Breathe Better, Live Better: Unlocking the Power of Proper Breathing

Does your morning coffee feel like your only lifeline? Do you catch yourself holding your breath while racing through your to-do list? Do you ever feel like you’re running on empty or how you're going to get your self off the couch to make dinner?

Many professional women find themselves here—tired, on autopilot, and wondering how to restore their energy. In the search for balance, one truth remains profoundly simple: how you breathe can change everything.

Breathwork: An Ancient Practice, A Modern Science

Breathwork isn’t new—it’s ancient. From yogic pranayama to Buddhist meditation techniques, cultures around the world have long recognized the power of controlled breathing. However, modern science has reawakened this wisdom, validating its benefits through research as new studies emerge showing breathwork’s impact on the nervous system and emotional resilience. In recent years, cultural shifts toward mental health awareness and performance optimization have brought breathwork to the forefront of wellness conversations.

Popular figures like Wim Hof, known for his cold exposure and breathing method, and Dr. Andrew Huberman, a neuroscientist recognized for translating breathwork's effects on the brain, have helped bring breathwork into mainstream consciousness. They, alongside authors like Jesse Coomer, James Nestor, and Patrick McKeown, emphasize that breathing isn’t just a wellness trend—it’s a biological tool for resilience and performance. I tend to agree! 

When life feels relentless, breathing becomes automatic—shallow, hurried, and disconnected from our well-being. Imagine typing furiously at your desk, shoulders tense, barely noticing that your breath has become rapid and restricted as you reply to emails or handle a deadline. This is what author James Nestor, in Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art, calls “the silent epidemic.” He writes, "No other animal breathes as poorly as humans do. Western societies, in particular, have forgotten how to breathe properly, and this dysfunction is literally changing the shape of our faces and affecting our health."

Chronic stress locks us into poor breathing patterns, fueling fatigue, anxiety, and brain fog.

Most of us breathe through our mouths, using only the upper portion of our lungs. However, this type of breathing keeps the nervous system in a heightened state of stress. Nestor’s research shows that a return to slow, steady nasal breathing can improve everything from sleep to immunity.

Why Breath Is the Secret Weapon Against Burnout

Breathwork expert Patrick McKeown, author of The Oxygen Advantage, emphasizes that functional breathing isn’t about taking big gulps of air but about breathing more efficiently. Over-breathing, quick shallow breaths, disrupts your body's balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide, leaving you feeling short of breath even when you’re at rest. McKeown offers simple practices to restore this balance, helping regulate your stress response and reduce feelings of overwhelm.

For example, breathing light and slow through your nose—with longer exhales than inhales—signals your body that you’re safe, shifting you out of fight-or-flight mode.

Breathwork for Busy Lives

Jesse Coomer, a human performance coach and author of A Practical Guide to Breathwork, highlights that you don’t need an hour-long breathwork practice to benefit from better breathing. Micro-moments matter. Even 60 seconds of intentional breathing can reset your mind—whether it’s before you open your inbox, right after a meeting, or before you walk through the front door.

One highly effective technique is “box breathing”—a simple yet powerful practice:

1. Inhale through your nose for 4 counts.

2. Hold your breath for 4 counts.

3. Exhale for 4 counts.

4. Hold again for 4 counts.

Repeat for 1-2 minutes to calm racing thoughts and ground yourself before a meeting or at the end of a long day. Bookmark this technique so it’s always handy when you need a reset.

Small Changes, Big Shifts

When your to-do list is endless, it’s tempting to overlook small habits like breathing. But with each intentional inhale and exhale, you can shift from autopilot to presence. Proper breathing isn’t about perfection; it’s about building awareness.

Add these practices to your routine:

1. Morning Reset: Start your day with 5 slow, nasal breaths, elongating your exhale. This signals to your body that it’s safe to start slow.

2. Midday Clarity: Try box breathing during a stressful moment to clear mental clutter.

3. Evening Unwind: Practice slow, deep belly breathing to downshift into rest mode.

Save this list so you can return to it anytime life feels overwhelming.

The Takeaway

Breathwork won’t clear your inbox or magically remove your deadlines, but it can create the space to meet life’s demands with greater ease. As James Nestor reminds us, “We can hack our breath to hack our health.” By reconnecting with your breath, you reconnect with yourself—finding calm, focus, and resilience amid the chaos.

Try one of these techniques today and notice how you feel after a week. Consider book marking this page or saving it on your phone for quick access during your busiest moments. When life feels overwhelming, pause, close your mouth, breathe into your belly through your nose, and remember: everything starts with your breath.