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Oddech oznacza życie – ile jednak powietrza powinniśmy wdychać? Jeśli twoim celem jest lepsze dotlenienie całego ciała, to ostatnie, czym należy się sugerować, to podejście w stylu: „Weź głęboki wdech i wypełnij płuca powietrzem”.
Świat medycyny dawno już zrozumiał, jak duże znaczenie dla naszego zdrowia ma ograniczenie spożywanych kalorii, odpowiednie odżywianie i aktywność fizyczna. Następna rewolucja zdrowotna polega na świadomym oddychaniu, które pozwoli ci utrzymać optymalne stężenie dwutlenku węgla we krwi. Dowiedz się, w jaki sposób możesz:
• zwiększać intensywność ćwiczeń, zmniejszając jednocześnie poziom wysiłku i zachowując kontrolę nad oddechem,
• osiągnąć idealną masę ciała, tłumiąc apetyt w naturalny sposób,
• poprawić poziom energii i zdolność koncentracji,
• wspiąć się na szczyt swoich sportowych możliwości.
Wszystko to w zaledwie kilka tygodni i tylko dzięki zmianie sposobu oddychania. Ta książka wciąga niczym kryminał najwyższej klasy. Otworzyła przede mną świat, którego nie znałem, a który intuicyjnie wyczuwałem w trakcie swoich wypraw. Gdyby ukazała się wcześniej, mógłbym łatwiej znosić niedobory tlenu na wysokościach. Rzecz jest napisana – jak na skomplikowaną materię – prosto i przystępnie, co jest jej wielkim walorem. Zawiera mnóstwo prostych porad i ćwiczeń. Myślę, ze każdy z czytelników znajdzie w Tlenowej przewadze coś dla siebie i zacznie świadomie oddychać. Czego wam i sobie życzę.
Oddech oznacza życie – ile jednak powietrza powinniśmy wdychać? Jeśli twoim celem jest lepsze dotlenienie całego ciała, to ostatnie, czym należy się sugerować, to podejście w stylu: „Weź głęboki wdech i wypełnij płuca powietrzem”.
Świat medycyny dawno już zrozumiał, jak duże znaczenie dla naszego zdrowia ma ograniczenie spożywanych kalorii, odpowiednie odżywianie i aktywność fizyczna. Następna rewolucja zdrowotna polega na świadomym oddychaniu, które pozwoli ci utrzymać optymalne stężenie dwutlenku węgla we krwi. Dowiedz się, w jaki sposób możesz:
• zwiększać intensywność ćwiczeń, zmniejszając jednocześnie poziom wysiłku i zachowując kontrolę nad oddechem,
• osiągnąć idealną masę ciała, tłumiąc apetyt w naturalny sposób,
• poprawić poziom energii i zdolność koncentracji,
• wspiąć się na szczyt swoich sportowych możliwości.
Wszystko to w zaledwie kilka tygodni i tylko dzięki zmianie sposobu oddychania. Ta książka wciąga niczym kryminał najwyższej klasy. Otworzyła przede mną świat, którego nie znałem, a który intuicyjnie wyczuwałem w trakcie swoich wypraw. Gdyby ukazała się wcześniej, mógłbym łatwiej znosić niedobory tlenu na wysokościach. Rzecz jest napisana – jak na skomplikowaną materię – prosto i przystępnie, co jest jej wielkim walorem. Zawiera mnóstwo prostych porad i ćwiczeń. Myślę, ze każdy z czytelników znajdzie w Tlenowej przewadze coś dla siebie i zacznie świadomie oddychać. Czego wam i sobie życzę.
376 pages, Flexibound
First published September 15, 2015
2944 people are currently reading
11908 people want to read
About the author
Patrick McKeown
84 books87 followersInternational best-selling author of The Oxygen Advantage and creator and master instructor of the Oxygen Advantage® technique, Patrick McKeown is widely regarded as one of the world's leading breathing re-education experts.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 457 reviews
June 16, 2018
1. Nose-breathe - to get the body used to higher CO2 concentrations and avoid over-breathing.
2. Simulate High-Altitude Training - by controlled holding of breath - again increasing resistance to Co2 concentrations.
Not sure why this required a whole book. Plenty of random anecdotes thrown in, to meet the length requirements of a book, and then a 30 page summary at the end, just in case...
2. Simulate High-Altitude Training - by controlled holding of breath - again increasing resistance to Co2 concentrations.
Not sure why this required a whole book. Plenty of random anecdotes thrown in, to meet the length requirements of a book, and then a 30 page summary at the end, just in case...
December 11, 2023
We don't need to overbreathe; instead, we should breathe lightly and efficiently.
Proper breathing positively impacts our health and performance.
Breathing through the nose is crucial for better outcomes.
Understanding the role of CO2 helps regulate our breathing.
Proper breathing relates to posture and endurance.
This book shows you the techniques for proper breathing, which can optimize oxygen intake.
It strongly emphasizes the benefits of nasal breathing and discourages mouth breathing.
Author Peter MacKeown discusses the phenomenon of mouth taping during sleep and work.
Proper breathing positively impacts our health and performance.
Breathing through the nose is crucial for better outcomes.
Understanding the role of CO2 helps regulate our breathing.
Proper breathing relates to posture and endurance.
This book shows you the techniques for proper breathing, which can optimize oxygen intake.
It strongly emphasizes the benefits of nasal breathing and discourages mouth breathing.
Author Peter MacKeown discusses the phenomenon of mouth taping during sleep and work.
February 3, 2017
I have to say that I did find this book extremely useful and informative. While I have read a lot of the reviews giving low scores to the book, for me it was useful and I have put in place a number of the techniques outlined to help improve my fitness and breathing.
People are commenting that the book was repetitive, and it was at times, but you would expect that from a training manual or textbook. This is a manual to better breathing and should be treated as such. We learn from repeating the same task over and over again and this book uses that technique to help us implement it.
The book was well written, informative, and gave reference back to those that deserved it. As an asthma sufferer, I found that the breathing techniques have helped especially with my running and fitness even after only 2 weeks.
People are commenting that the book was repetitive, and it was at times, but you would expect that from a training manual or textbook. This is a manual to better breathing and should be treated as such. We learn from repeating the same task over and over again and this book uses that technique to help us implement it.
The book was well written, informative, and gave reference back to those that deserved it. As an asthma sufferer, I found that the breathing techniques have helped especially with my running and fitness even after only 2 weeks.
January 18, 2018
As one practicing and benefiting from the Wim Hoff Method I read this book to get more insight into the science and effect of oxygenation of the body. Although McKeown's method is different than Hoff's they both share many similarities and are attempting to achieve much of the same. This book provides the physiological effects of the method in great detail, something I wish that Wim Hoff provided more of in his course. Unfortunately, as mentioned by a few others, this book is unnecessarily repetitious. I kept expecting the next chapter would provide new insights but mostly it was just a rehash of the preceding chapters. The information is helpful it just needs to be less redundant.
August 7, 2017
The book is useful but repetitive.
A long blog post would have sufficed to explain the problem and the solution.
As someone who practices Pranayama (yoga-breathing exercises), most of the exercises were known. The book explained the science behind them.
To summarize, the book has exercises so that we
1. Breathe through the nose and not mouth
2. Breathe slowly by getting accustomed to higher CO2 and lower O2
in order to improve overall performance, focus and quality of sleep
A long blog post would have sufficed to explain the problem and the solution.
As someone who practices Pranayama (yoga-breathing exercises), most of the exercises were known. The book explained the science behind them.
To summarize, the book has exercises so that we
1. Breathe through the nose and not mouth
2. Breathe slowly by getting accustomed to higher CO2 and lower O2
in order to improve overall performance, focus and quality of sleep
November 23, 2020
I am writing this review after an year: I believe this was one of the best books I read in 2019. The gist is : "Always breathe through your nose." Highly recommended for anyone who wants to develop their vitality. Earlier I didn't know how effective it would be, but since I have started running I feel that the proper technique of breathing has helped me cover longer distance.
Maybe someday I will try the one where you stick your lips to explicitly breathe through your nose.
But till then: holding breathe, breathing less, only breathing through nose and pausing inhalation while walking are the exercises I will stick to.
Maybe someday I will try the one where you stick your lips to explicitly breathe through your nose.
But till then: holding breathe, breathing less, only breathing through nose and pausing inhalation while walking are the exercises I will stick to.
