The question: What is a good first breathwork session for beginners?
The short answer: James Stewart's first session is gentle and simple: get comfortable, notice how you are breathing, then breathe low and slow through your nose into your belly with a balanced inhale and exhale. He counts four in and four out, then lets you settle into a cadence that works for you.
What James explains
This session puts the earlier episodes into practice: awareness of your breath, respect for conscious breathing, and the physiology of the diaphragm and lower lungs. There is no competition and no need to force anything. The aim is to start noticing the relationship between how you breathe and how you feel.
Comfort comes first because a comfortable body is easier to calm. James teaches a straight, neutral spine, sitting tall without being taut, or lying down relaxed with support under your knees if that helps.
The breath itself follows his two foundations. Breathing low and slow through the nose brings air down into the bottom of the lungs, keeping it in the leaves of the upside-down tree for longer. Keeping the inhale and exhale balanced sends a relaxing, calm signal to your body. As the session goes on, the counting falls away and your awareness turns inward.
Try it: a balanced four-count nasal breath
- Get comfortable sitting with a straight, neutral spine, or lying down with something under your knees if needed.
- Let your awareness fall to your breath and notice whether you are using your nose or mouth and how you feel.
- Breathe in low and slow through your nose, down into your belly, and let the air relax back out.
- Breathe in for a count of four and out for a count of four, keeping the inhale and exhale balanced.
- Let go of the count and breathe at a cadence that works for you, still gentle and balanced.
- Spend a little time being still and listening before you finish.
What to watch for
Don't worry if breathing out through your mouth feels easier at first. Breathing in and out through the nose is ideal, but focus on the nasal inhale and let the exhale fall out in a balanced way. Sit straight but not rigid, and never force the breath. If it stops feeling comfortable, ease back to a gentler pace that you can stay relaxed with.
Key points
- Your first session is about comfort and awareness, not a perfect breath.
- Breathe low and slow through your nose into your belly with an equal inhale and exhale.
- Start with four counts in and four out, then settle into a balanced pace that suits you.
Common questions
Should I sit or lie down for my first breathwork session?
Either works. James suggests a straight, neutral spine if you sit, tall but not taut. If you lie down, relax and prop something under your knees if that makes you more comfortable.
What if I find it easier to breathe through my mouth?
James says not to worry. Breathing in and out through the nose is ideal, but focus on bringing the inhale through your nose and let the exhale relax out in a balanced way.
What should I pay attention to during the session?
Start by noticing how you are breathing and how you feel. During the practice, follow the breath in and down, then up and out, and let your awareness fold inward.
Research mentioned
Balban MY, Neri E, Kogon MM, et al. Brief structured respiration practices enhance mood and reduce physiological arousal. Cell Reports Medicine, 2023;4(1):100895. A month-long randomized controlled trial comparing three daily five-minute breathing practices with mindfulness meditation; exhale-focused cyclic sighing produced the greatest improvement in positive mood and a larger drop in respiratory rate. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xcrm.2022.100895
Read the full transcript
Auto-generated from the video captions, so expect small errors.
So, I think we're ready. I think you're ready. I certainly know that I'm ready. In the last couple of conversations we've had about our breath and getting to this point of doing a breath work session together, we've learned about the power of awareness, treating breath and conscious breathing with respect and understanding. We got up close and personal in episode three around what physiology we're going to optimize and what we're going to use. um what we should be using, what we shouldn't be using. So now it's time to put it all together and to feel it in our body. So what I want you to do
is find a place where you can be comfortable. You can do it sitting up or lying down. And I'm going to find a place that's a little bit more comfortable for me and we're going to do our first breath work session together. Hey, back from the beach. Certainly found somewhere much more comfortable, definitely warmer. So, as you're settling in for our first breath work session here, again, it's about comfort. And this is a practice that you're about to start. Okay? So, getting comfortable. The optimal way to be is with a straight neutral spine. So, if you're sitting, it's sitting straight, not taught, but sitting straight.
And if you're lying down, just relaxed. Maybe you need to prop up your legs, um, something under your knees in order to feel as much comfort as possible. And then allowing your awareness to simply fall to your breath. And just observe your breath. Are you breathing in and out through your mouth? Are you using your nose? And simply observe how you're feeling right now. And then obviously as I talk about it, you're going to start thinking about your breath. So I want you to start bringing your inhale into your nose. Low, slow through your nose. Maybe you feel those nostrils flare as you breathe that
air in down into your belly. And then simply relax that back out. Don't be too worried if it's easier for you to breathe out of your mouth. Ideally breathing in and out through our nose, but concentrate on your inhale through your nose and just letting that air fall back out in a balanced fashion. And here we go. We're going to just start breathing together and then I'm going to do some balance breathing. Just listen and follow along to my my instructions here. Remembering that we are going to bring that air in low slow through our nose down into the bottom part of our lungs. Keeping
that air in our leaves for longer. Sending that relaxing calm signal to our body. Breathing in. [snorts] letting go gently in. Relax it out. One more breath together. Breathing in. Relaxing out. [sighs] In. 2 3 4. Out. 2 3 4. In. 2 3 4 out. 2 3 4 Gently in through the nose. Nice and slow. Relax. [snorts] Steady. Letting go. In 2 3 4 out. 2 3 4 in. Out. 2 3 4 in. 2 3 4 out. 2 3 4 in. 2 3 4 out. 2 3 4. [snorts] Gently in. Relax it out. In 2 3 4 out 2 3 4 in 2 3 4
out 2 3 4. Breathing into the belly. Relaxing out. allowing your awareness to fold inward. Breathing in, letting it go. Breathing at a cadence that works for you as best you're able. Keeping that inhale and that exhale balanced, gentle inhale, [snorts] relaxed exhale and simply allow your awareness to fold inward. If you need to follow that breath in and down, then follow that breath again up and out. gently in. Relax it out. Simply spend a little time being still and listen. Breathing in, relaxing out. Breathing in, exit out. There's your first breath work session. I look forward to our next conversation. Keeping your breath low,
slow through your nose. Set yourself up here and try it real quick. Right. So, you know, we're sitting here on the couch just talking, but take a couple of deep breaths where you're going and then you go, you know, then you go, you may even feel like a little bit laded.