hold-in (antar kumbhaka) with a bandha, then hold-out, building gradually.
4-7-8 Breathing — Dr Andrew Weil's relaxing breath
In one line: Inhale for four, hold for seven, exhale for eight — a calming pattern especially good for sleep.
How to: Rest the tip of the tongue on the ridge just behind the upper front teeth, and keep it there throughout. Exhale fully through the mouth with a soft whoosh. Then inhale quietly through the nose for a count of 4, hold for 7, exhale through the mouth for 8. That's one breath — do four in total. The 4:7:8 ratio matters more than the exact seconds.
Category: Calming
Benefits: Activates the parasympathetic "rest" state; widely used to fall asleep. (Credit: Dr Andrew Weil.)
Precautions: Go gently with the hold during pregnancy.
Progression: Keep the 4:7:8 ratio and lengthen the count as it becomes comfortable.
Physiological Sigh — double inhale, long exhale
In one line: A double inhale followed by a long exhale — the fastest single-breath reset.
How to: Inhale through the nose, then take a quick second sip of air to fully inflate the lungs. Exhale slowly and completely through the mouth. Repeat 1–3 times.
Category: Calming
Benefits: Quickly offloads excess carbon dioxide, reinflates collapsed air sacs, and shifts the body toward calm → see The science of breath.
Precautions: None.
Progression: None — a quick tool, used as needed.
Stimulating
Use force or speed to generate energy and heat. Better later in the day and later in a session, once the body is warmed up.
A note on safety. The breaths in this section use force, speed, or held-out retention, and they are not for everyone. Build the foundations first, keep within comfortable limits, and stop if you feel dizzy or unwell. Take particular care — or skip these and seek guidance — if you are pregnant or menstruating, or live with high blood pressure, a heart condition, epilepsy, glaucoma, or a hernia, or are recovering from recent surgery. If you have any health concern, check with your doctor or an experienced breathwork teacher before trying them.
Bhastrika — bellows breath / "breath of fire"
In one line: Forceful, equal inhales and exhales that build heat and energy.
How to: Sit tall, face relaxed. Take active, forceful inhales and exhales of equal length, often paired with arm movements (arms up on the inhale, down on the exhale). Exhale fully on the last stroke. 27 strokes makes one round.
Category: Stimulating
Benefits: Warming, energising, clears the airways, lifts low energy and lethargy. Good for cold weather and the morning.
Precautions: Skip with high blood pressure, heart conditions, or in pregnancy; stop and rest if you feel dizzy.
Progression: Add hold-in (antar kumbhaka) with bandhas, then hold-out.
Kapalabhati — skull-shining breath (a cleansing kriya)
In one line: Short, sharp exhales that clear the airways and wake up the system — technically a cleansing kriya, used here to prepare for pranayama.
How to: Let the inhale be passive; the exhale is a forceful snap of the navel back toward the spine. About two exhales a second. Start slow and build: 30×4, 40×3, 60×2, working up to 120 in a round. Exhale fully on the last stroke. Best on an empty stomach with the bowels cleared.
Category: Stimulating (cleansing)
Benefits: Clears the airways, energising, wakes you up, aids digestion, said to sharpen focus → see The science of breath.
Precautions: Skip with high blood pressure, heart conditions, or in pregnancy; stop if you feel dizzy.
Progression: Add hold-in, then hold-out, with bandhas.
Surya Bhedana — right-nostril / "sun-piercing" breath
In one line: Breathe in through the right nostril only — the warming, activating side.
How to: Use Nasagra/Vishnu mudra. Inhale through the right nostril, exhale through the left. Then, when ready, add holds: inhale right and hold, exhale left and hold (1:1:1 → 1:1:2 → 1:2:2).
Category: Stimulating
Benefits: Warming, good in cold weather, helpful for low blood pressure, energising, increases alertness; activates pingala — the activating channel → see The science of breath, nostril laterality.
Precautions: Skip with high blood pressure or heart conditions.
Progression: Add holds as above, building gradually.
Lion's Breath — Simhasana breath
In one line: A forceful exhale with the tongue out — releases tension and energises.
How to: Sit comfortably, or in lion's pose (hands on knees, arms straight). Inhale through the nose (an Ujjayi breath). Exhale forcefully through the mouth with the tongue stretched out and down, eyes gazing up toward the third eye.