August 7, 2017
I've been in the alternative health field for over 20 years, and devour any new or promising bit of info I can get my hands on, regarding nutrition or any other health protocol. This after having cancer at 21, so I'm pretty serious about this quest. I'd heard of the Buteyko method about 10 years ago, but never tried it. Fast forward to now. I'm 45, suffer from debilitating chronic fatigue, depression, and anxiety disorder. I sleep ok, but wake up 3-4 times a night, which is annoying. I was excited to dive into this, despite having some issues with the book, which I'll address first:
1) The author recommends the ingestion of sodium bicarbonate, to aid in keeping the body's pH normal. Admittedly, this is a very sore subject for me, as I see SO many people talking online in recent years about how, of course, acidity causes cancer, so if you just make your body more alkaline, you will be healthier all around. Now, thank goodness Patrick didn't cite and (mis)quote the research of Dr. Otto Warburg, like everyone else does, when they want to make this point. However, after much research on the subject, it has become clear to me that ingesting sodium bicarbonate is, at the very least, useless, and at most, potentially harmful. Allow me to explain: The body, as a whole, isn't supposed to be alkaline, as everyone "knows." There are certain organs and tissues in the body which are alkaline, but there are others which are acidic, such as the adrenals and the digestive tract. So making a blanket statement like I mentioned before is completely oversimplified and downright inaccurate. So, he advocates ingesting sodium bicarbonate. Generally, if you take a small amount of it, all that will happen is your stomach acid will neutralize it, so it will have no effect whatsoever on your blood or anything else. Secondly, if you take enough to completely neutralize your stomach acid, and make it into the rest of your digestive tract, you are disrupting one of the most important mechanisms the body has for overall health. Your stomach releasing hydrochloric acid is extremely important for MANY reasons: proper gastric emptying, proper motility of the GI tract, absorption of protein, signal to release the digestive enzymes from the pancreas and gall-bladder, etc. If you disrupt that process, you are setting the state for some serious dysfunction down the line, such as the normally harmless yeast in the GI tract morphing into their fungal state, which is a real health hazard. And third, and perhaps most bizarre of all, the recipe he mentions involves using both Sodium bicarbonate and apple cider vinegar. Ok...so... you mix an acid and a base, effectively neutralizing them, then drink a mixture that is essentially inert. Makes absolutely NO sense.
My next issue with the book is that most of it was very clearly geared towards athletes. I'm not an athlete, in fact as I mentioned, I have some real health issues, and I think he missed a HUGE opportunity to really get into the real benefit of this kind of work, in the book. I think he should've had at least one full chapter dedicated to case examples of people with common health problems: chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, thyroid issues, etc. etc. and give us a lot more perspective on that side of things. To be fair, he does mention some examples in the book of those kinds of things, but I felt it was just hinting at a possible gold-mine of examples.
I was excited to take my BOLT score, but to my surprise, mine is actually pretty good, about 25. Probably because I've been aware of the importance of nose breathing and abdominal breathing for years. I was hoping it would be much lower, so I could see more potential benefit from the program. But here's the catch, with me: according to the author, a BOLT score of 20-30 means you probably won't be able to get much benefit without applying the techniques to some form of exercise. For my BOLT score, he mentions like 30 minutes of exercise per day, while applying the techniques. I can BARELY take a five minute walk without becoming either horribly fatigued or anxious. So 30 minutes is a complete pipe-dream. Now, that doesn't mean I'm not going to try the program (I've already started, in fact) and see if I can gain enough benefit to perhaps start exercising lightly. But for now, it'll have to be no exercise whatsoever. I'll keep at it for a few weeks and see if I'm noticing any objective benefit.
I do believe the info in this book has incredible value, but until it works for me, or someone I know, I'm giving it three stars. It does have a lot of good info on the science behind all of this, which is much appreciated, and not hard to follow. I especially liked the info on nitric oxide, as I've recently become aware of how important that particular gas is to our bodies. If I start to notice improvements, I will happily change my review. Oh, one more minor issue: I was surprised he didn't talk about the classic breathing into a paper bag, to help normalize CO2 levels. I'd be interested in knowing if this is a viable option, where people could maybe breath normally into the bag for a certain amount of time, rather than having to pay close attention to their breathing and monitoring it for 10 minutes, or whatnot.
1) The author recommends the ingestion of sodium bicarbonate, to aid in keeping the body's pH normal. Admittedly, this is a very sore subject for me, as I see SO many people talking online in recent years about how, of course, acidity causes cancer, so if you just make your body more alkaline, you will be healthier all around. Now, thank goodness Patrick didn't cite and (mis)quote the research of Dr. Otto Warburg, like everyone else does, when they want to make this point. However, after much research on the subject, it has become clear to me that ingesting sodium bicarbonate is, at the very least, useless, and at most, potentially harmful. Allow me to explain: The body, as a whole, isn't supposed to be alkaline, as everyone "knows." There are certain organs and tissues in the body which are alkaline, but there are others which are acidic, such as the adrenals and the digestive tract. So making a blanket statement like I mentioned before is completely oversimplified and downright inaccurate. So, he advocates ingesting sodium bicarbonate. Generally, if you take a small amount of it, all that will happen is your stomach acid will neutralize it, so it will have no effect whatsoever on your blood or anything else. Secondly, if you take enough to completely neutralize your stomach acid, and make it into the rest of your digestive tract, you are disrupting one of the most important mechanisms the body has for overall health. Your stomach releasing hydrochloric acid is extremely important for MANY reasons: proper gastric emptying, proper motility of the GI tract, absorption of protein, signal to release the digestive enzymes from the pancreas and gall-bladder, etc. If you disrupt that process, you are setting the state for some serious dysfunction down the line, such as the normally harmless yeast in the GI tract morphing into their fungal state, which is a real health hazard. And third, and perhaps most bizarre of all, the recipe he mentions involves using both Sodium bicarbonate and apple cider vinegar. Ok...so... you mix an acid and a base, effectively neutralizing them, then drink a mixture that is essentially inert. Makes absolutely NO sense.
My next issue with the book is that most of it was very clearly geared towards athletes. I'm not an athlete, in fact as I mentioned, I have some real health issues, and I think he missed a HUGE opportunity to really get into the real benefit of this kind of work, in the book. I think he should've had at least one full chapter dedicated to case examples of people with common health problems: chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, thyroid issues, etc. etc. and give us a lot more perspective on that side of things. To be fair, he does mention some examples in the book of those kinds of things, but I felt it was just hinting at a possible gold-mine of examples.
I was excited to take my BOLT score, but to my surprise, mine is actually pretty good, about 25. Probably because I've been aware of the importance of nose breathing and abdominal breathing for years. I was hoping it would be much lower, so I could see more potential benefit from the program. But here's the catch, with me: according to the author, a BOLT score of 20-30 means you probably won't be able to get much benefit without applying the techniques to some form of exercise. For my BOLT score, he mentions like 30 minutes of exercise per day, while applying the techniques. I can BARELY take a five minute walk without becoming either horribly fatigued or anxious. So 30 minutes is a complete pipe-dream. Now, that doesn't mean I'm not going to try the program (I've already started, in fact) and see if I can gain enough benefit to perhaps start exercising lightly. But for now, it'll have to be no exercise whatsoever. I'll keep at it for a few weeks and see if I'm noticing any objective benefit.
I do believe the info in this book has incredible value, but until it works for me, or someone I know, I'm giving it three stars. It does have a lot of good info on the science behind all of this, which is much appreciated, and not hard to follow. I especially liked the info on nitric oxide, as I've recently become aware of how important that particular gas is to our bodies. If I start to notice improvements, I will happily change my review. Oh, one more minor issue: I was surprised he didn't talk about the classic breathing into a paper bag, to help normalize CO2 levels. I'd be interested in knowing if this is a viable option, where people could maybe breath normally into the bag for a certain amount of time, rather than having to pay close attention to their breathing and monitoring it for 10 minutes, or whatnot.
February 8, 2024
"The Oxygen Advantage" โดย Patrick McKeown เสนอวิธีการหายใจใหม่เพื่อปรับปรุงสุขภาพและประสิทธิภาพทางกีฬา หนังสือนำเสนอทฤษฎี การฝึกปฏิบัติ และกรณีศึกษาที่ช่วยให้ผู้อ่านเข้าใจและนำไปปฏิบัติได้ ชี้ให้เห็นความสำคัญของการหายใจทางจมูก, หายใจเบาและบทบาทของคาร์บอนไดออกไซด์ในการขนส่งและใช้งานออกซิเจน
หนังสือมีรายละเอียดทางวิทยาศาสตร์ที่ค่อนข้างเยอะ แม้มีบางส่วนที่โดยส่วนตัวผมสงสัยว่ามันเป็นวิทยาศาสตร์หรือไม่ แต่สำหรับผู้ที่ต้องการปรับปรุงการหายใจและสุขภาพโดยรวม หนังสือเล่มนี้(อาจจะ)เป็นทรัพยากรที่มีค่า และมีศักยภาพในการเปลี่ยนแปลงสุขภาพและประสิทธิภาพทางกีฬาอย่างน่าสนใจ.
ให้คะแนน 4/5 ดาว เนื่องจากมีข้อมูลที่เข้าถึงได้ยากบางส่วนและบางส่วนวัดผลได้ยาก
จากการทดลองฝึกปฏิบัติตามหนังสือมาตลอด 2 เดือน
พบว่าในขณะฝึกสามารถกลั้นหายใจได้นานขึ้นมากและเมื่อกลับมาหายใจก็มีความต้องการอากาศน้อยลงเยอะจริง ๆ
ส่วนประสิทธิภาพทางกีฬารู้สึกว่าขณะวิ่งเหนื่อยน้อยลงและต้องการอากาศน้อยลง แต่ก็เป็นความรู้สึกของตัวเอง ไม่มีโอกาสที่จะได้วัดผลตามวิธีการที่เป็นวิทยาศาสตร์ใด ๆ และไม่สามารถบอกได้ 100% ว่าเป็นผลมาจากการฝึกตามหนังสือนี้ทั้งหมด
แต่ผมก็ตั้งใจที่จะฝึกตามหนังสือเล่มนี้ต่อไปเรื่อย ๆ ครับ
หนังสือมีรายละเอียดทางวิทยาศาสตร์ที่ค่อนข้างเยอะ แม้มีบางส่วนที่โดยส่วนตัวผมสงสัยว่ามันเป็นวิทยาศาสตร์หรือไม่ แต่สำหรับผู้ที่ต้องการปรับปรุงการหายใจและสุขภาพโดยรวม หนังสือเล่มนี้(อาจจะ)เป็นทรัพยากรที่มีค่า และมีศักยภาพในการเปลี่ยนแปลงสุขภาพและประสิทธิภาพทางกีฬาอย่างน่าสนใจ.
ให้คะแนน 4/5 ดาว เนื่องจากมีข้อมูลที่เข้าถึงได้ยากบางส่วนและบางส่วนวัดผลได้ยาก
จากการทดลองฝึกปฏิบัติตามหนังสือมาตลอด 2 เดือน
พบว่าในขณะฝึกสามารถกลั้นหายใจได้นานขึ้นมากและเมื่อกลับมาหายใจก็มีความต้องการอากาศน้อยลงเยอะจริง ๆ
ส่วนประสิทธิภาพทางกีฬารู้สึกว่าขณะวิ่งเหนื่อยน้อยลงและต้องการอากาศน้อยลง แต่ก็เป็นความรู้สึกของตัวเอง ไม่มีโอกาสที่จะได้วัดผลตามวิธีการที่เป็นวิทยาศาสตร์ใด ๆ และไม่สามารถบอกได้ 100% ว่าเป็นผลมาจากการฝึกตามหนังสือนี้ทั้งหมด
แต่ผมก็ตั้งใจที่จะฝึกตามหนังสือเล่มนี้ต่อไปเรื่อย ๆ ครับ
October 26, 2023
A fascinating, inspiring read that has fundamentally changed my approach to breathing.
“We can live without food for weeks and water for days, but air for just a few brief minutes. While we spend a great deal of time and attention on what we eat and drink, we pay practically no attention to the air we breathe. It is common knowledge that our daily consumption of food and water must be of a certain quality and quantity. Too much or too little spells trouble. We also recognize the importance of breathing good-quality air, but what about the quantity? How much air should we breathe for optimum health? Wouldn’t it be fair to surmise that air, even more important than food or water for human survival, must also meet basic requirements? …
The point of this book is to elevate your awareness of how you can harness your breath to reclaim your body’s natural ability to breathe in a way that will help you achieve lifelong health and fitness, whether you are running to catch up with your kids or running to win a gold medal. My promise is that by applying the concepts and simple exercises in this book, each and every person, whether they consider themselves an athlete or not, will be able to attain tangible and profound improvements to their health, fitness, and performance within just a few weeks. Isn’t it time you did more—conditioning, winning, living—with less effort?”
~ Patrick McKeown from The Oxygen Advantage
Patrick McKeown is one of the world’s leading teachers of the Buteyko Breathing Method which was created in the 1950s by a Russian doctor named Dr. Konstantin Buteyko.
McKeown suffered from asthma for decades until he found the Buteyko Method. At which point, he reversed his asthma symptoms and then dedicated his life to helping others optimize their breathing.
In this book, he extends the Buteyko Method into an approach he calls the Oxygen Advantage. It’s a fascinating, inspiring read that has fundamentally changed my approach to breathing. (Get a copy here.)
Lest you write off this whole breathing thing as something that shouldn’t require any optimization, remember: a) We can live for weeks without food and days without water but only minutes without oxygen—which makes breathing well an essential fundamental; and, b) As with our other fundamentals of eating, moving, and sleeping, how we breathe has been significantly altered since the industrial revolution.
Therefore, optimizing our breathing is huge. And, this is a *great* book to help you optimize—especially if you have asthma and/or you’re interested in peak performance in sports or life. (If I ran or coached a sports organization, I’d definitely have fun implementing this with my team.)
Some of my favorite big ideas from this book include:
1. #1 Obstacle - To optimal breathing = ...
2. Oxygen Delivery 101 - It’s all about the carbon dioxide.
3. #1 Breathing Tip - Breathe thru your nose. All the time.
4. Effortless Breathing - Quiet, controlled, rhythmic.
5. Ready to Sleep Better? - Tape your lips shut. Seriously.
I’ve summarized those Big Ideas in a video review that you can watch here: https://youtu.be/iWXDdnsELOw?feature=...
I’ve also added The Oxygen Advantage by Patrick McKeown to my collection of Philosopher’s Notes--distilling the Big Ideas into 6-page PDF and 20-minute MP3s on 600+ of the BEST self-development books ever. You can get access to all of those plus a TON more over at https://heroic.us.
“We can live without food for weeks and water for days, but air for just a few brief minutes. While we spend a great deal of time and attention on what we eat and drink, we pay practically no attention to the air we breathe. It is common knowledge that our daily consumption of food and water must be of a certain quality and quantity. Too much or too little spells trouble. We also recognize the importance of breathing good-quality air, but what about the quantity? How much air should we breathe for optimum health? Wouldn’t it be fair to surmise that air, even more important than food or water for human survival, must also meet basic requirements? …
The point of this book is to elevate your awareness of how you can harness your breath to reclaim your body’s natural ability to breathe in a way that will help you achieve lifelong health and fitness, whether you are running to catch up with your kids or running to win a gold medal. My promise is that by applying the concepts and simple exercises in this book, each and every person, whether they consider themselves an athlete or not, will be able to attain tangible and profound improvements to their health, fitness, and performance within just a few weeks. Isn’t it time you did more—conditioning, winning, living—with less effort?”
~ Patrick McKeown from The Oxygen Advantage
Patrick McKeown is one of the world’s leading teachers of the Buteyko Breathing Method which was created in the 1950s by a Russian doctor named Dr. Konstantin Buteyko.
McKeown suffered from asthma for decades until he found the Buteyko Method. At which point, he reversed his asthma symptoms and then dedicated his life to helping others optimize their breathing.
In this book, he extends the Buteyko Method into an approach he calls the Oxygen Advantage. It’s a fascinating, inspiring read that has fundamentally changed my approach to breathing. (Get a copy here.)
Lest you write off this whole breathing thing as something that shouldn’t require any optimization, remember: a) We can live for weeks without food and days without water but only minutes without oxygen—which makes breathing well an essential fundamental; and, b) As with our other fundamentals of eating, moving, and sleeping, how we breathe has been significantly altered since the industrial revolution.
Therefore, optimizing our breathing is huge. And, this is a *great* book to help you optimize—especially if you have asthma and/or you’re interested in peak performance in sports or life. (If I ran or coached a sports organization, I’d definitely have fun implementing this with my team.)
Some of my favorite big ideas from this book include:
1. #1 Obstacle - To optimal breathing = ...
2. Oxygen Delivery 101 - It’s all about the carbon dioxide.
3. #1 Breathing Tip - Breathe thru your nose. All the time.