Category: Stimulating
Benefits: Energising, warming, releases stuck energy and tension, supports the throat.
Precautions: None.
Progression: Repeat a few rounds; no formal progression.
Agni-Saar — "digestive fire" breath
In one line: Pump the belly on a held-out breath to stoke digestion and energy.
How to: Take a deep inhale, then a full exhale. Holding the breath out, draw the belly sharply in and out 10–30 times. Release and breathe normally before the next round.
Category: Stimulating
Benefits: Stimulates digestion and metabolism (the "digestive fire"), energising.
Precautions: Skip in pregnancy, or with a hernia or stomach ulcer.
Progression: Increase the number of belly pumps gradually.
Double Breath — sharp-then-long energising breath
In one line: Sharp-then-long inhale, sharp-then-long exhale — an oxygenating, energising breath.
How to: A short sharp inhale followed immediately by a long strong inhale (through the nose), then a short sharp exhale followed by a long strong exhale (through the mouth, with a "ha" sound). Up to six times, gazing gently upward to avoid dizziness.
Category: Stimulating
Benefits: Energising, draws in more oxygen and prana.
Precautions: Stop if you feel dizzy.
Progression: None specific.
Modern protocols
Longer, standalone methods that sit outside the classical categories. More intense, and best approached with care — and, where noted, with a teacher.
A note on safety. These protocols are longer and stronger than the classical practices, and several can shift your state. The cautions above apply with extra weight — and a history of seizures, fainting, or significant mental-health conditions matters here too. Breath-holds should never be done in water or while driving, and several of these are best learned with a trained facilitator. If you have any health concern, check with your doctor or a qualified breathwork facilitator first.
Wim Hof Method — basic breathing exercise
In one line: Rounds of deep breathing followed by a breath-hold — a modern protocol for stress resilience and energy.
How to: Sit or lie somewhere quiet and safe. Take 30–40 deep breaths (nose in, mouth out, filling belly then chest, with a relaxed, unforced exhale). After the last exhale, hold the breath out until you feel a strong urge to breathe — the retention phase. Then take one deep breath in and hold it 10–15 seconds — the recovery breath. Repeat the full cycle 3–4 rounds.
Category: — (stimulating)
Benefits: The well-supported benefits are stress adaptation and an anti-inflammatory response, plus energy and alertness — not long-term changes in blood pH → see The science of breath. (Credit: Wim Hof Method.)
Precautions: Never in water or while driving. Skip in pregnancy, or with heart conditions or epilepsy.
Progression: Once familiar, try "squeezing" the breath toward the head on the recovery breath.
Conscious Connected Breathwork (CCB)
In one line: Continuous breathing with no pause between inhale and exhale — a longer-form practice for emotional release.
How to: Breathe in a continuous, circular pattern, typically through the mouth — an active inhale into the belly, and a relaxed, passive exhale, with no pause at the top or bottom. Sustained over an extended session.
Category: — (modern)
Benefits: Emotional release, stress relief, increased energy and clarity, deeper self-awareness; extended practice can induce altered states. (Credit: popularised by Leonard Orr as Rebirthing Breathwork, 1970s.)
Precautions: Learn with a qualified facilitator. Skip in pregnancy, or with heart conditions or epilepsy.
Progression: Depth and duration deepen safely under facilitation.
Tummo — inner-fire breath
In one line: A Tibetan Buddhist practice combining breath and visualisation to generate inner heat.
How to: Combines a breathing pattern with visualisation of heat or fire in the body. Traditionally taught and practised within its lineage rather than from written instruction.
Category: — (modern)
Benefits: Generates body heat and heightened states; developed to help monks endure extreme cold while deepening their practice.
Precautions: Learn with a qualified teacher.
Progression: Deepens through guided instruction.
Cross-references
Asana · Pratyahara · Dharana · Dhyana · (internal: Foundations · The science of breath)
Sources
- B.K.S. Iyengar — Light on Pranayama
- Leslie Kaminoff — Yoga Anatomy
- James Nestor — Breath
- Patrick McKeown — The Oxygen Advantage
- Dan Brulé — Just Breathe
- Jason Crandell Yoga Method
- Santosh — Yogadarshanam (300H YTT)
- Madan Yoga (200H YTT)
- Wim Hof Method
- Scientific research