4. Effortless Breathing - Quiet, controlled, rhythmic.
5. Ready to Sleep Better? - Tape your lips shut. Seriously.
I’ve summarized those Big Ideas in a video review that you can watch here: https://youtu.be/iWXDdnsELOw?feature=...
I’ve also added The Oxygen Advantage by Patrick McKeown to my collection of Philosopher’s Notes--distilling the Big Ideas into 6-page PDF and 20-minute MP3s on 600+ of the BEST self-development books ever. You can get access to all of those plus a TON more over at https://heroic.us.
January 8, 2018
3.5 Stars from me. The breathing techniques discussed in the book are extensions or variations of Yoga/Pranayama/Bandhas/Meditation/Chi from ancient India and China. So, the ideas itself were not revolutionary at least to me as I regularly practice Yoga, Pranayama, Bandhas and Meditation.
However, it was very good to know the scientific reason behind the effectiveness of the breathing techniques. There is a lot of repetition in the book, but overall the content is simple and practical to follow.
However, it was very good to know the scientific reason behind the effectiveness of the breathing techniques. There is a lot of repetition in the book, but overall the content is simple and practical to follow.
June 20, 2020
My fav quotes (not a review):
"Each breath we take is influenced by the continuing pressure of carbon dioxide (and to a lesser extent by the pressure of oxygen) within arterial blood vessels. Purpose of breathing is to get rid of the excess carbon dioxide, and not to get rid of as much as possible."
"Efficient breathing means that fewer free radicals are produced, reducing the risk of inflammation, tissue damage, and injury."
"A common starting BOLT score for an individual who exercises regularly at a moderate intensity will be approximately 20 seconds. If your BOLT score is below 20 seconds, depending on genetic predisposition, you will probably find you experience a blocked nose, coughing, wheezing, disrupted sleep, snoring, fatigue, and excessive breathlessness during physical exercise. Each time that your BOLT score increases by 5 seconds, you will feel better, with more energy and reduced breathlessness during physical exercise. The aim of the Oxygen Advantage program is to increase your BOLT score to 40 seconds, and this can be realistically achieved."
" Avoid taking big breaths when yawning or talking. Individuals with a low BOLT score are often tired, and yawn frequently throughout the day. Try not to take in a large breath during a yawn. Likewise, individuals who talk for a living need to be aware that their breathing should not be heard during talking. If you find that you can hear your breathing during talking, then it is better to slow down the speed of your talking, use shorter sentences, and take a gentle breath through your nose between each sentence."
" Stop sighing; instead, swallow or suppress the sigh. One sigh taken every few minutes is enough to maintain chronic overbreathing, so it is necessary to counteract the sigh by swallowing or holding the breath. If you notice your sighs only after they have taken place, then hold your breath for 10 to 15 seconds to help compensate for the loss of carbon dioxide."
"The most accurate BOLT score is taken first thing after waking. This BOLT measurement is more accurate because you cannot influence your breathing during sleep,"
"If at any time the baby opened its mouth to breathe, the mother would gently press the baby’s lips together to ensure continued nasal breathing."
"Nasal breathing is often an integral part of an animal’s survival or hunting techniques. The cheetah, which is considered the fastest land animal on earth, is capable of accelerating from 0 to 60 miles per hour in just 3 seconds. Most high-performance cars cannot accelerate so quickly, with the notable exception of the Bugatti Veyron, which will set you back a million dollars to experience the natural acceleration of a cheetah. With such incredible efficiency and speed, it doesn’t take long for the cheetah to catch up with its prey, but maintaining nasal breathing is especially advantageous during the chase, ensuring that its victim is the first to run out of air."
"Charles Darwin was puzzled by this adaptation in humans: how, unlike most animals, the openings for carrying food to the stomach and air to the lungs are placed side by side. This parallel position seems fairly impractical, as it increases the risk of food going down the wrong way, requiring the development of a complicated swallowing mechanism. The cause for this is likely to do with our ability to speak and to enable us to swim, since both actions require voluntary control over breathing. Had Darwin investigated the negative impact of mouth breathing in human beings, however, I have no doubt that he would have considered the ability to mouth breathe to be a far worse flaw in the evolution of our species than the risk of choking while eating. The rest of the animal kingdom relies on nasal breathing for survival, and mouth breathing usually only occurs as an adaptation within a species. Birds, for example, are predominantly nose breathers, aside from diving birds such as penguins, pelicans, or gannets. Generally, when an animal breathes through its mouth it is a sign of sickness, injury, or distress. Guinea pigs and rabbits will continue to breathe through their noses even under heavy exertion and will only breathe through their mouths if they have developed a breathing abnormality. The same goes for all farm animals, including the cow, sheep, donkey, goat, and horse. Mouth breathing in these animals would be a clear signal to a farmer or pet owner that there is something wrong. Experience tells the farmer that when a cow or sheep stands motionless with its neck extended and mouth open, it is very sick—time to call the vet. When it comes to the importance of breathing through the nose, there is no distinction between prey and predator. Nasal breathing is especially advantageous for horses and deer, since it allows them to graze and breathe at the same time, while their sense of smell alerts them of approaching predators."
"As air enters through the nose, it is swirled through scrolled, spongy bones called turbinates, which condition and guide inhaled air into a steady, regular pattern. The internal nose, with its cul de sacs, valves, and turbinates, regulates the direction and velocity of the air to maximize exposure to a network of small arteries and veins and to the mucous blanket in order to warm, humidify, and sterilize the air before it is drawn to the lungs."
"They concluded that humming causes a dramatic increase in sinus ventilation and nasal nitric oxide release. With this knowledge, it comes as no surprise that humming is also practiced during certain meditation techniques. The breathwork technique called Brahmari involves slow, deep breaths through the nose, humming on each exhalation to generate a sound similar to a bee buzzing, and while the exact science may have been a mystery to the creators of this meditation method, the associated feeling of calmness of the mind is a clear indication of its benefit."
"When you are able to walk a total of 80 paces with the breath held, your nose will remain decongested."
"She explained that during tai chi tournaments, judges pay particular attention to whether they can notice the breathing of competitors, with points being deducted when breathing is evident."
"Avoid sighing, panting, and breathing through the mouth, and become accustomed to slow, gentle, relaxed, calm, and quiet breathing through the nose. This is how we should breathe during rest every minute of every hour of every day."
"When you practice Breathing Light, the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the blood will result in certain physiological changes in the body. These include: • A feeling of increased warmth resulting from the dilation of blood vessels • A rosy red color coming into the face • Increased production of watery saliva in the mouth, which is an indication that your body is going into relaxation mode and activating the parasympathetic nervous system"
"The best way to avoid early breathlessness during exercise is to increase your BOLT score and spend more time warming up with nasal breathing."
"Oxygen Advantage Warm-Up- After 1 minute or so of walking at a fairly good pace, exhale normally through your nose and pinch your nose with your fingers to hold the breath. (If you are in a public place, you might prefer to hold the breath without holding your nose.) • While holding your breath, walk for 10 to 30 paces, or until you feel a moderate need to breathe. When you feel this hunger for air, let go of your nose and resume breathing through your nose. • Continue walking for 10 minutes, performing a breath hold every minute or so."
"Creating an air shortage by holding the breath during your warm-up is vitally important to cause an accumulation of carbon dioxide in the blood before physical exercise commences."
"You can check whether you are pushing yourself too hard during physical exercise by exhaling normally and holding your breath for 5 seconds. When you resume breathing through the nose, your breathing should remain controlled. If you find that you lose control of your breathing, you are pushing yourself too hard. No matter what type of exercise"
"cool down by walking for 3 to 5 minutes, performing the following small breath holds:"
"Exhale as normal through the nose. • Pinch your nose with your fingers to hold the breath for 2 to 5 seconds. • Breathe normally through the nose for 10 seconds. • Repeat the first 3 steps throughout your cooldown. • Resume regular breathing."
"During the 2006 Torino Olympics, the U.S. long track speed skaters who continued to employ the “live high, train low” model brought home three gold, three silver, and one bronze medal."
"Performing a breath hold after an exhalation lowers the oxygen saturation of the blood to simulate the effects of high-altitude training. I have monitored the blood oxygen saturation of thousands of individuals as they practice breath holds, and by far the greatest"
"The Bohr Effect- an increase in carbon dioxide decreases blood pH and causes oxygen to be offloaded from hemoglobin to the tissues,"
"holding the breath until a medium to strong need for air mobilizes the diaphragm, provides it with a workout and helps to strengthen it."
"Finally, inhaling cold, dry air through the mouth can cause the airways to narrow. As the airways constrict, the feeling is similar to breathing through a narrow straw, and the result is often to breathe harder and faster to compensate for the restricted"
"You should be able to recover your breathing within 2 to 3 breaths following a breath hold."
"While adults may at first be wary of holding their breath, children often take to it like ducks to water. I usually work with five or six children to a group, ranging in age from four to fifteen years. Beginners are gently introduced to the exercises by walking a distance of 10 paces while they hold their breath. After 3 or 4 repetitions, the number of paces is increased in increments of 5 until the child understands the exercise and experiences a moderate need for air. Most children master the exercise in no time at all, and are soon in friendly competition with their peers to hold their breath for as many steps as possible."
"An added effect of the contractions is to provide your diaphragm with a workout, thereby strengthening your main breathing muscle. During the longer breath holds, as you feel your breathing muscles spasm, focus on relaxing your body. Allow your muscles to go soft as you hold your breath. Relaxing the body in this way allows a longer breath hold with less stress."
" Repeat breath holds 8 to 10 times: Repeat the breath hold 8 to 10 times during your run, followed each time by a minute of nasal breathing. The breath holds should be challenging but should also allow breathing to recover to normal within a couple of breaths."
"The renowned golfer Tiger Woods is also well known for using meditation to improve his game. Tiger’s father, Earl Woods, was instrumental in developing his son’s concentration. Earl Woods explained he would repeatedly attempt to distract his son as he practiced his swing by dropping a golf bag or shouting obscenities. Earl Woods believed that Tiger could be the “first black intuitive golfer ever raised in the United States” and tested his meditative concentration from a very young age."
"However, the creation and maintenance of a tolerable air shortage over the course of this exercise can be instrumental in further slowing down the activity of the mind. There is nothing like the feeling of an air shortage for anchoring attention to the breath. An additional benefit to breathing lightly is the activation of the body’s relaxation response,"
"Live in the Now to Enter the Zone By following the breath and bringing attention to the inner body, we are able to bring our attention to the present moment. The present moment is the only time in which life truly unfolds. You cannot re-live your life in the past, nor can you live your life in the future. When the future arrives, it is the now. Be here fully. Do not spend your entire life, as most of humanity, with all of your attention stuck in your head. How can you relate to the reality of life if you are too busy focusing on memories, worries, and what-ifs? A simple practice to bring your attention to the present moment is to merge with your surroundings. We connect to our surroundings in a physical way, through the five senses of sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell—not by intellectual perceptions. Put aside the habit of analyzing, judging, labeling, and comparing everything you see. Instead, bring a gentle focus to your surroundings without the usual running commentary. Take your attention out of your thoughts and look around. Really look, as if you are seeing things for the very first time. As you look, begin to listen to the sounds rising and falling around you. As you look and listen, feel the weight of your body, whether you are standing, sitting, or lying. Feel the warmth or coldness of the air on your face. Feel the clothes on your back. Bring in your other senses of smell and taste. Now you are free from thought. Now you are free from internal noise and distractions. You are like a child, seeing everything for the first time. It is that simple."
"Live Your Daily Life in the Zone Quieting the mind should not just be limited to the time spent in formal meditation. Instead, your whole life should be a meditation. Each day, as you go about your daily affairs, bring your attention to your breathing and your inner body. As you watch TV, do not surrender all of your attention to the program, but immerse yourself in your inner body. As you walk, jog, or run, follow the natural rhythm of your breath and disperse your attention throughout your body. Scan your body for any tension that may be residing there, and bring a gentle feeling of release to tense areas to encourage relaxation. Tension of muscle groups during sports is counterproductive and consumes energy—learn to recognize areas of tension in your body and practice melting them away with the power of your mind."
"Imagine running without a head."
"When stressed, hold your breath! It is also helpful for recovering from physical exercise and increasing your BOLT score."
"Perform a series of small breath holds following these instructions: • Take a small, silent breath in and out through your nose. • Hold your breath for 2 to 5 seconds. • After each breath hold, breathe normally for around 10 seconds. Do not interfere with your breathing."
"an individual who chronically overbreathes will expel too much carbon dioxide, increasing blood pH to alkaline levels above 7.45."
"Another reason simulated high-altitude training may contribute to weight loss is that walking or jogging with nasal breathing allows the body to work with oxygen (aerobically), while incorporating breath holds every minute or so makes the body work without oxygen (anaerobically). During an anaerobic state the body is forced to burn calories from fat stores
"Each breath we take is influenced by the continuing pressure of carbon dioxide (and to a lesser extent by the pressure of oxygen) within arterial blood vessels. Purpose of breathing is to get rid of the excess carbon dioxide, and not to get rid of as much as possible."
"Efficient breathing means that fewer free radicals are produced, reducing the risk of inflammation, tissue damage, and injury."
"A common starting BOLT score for an individual who exercises regularly at a moderate intensity will be approximately 20 seconds. If your BOLT score is below 20 seconds, depending on genetic predisposition, you will probably find you experience a blocked nose, coughing, wheezing, disrupted sleep, snoring, fatigue, and excessive breathlessness during physical exercise. Each time that your BOLT score increases by 5 seconds, you will feel better, with more energy and reduced breathlessness during physical exercise. The aim of the Oxygen Advantage program is to increase your BOLT score to 40 seconds, and this can be realistically achieved."
" Avoid taking big breaths when yawning or talking. Individuals with a low BOLT score are often tired, and yawn frequently throughout the day. Try not to take in a large breath during a yawn. Likewise, individuals who talk for a living need to be aware that their breathing should not be heard during talking. If you find that you can hear your breathing during talking, then it is better to slow down the speed of your talking, use shorter sentences, and take a gentle breath through your nose between each sentence."
" Stop sighing; instead, swallow or suppress the sigh. One sigh taken every few minutes is enough to maintain chronic overbreathing, so it is necessary to counteract the sigh by swallowing or holding the breath. If you notice your sighs only after they have taken place, then hold your breath for 10 to 15 seconds to help compensate for the loss of carbon dioxide."
"The most accurate BOLT score is taken first thing after waking. This BOLT measurement is more accurate because you cannot influence your breathing during sleep,"
"If at any time the baby opened its mouth to breathe, the mother would gently press the baby’s lips together to ensure continued nasal breathing."
"Nasal breathing is often an integral part of an animal’s survival or hunting techniques. The cheetah, which is considered the fastest land animal on earth, is capable of accelerating from 0 to 60 miles per hour in just 3 seconds. Most high-performance cars cannot accelerate so quickly, with the notable exception of the Bugatti Veyron, which will set you back a million dollars to experience the natural acceleration of a cheetah. With such incredible efficiency and speed, it doesn’t take long for the cheetah to catch up with its prey, but maintaining nasal breathing is especially advantageous during the chase, ensuring that its victim is the first to run out of air."
"Charles Darwin was puzzled by this adaptation in humans: how, unlike most animals, the openings for carrying food to the stomach and air to the lungs are placed side by side. This parallel position seems fairly impractical, as it increases the risk of food going down the wrong way, requiring the development of a complicated swallowing mechanism. The cause for this is likely to do with our ability to speak and to enable us to swim, since both actions require voluntary control over breathing. Had Darwin investigated the negative impact of mouth breathing in human beings, however, I have no doubt that he would have considered the ability to mouth breathe to be a far worse flaw in the evolution of our species than the risk of choking while eating. The rest of the animal kingdom relies on nasal breathing for survival, and mouth breathing usually only occurs as an adaptation within a species. Birds, for example, are predominantly nose breathers, aside from diving birds such as penguins, pelicans, or gannets. Generally, when an animal breathes through its mouth it is a sign of sickness, injury, or distress. Guinea pigs and rabbits will continue to breathe through their noses even under heavy exertion and will only breathe through their mouths if they have developed a breathing abnormality. The same goes for all farm animals, including the cow, sheep, donkey, goat, and horse. Mouth breathing in these animals would be a clear signal to a farmer or pet owner that there is something wrong. Experience tells the farmer that when a cow or sheep stands motionless with its neck extended and mouth open, it is very sick—time to call the vet. When it comes to the importance of breathing through the nose, there is no distinction between prey and predator. Nasal breathing is especially advantageous for horses and deer, since it allows them to graze and breathe at the same time, while their sense of smell alerts them of approaching predators."
"As air enters through the nose, it is swirled through scrolled, spongy bones called turbinates, which condition and guide inhaled air into a steady, regular pattern. The internal nose, with its cul de sacs, valves, and turbinates, regulates the direction and velocity of the air to maximize exposure to a network of small arteries and veins and to the mucous blanket in order to warm, humidify, and sterilize the air before it is drawn to the lungs."
"They concluded that humming causes a dramatic increase in sinus ventilation and nasal nitric oxide release. With this knowledge, it comes as no surprise that humming is also practiced during certain meditation techniques. The breathwork technique called Brahmari involves slow, deep breaths through the nose, humming on each exhalation to generate a sound similar to a bee buzzing, and while the exact science may have been a mystery to the creators of this meditation method, the associated feeling of calmness of the mind is a clear indication of its benefit."
"When you are able to walk a total of 80 paces with the breath held, your nose will remain decongested."
"She explained that during tai chi tournaments, judges pay particular attention to whether they can notice the breathing of competitors, with points being deducted when breathing is evident."
"Avoid sighing, panting, and breathing through the mouth, and become accustomed to slow, gentle, relaxed, calm, and quiet breathing through the nose. This is how we should breathe during rest every minute of every hour of every day."
"When you practice Breathing Light, the accumulation of carbon dioxide in the blood will result in certain physiological changes in the body. These include: • A feeling of increased warmth resulting from the dilation of blood vessels • A rosy red color coming into the face • Increased production of watery saliva in the mouth, which is an indication that your body is going into relaxation mode and activating the parasympathetic nervous system"
"The best way to avoid early breathlessness during exercise is to increase your BOLT score and spend more time warming up with nasal breathing."
"Oxygen Advantage Warm-Up- After 1 minute or so of walking at a fairly good pace, exhale normally through your nose and pinch your nose with your fingers to hold the breath. (If you are in a public place, you might prefer to hold the breath without holding your nose.) • While holding your breath, walk for 10 to 30 paces, or until you feel a moderate need to breathe. When you feel this hunger for air, let go of your nose and resume breathing through your nose. • Continue walking for 10 minutes, performing a breath hold every minute or so."
"Creating an air shortage by holding the breath during your warm-up is vitally important to cause an accumulation of carbon dioxide in the blood before physical exercise commences."
"You can check whether you are pushing yourself too hard during physical exercise by exhaling normally and holding your breath for 5 seconds. When you resume breathing through the nose, your breathing should remain controlled. If you find that you lose control of your breathing, you are pushing yourself too hard. No matter what type of exercise"
"cool down by walking for 3 to 5 minutes, performing the following small breath holds:"
"Exhale as normal through the nose. • Pinch your nose with your fingers to hold the breath for 2 to 5 seconds. • Breathe normally through the nose for 10 seconds. • Repeat the first 3 steps throughout your cooldown. • Resume regular breathing."
"During the 2006 Torino Olympics, the U.S. long track speed skaters who continued to employ the “live high, train low” model brought home three gold, three silver, and one bronze medal."
"Performing a breath hold after an exhalation lowers the oxygen saturation of the blood to simulate the effects of high-altitude training. I have monitored the blood oxygen saturation of thousands of individuals as they practice breath holds, and by far the greatest"
"The Bohr Effect- an increase in carbon dioxide decreases blood pH and causes oxygen to be offloaded from hemoglobin to the tissues,"
"holding the breath until a medium to strong need for air mobilizes the diaphragm, provides it with a workout and helps to strengthen it."
"Finally, inhaling cold, dry air through the mouth can cause the airways to narrow. As the airways constrict, the feeling is similar to breathing through a narrow straw, and the result is often to breathe harder and faster to compensate for the restricted"
"You should be able to recover your breathing within 2 to 3 breaths following a breath hold."
"While adults may at first be wary of holding their breath, children often take to it like ducks to water. I usually work with five or six children to a group, ranging in age from four to fifteen years. Beginners are gently introduced to the exercises by walking a distance of 10 paces while they hold their breath. After 3 or 4 repetitions, the number of paces is increased in increments of 5 until the child understands the exercise and experiences a moderate need for air. Most children master the exercise in no time at all, and are soon in friendly competition with their peers to hold their breath for as many steps as possible."
"An added effect of the contractions is to provide your diaphragm with a workout, thereby strengthening your main breathing muscle. During the longer breath holds, as you feel your breathing muscles spasm, focus on relaxing your body. Allow your muscles to go soft as you hold your breath. Relaxing the body in this way allows a longer breath hold with less stress."
" Repeat breath holds 8 to 10 times: Repeat the breath hold 8 to 10 times during your run, followed each time by a minute of nasal breathing. The breath holds should be challenging but should also allow breathing to recover to normal within a couple of breaths."
"The renowned golfer Tiger Woods is also well known for using meditation to improve his game. Tiger’s father, Earl Woods, was instrumental in developing his son’s concentration. Earl Woods explained he would repeatedly attempt to distract his son as he practiced his swing by dropping a golf bag or shouting obscenities. Earl Woods believed that Tiger could be the “first black intuitive golfer ever raised in the United States” and tested his meditative concentration from a very young age."
"However, the creation and maintenance of a tolerable air shortage over the course of this exercise can be instrumental in further slowing down the activity of the mind. There is nothing like the feeling of an air shortage for anchoring attention to the breath. An additional benefit to breathing lightly is the activation of the body’s relaxation response,"
"Live in the Now to Enter the Zone By following the breath and bringing attention to the inner body, we are able to bring our attention to the present moment. The present moment is the only time in which life truly unfolds. You cannot re-live your life in the past, nor can you live your life in the future. When the future arrives, it is the now. Be here fully. Do not spend your entire life, as most of humanity, with all of your attention stuck in your head. How can you relate to the reality of life if you are too busy focusing on memories, worries, and what-ifs? A simple practice to bring your attention to the present moment is to merge with your surroundings. We connect to our surroundings in a physical way, through the five senses of sight, sound, touch, taste, and smell—not by intellectual perceptions. Put aside the habit of analyzing, judging, labeling, and comparing everything you see. Instead, bring a gentle focus to your surroundings without the usual running commentary. Take your attention out of your thoughts and look around. Really look, as if you are seeing things for the very first time. As you look, begin to listen to the sounds rising and falling around you. As you look and listen, feel the weight of your body, whether you are standing, sitting, or lying. Feel the warmth or coldness of the air on your face. Feel the clothes on your back. Bring in your other senses of smell and taste. Now you are free from thought. Now you are free from internal noise and distractions. You are like a child, seeing everything for the first time. It is that simple."
"Live Your Daily Life in the Zone Quieting the mind should not just be limited to the time spent in formal meditation. Instead, your whole life should be a meditation. Each day, as you go about your daily affairs, bring your attention to your breathing and your inner body. As you watch TV, do not surrender all of your attention to the program, but immerse yourself in your inner body. As you walk, jog, or run, follow the natural rhythm of your breath and disperse your attention throughout your body. Scan your body for any tension that may be residing there, and bring a gentle feeling of release to tense areas to encourage relaxation. Tension of muscle groups during sports is counterproductive and consumes energy—learn to recognize areas of tension in your body and practice melting them away with the power of your mind."
"Imagine running without a head."
"When stressed, hold your breath! It is also helpful for recovering from physical exercise and increasing your BOLT score."
"Perform a series of small breath holds following these instructions: • Take a small, silent breath in and out through your nose. • Hold your breath for 2 to 5 seconds. • After each breath hold, breathe normally for around 10 seconds. Do not interfere with your breathing."
"an individual who chronically overbreathes will expel too much carbon dioxide, increasing blood pH to alkaline levels above 7.45."
"Another reason simulated high-altitude training may contribute to weight loss is that walking or jogging with nasal breathing allows the body to work with oxygen (aerobically), while incorporating breath holds every minute or so makes the body work without oxygen (anaerobically). During an anaerobic state the body is forced to burn calories from fat stores
January 31, 2017
This is by far one of the best books written on health that I have ever read. The book is not only for those suffering from cardiovascular and other severe conditions but also addresses weight issues, improving one's fitness and functioning and, probably most important, one's mental and spiritual well being.
The author's main contention is the counter intuitive theory that "over breathing" is detrimental to our health and overall functioning. The author contends that through breath retention and nasal breathing the increased CO2 and nitric oxide levels in the blood allows for increased saturation of oxygen entering the tissues and organs of the body and a widening of the blood vessels. The author alludes to several sources including Christopher Bohr, Alfred Nobel and Konstantin Buteyco to support his assertions.
The author alleges that he suffered many years from an asthma condition that led him to seek treatment from the aforementioned Konstantin Buteyco, a brilliant Russian Physician, who developed pioneering methods for astronauts during the Soviet Space Race. As a result of this treatment, the author fully reversed and recovered from his condition, left his corporate job and trained under Dr. Buteyco. Since this time, this work has become the author's profession and he has subsequently built on Dr. Buteyco's innovative approach and has developed his own program called "The Oxygen Advantage".
In my view and my limited experience with these exercises, breath retention is not an easy nor pleasant technique to practice nor to master in addition to the possible pitfalls that many breathing techniques present without the proper training and guidance. Also, although one can expect a modicum of success initially, it would appear great effort and close adherence to these techniques would be required to achieve the same remarkable results as that of the author. However, as aforementioned, this is a very unique, provocative and innovative approach that appears to offer astounding health benefits. I would highly recommend this book
The author's main contention is the counter intuitive theory that "over breathing" is detrimental to our health and overall functioning. The author contends that through breath retention and nasal breathing the increased CO2 and nitric oxide levels in the blood allows for increased saturation of oxygen entering the tissues and organs of the body and a widening of the blood vessels. The author alludes to several sources including Christopher Bohr, Alfred Nobel and Konstantin Buteyco to support his assertions.
The author alleges that he suffered many years from an asthma condition that led him to seek treatment from the aforementioned Konstantin Buteyco, a brilliant Russian Physician, who developed pioneering methods for astronauts during the Soviet Space Race. As a result of this treatment, the author fully reversed and recovered from his condition, left his corporate job and trained under Dr. Buteyco. Since this time, this work has become the author's profession and he has subsequently built on Dr. Buteyco's innovative approach and has developed his own program called "The Oxygen Advantage".
In my view and my limited experience with these exercises, breath retention is not an easy nor pleasant technique to practice nor to master in addition to the possible pitfalls that many breathing techniques present without the proper training and guidance. Also, although one can expect a modicum of success initially, it would appear great effort and close adherence to these techniques would be required to achieve the same remarkable results as that of the author. However, as aforementioned, this is a very unique, provocative and innovative approach that appears to offer astounding health benefits. I would highly recommend this book
August 15, 2022
เราเป็นคนหนึ่งที่เมื่อก่อนชอบหายใจออกทางปาก เพราะคิดว่า จะได้ o2 มากขึ้น จนพี่สาวบอกว่ามันทำให้เสียบุคลิกภาพ จากนั้นจึงเลิกเเล้วกลับมาหายใจเเค่ทางจมูก
เมื่อไม่นานมานี้เอง จากนั้นจึงได้ศึกษาพบว่า การหายใจทางปากส่งผลเสียต่อชีวิตมากมาย
เเล้วก็ได้มาอ่านหนังสือเล่มนี้ ได้ฤกษ์เสียที
สั้นๆสิ่งที่ทุกคนรู้เเต่บางคนไม่สามารถทำได้ เราก็เป็นหนึ่งในนั้น
“จมูกมีไว้หายใจ ปากมีไว้กิน”
ใช้ให้มันตรงหน้าที่เถิด หลักๆหนังสือได้เล่าเกี่ยวกับหายใจอย่างไรให้สามารถออกกำลังได้ดีขึ้น วิธีการหายใจให้ถูกต้องเเละมีประสิทธิภาพ เเละมีเกี่ยวกับโรคหืด โครงหน้าของเราที่เปลี่ยนไปจากการหายใจไม่ถูกต้อง
“ออกกำลังยังต้องมีความพอดี กินอาหารก็ต้องมีความพอดี เเล้วทำไมอากาศที่เราหายใจทุกวันนี้ พวกเราถึงคิดว่ามันไม่ต้องมีความพอดีล่ะ “
หากใครประสบปัญหาเดียวกันเเนะนำครับ เเต่หากใครที่คิดว่าตัวเองหายใจทางจมูกเป็นปกติ ไม่หายใจเเรง หรือหายใจเร็ว หรือหายใจเยอะเกิน หรือคิดว่าตัวเองหายใจไม่สะดวก รู้สึกจมูกตัน หายใจไม่ออก ไม่ค่อยถอนหายใจบ่อยๆหรือหายใจทางปาก ก็ข้ามได้เลยครับ
เพราะคุณได้ทำดีตามหน้าที่ที่จมูกได้รับมาเเล้วครับ
เมื่อไม่นานมานี้เอง จากนั้นจึงได้ศึกษาพบว่า การหายใจทางปากส่งผลเสียต่อชีวิตมากมาย
เเล้วก็ได้มาอ่านหนังสือเล่มนี้ ได้ฤกษ์เสียที
สั้นๆสิ่งที่ทุกคนรู้เเต่บางคนไม่สามารถทำได้ เราก็เป็นหนึ่งในนั้น
“จมูกมีไว้หายใจ ปากมีไว้กิน”
ใช้ให้มันตรงหน้าที่เถิด หลักๆหนังสือได้เล่าเกี่ยวกับหายใจอย่างไรให้สามารถออกกำลังได้ดีขึ้น วิธีการหายใจให้ถูกต้องเเละมีประสิทธิภาพ เเละมีเกี่ยวกับโรคหืด โครงหน้าของเราที่เปลี่ยนไปจากการหายใจไม่ถูกต้อง
“ออกกำลังยังต้องมีความพอดี กินอาหารก็ต้องมีความพอดี เเล้วทำไมอากาศที่เราหายใจทุกวันนี้ พวกเราถึงคิดว่ามันไม่ต้องมีความพอดีล่ะ “
หากใครประสบปัญหาเดียวกันเเนะนำครับ เเต่หากใครที่คิดว่าตัวเองหายใจทางจมูกเป็นปกติ ไม่หายใจเเรง หรือหายใจเร็ว หรือหายใจเยอะเกิน หรือคิดว่าตัวเองหายใจไม่สะดวก รู้สึกจมูกตัน หายใจไม่ออก ไม่ค่อยถอนหายใจบ่อยๆหรือหายใจทางปาก ก็ข้ามได้เลยครับ
เพราะคุณได้ทำดีตามหน้าที่ที่จมูกได้รับมาเเล้วครับ
December 13, 2016
Read the third of the book and currently practicing and implementing my learnings. So far my life has changed, not only in the way I consume oxygen, but also in the way I consume in general. I consume less social media, food, and thoughts. This book is helping me learn that overconsumption is real and prevalent in today's society.
December 21, 2016
I consider ideas throughout the book as important, life-changing, wise.
But the book itself is very repetitive. The author created whole book based on literally several points, ideas, principles, methods. The same as I experienced with Robert Kyosaki, Robert Cialdini (Influence). It's just not necessary for me to read whole book about one principle (or several).
But the book itself is very repetitive. The author created whole book based on literally several points, ideas, principles, methods. The same as I experienced with Robert Kyosaki, Robert Cialdini (Influence). It's just not necessary for me to read whole book about one principle (or several).
February 10, 2019
This book helped me change my life for the better. It's surprising how a proper breathing technique affects so many different aspects of your life. I'd especially recommend this book for people who seek high endurance levels. Be warned though: this book is very repetitive and does rely a fair bit on anecdotal persuasion.
January 29, 2018
Finished this via Audible. If 10% of what Patrick claims works then this is a helluva goldmine. It seems to be well researched and thoroughly tested. I have been trying some of the exercises and look forward to reassessing in a month or so.
September 14, 2021
Read the 1st chapter to understand why you need to breathe less and the last 30 pages to learn the technique, that will save you the time of reading a whole book which repeats the same concept.
July 22, 2020
I found this book after reading "Breath Better with these Nine Exercises," by Kely Dinardo in the Sunday, July 19, 2020 NYT. However some of the grandiose claims early in the book led me to search out more critical reviews. I found this:
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/bute...
The book is an advertisement for the Buteyko Breathing Technique (BBT) which is debunked by Joseph Albietz at the link above.
"SUMMARY
Buteyko reminds me in many ways of D.D. Palmer. Starting from an erroneous observation, using flawed logic, lacking prior plausibility, forsaking scientific validation, and promoting their techniques as virtual panaceas, they each nevertheless may have found small medical niches where their techniques may have some limited utility. Palmer’s niche appears to be treatment of low-back pain, and for Buteyko, it may be the symptomatic relief of mild asthma symptoms.
If however, you are looking for the Buteyko Breathing Technique to cure your asthma, I wouldn’t hold my breath."
https://sciencebasedmedicine.org/bute...
The book is an advertisement for the Buteyko Breathing Technique (BBT) which is debunked by Joseph Albietz at the link above.
"SUMMARY
Buteyko reminds me in many ways of D.D. Palmer. Starting from an erroneous observation, using flawed logic, lacking prior plausibility, forsaking scientific validation, and promoting their techniques as virtual panaceas, they each nevertheless may have found small medical niches where their techniques may have some limited utility. Palmer’s niche appears to be treatment of low-back pain, and for Buteyko, it may be the symptomatic relief of mild asthma symptoms.
If however, you are looking for the Buteyko Breathing Technique to cure your asthma, I wouldn’t hold my breath."
July 23, 2017
I know this plan works because two years ago I inadvertently found something similar in a book devoted to Traditional Chinese Medicine. Modifying my breathing I noticed a general improvement in several aspects of my life, noticeably, my COPD and weight.
As other reviewers point out, there is much repetition. But I think I is necessary because repetition is a form or reinforcement, or some people choose to read the book selectively.
Not exactly a spoiler: I used to have a terrible time falling and staying asleep. With nose breathing, I can fall into a lovely sleep in fewer than seven breathes. And I sleep deeper, with no more snoring!
As other reviewers point out, there is much repetition. But I think I is necessary because repetition is a form or reinforcement, or some people choose to read the book selectively.
Not exactly a spoiler: I used to have a terrible time falling and staying asleep. With nose breathing, I can fall into a lovely sleep in fewer than seven breathes. And I sleep deeper, with no more snoring!
February 9, 2025
Shut your mouth. Breathe through your nose. Breathe light to breathe right.
I made the switch from mouth-breathing to nasal breathing six to seven weeks ago, by taping my mouth at night, forcing myself to breathe only through my nose while running,etc.
I’m still retraining how to breathe, but my nasal passages are opening up more, I have far less fatigue and brain fog, and my mental clarity is sharpening, among other physical and emotional health benefits.
This book will certainly help athletes, but is also full of information and techniques that will benefit anybody. I’m looking forward to what will come from six to seven more months of making the switch to nasal breathing.
I made the switch from mouth-breathing to nasal breathing six to seven weeks ago, by taping my mouth at night, forcing myself to breathe only through my nose while running,etc.
I’m still retraining how to breathe, but my nasal passages are opening up more, I have far less fatigue and brain fog, and my mental clarity is sharpening, among other physical and emotional health benefits.
This book will certainly help athletes, but is also full of information and techniques that will benefit anybody. I’m looking forward to what will come from six to seven more months of making the switch to nasal breathing.
April 17, 2019
Awesome book bringing tons of knowledge about breathing, biochemistry and body functioning. Gives much understanding how you can improve your health, physical conditions and sport performance.
It's really impressive how many scientific articles and research works were processed for the sake of this book creation. The book, indeed, represents essence of recent research and knowledge about how and to what extent breathing affects human health and different life aspects.
If you have a chance, read this book; you'll never regret the time spent for it.
It's really impressive how many scientific articles and research works were processed for the sake of this book creation. The book, indeed, represents essence of recent research and knowledge about how and to what extent breathing affects human health and different life aspects.
If you have a chance, read this book; you'll never regret the time spent for it.
February 15, 2020
I will give the method the benefit of the doubt and will schedule the exercises. I'm willing to do it for 2 months to see if it makes a difference. So it got me to actually act on it, this is good.
But the book itself is soooooo blooooody boooooring. It felt like I read the book 3 times (even when skipped whole pages), because every sentence resurfaced a page later. It's ridiculous.
Also, I did not like the emotional hand twisting, apparently I can't even tie my shoelaces without breathing properly. At this rate, if I'm breathing right, I'm gonna win the lottery as well probably.
But the book itself is soooooo blooooody boooooring. It felt like I read the book 3 times (even when skipped whole pages), because every sentence resurfaced a page later. It's ridiculous.
Also, I did not like the emotional hand twisting, apparently I can't even tie my shoelaces without breathing properly. At this rate, if I'm breathing right, I'm gonna win the lottery as well probably.
May 31, 2020
This book changes the ways you have been breathing till now.
Breath light , Breath right it says.
I have been practicing some of the breathing exercises and am already feeling some difference.
The only thing the Author does indulge in repetitive narrative of explaining, why his concept is right, with different examples, which increases the volume of the book.
Still a great read and I am using some techniques and it is effective as promised in the book.
Breath light , Breath right it says.
I have been practicing some of the breathing exercises and am already feeling some difference.
The only thing the Author does indulge in repetitive narrative of explaining, why his concept is right, with different examples, which increases the volume of the book.
Still a great read and I am using some techniques and it is effective as promised in the book.
January 27, 2018
The writing leaves something to be desired, but the science is solid and I found the exercises themselves to be extremely helpful. I would definitely recommend reading the book, but possibly skipping through some of the ridiculously repetitive stories to just get to the exercises.
October 31, 2016
This has some unique perspectives. I have started to follow the nose breathing method. It takes practice but I like the results.
September 8, 2024
A very good book on Breathing properly to control CO2 in our blood for proper oxygen distribution through the body. While this book is different in focus from the Breath book by Nestor (we're reading for our science book call), I'm certain much of the science provided by both books is equivalent. Nestor adds drama and personalizes the story he tells. McKnown's book is more prescriptive. Both have their advantages and disadvantages.
September 30, 2017
breathing through your mouth is bad.
breathing through your nose is good.
breath hold exercises simulate high altitude training.
breathing light through your nose can heal many ailments. children and babies should be trained nose breathers.
wim hof is legit
breathing through your nose is good.
breath hold exercises simulate high altitude training.
breathing light through your nose can heal many ailments. children and babies should be trained nose breathers.
wim hof is legit
February 12, 2016
Excellent science about why nose breathing is a must. Practical tips on how to breathe correctly and increase physical fitness.
October 14, 2020
Fairly good book on breathing better.
The core thesis is to breathe less and strengthen my ability to do without.
Various practices are suggested as trying to explain how it helps and possible consequences of breathing too much, which is apparently easier via the mouth.
It appears from brief searching that 'the science is mostly correct'.
My hunch is that the book is a bit myopic: e.g., standard yogic breathing involves holding both after exhale and after inhale. Are they wrong? Are shallow inhales with only holding after the exhale simply superior? Or is this advice focused more on athletic breathing and people who can gain a lot via these practices?
Well, it's well-timed for experimenting with intentional breathing (and nearly 100% nose breathing for now).
Fairly good book on breathing better.
The core thesis is to breathe less and strengthen my ability to do without.
Various practices are suggested as trying to explain how it helps and possible consequences of breathing too much, which is apparently easier via the mouth.
It appears from brief searching that 'the science is mostly correct'.
My hunch is that the book is a bit myopic: e.g., standard yogic breathing involves holding both after exhale and after inhale. Are they wrong? Are shallow inhales with only holding after the exhale simply superior? Or is this advice focused more on athletic breathing and people who can gain a lot via these practices?
Well, it's well-timed for experimenting with intentional breathing (and nearly 100% nose breathing for now).
So far, 5 days in, my nostrils feel clearer than usual. Talking is a bit weird when breathing through the nose constantly :o. Not to mention I'm surprised how easy it is to watch and modulate my breath nonstop!
The core thesis is to breathe less and strengthen my ability to do without.
Various practices are suggested as trying to explain how it helps and possible consequences of breathing too much, which is apparently easier via the mouth.
It appears from brief searching that 'the science is mostly correct'.
My hunch is that the book is a bit myopic: e.g., standard yogic breathing involves holding both after exhale and after inhale. Are they wrong? Are shallow inhales with only holding after the exhale simply superior? Or is this advice focused more on athletic breathing and people who can gain a lot via these practices?
Well, it's well-timed for experimenting with intentional breathing (and nearly 100% nose breathing for now).
Fairly good book on breathing better.
The core thesis is to breathe less and strengthen my ability to do without.
Various practices are suggested as trying to explain how it helps and possible consequences of breathing too much, which is apparently easier via the mouth.
It appears from brief searching that 'the science is mostly correct'.
My hunch is that the book is a bit myopic: e.g., standard yogic breathing involves holding both after exhale and after inhale. Are they wrong? Are shallow inhales with only holding after the exhale simply superior? Or is this advice focused more on athletic breathing and people who can gain a lot via these practices?
Well, it's well-timed for experimenting with intentional breathing (and nearly 100% nose breathing for now).
So far, 5 days in, my nostrils feel clearer than usual. Talking is a bit weird when breathing through the nose constantly :o. Not to mention I'm surprised how easy it is to watch and modulate my breath nonstop!
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