Diaphragmatic Breathing (Awesome Breathing)
Breathe through your belly to trigger calm and clarity.
- Difficulty
- Starter
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 85%
Diaphragmatic breathing is a belly-based breathing technique that calms the body and clears the mind. Amen notes that under stress, especially a pandemic, breathing becomes chest-based, shallow and rapid, which makes people more anxious. The fix is to breathe by expanding the belly like a balloon, wearing loose clothes so the lungs can expand, and taking twice as long to exhale as to inhale. He programs the free 'Awesome Breathing' app to four seconds in, hold one, eight seconds out, hold one, done for two to three minutes. The result is a triggered relaxation response with clearer thinking than ever.
Origin
Amen teaches diaphragmatic breathing as a core, simple brain-healthy habit, even building it into an elementary school curriculum, and recommends the free Awesome Breathing app to time the pattern.
Core principles
- 01Stress makes breathing shallow, fast and chest-based, which increases anxiety.
- 02Babies and animals breathe with their bellies naturally.
- 03Breathing out longer than you breathe in triggers a relaxation response.
- 04Breathing is intentional, biological and psychological at once, and fully in your control.
How to run it
- 1
Breathe into your belly
Imagine a balloon in your belly and, as you breathe in, let your belly get big rather than lifting your chest.
Pro tip Wear loose clothing so your lungs can fully expand.
Watch out Tight clothes restrict lung expansion and can make you more anxious.
- 2
Extend the exhale
Take twice as long to breathe out as you breathe in, which is what shifts the body toward calm.
- 3
Time the pattern
Use a set rhythm such as four seconds in, hold one second, eight seconds out, hold one second, ideally with the free Awesome Breathing app.
Pro tip Do it when you get home instead of reaching for a numbing habit.
- 4
Practice a few minutes
Continue for two to three minutes to trigger a relaxation response and sharpen mental clarity.
In the wild
Amen tells the host to come home and, instead of the numbing habits discussed, spend three minutes doing Awesome Breathing at four seconds in and eight seconds out, then email him how she feels.
→ He guarantees it triggers a relaxation response with a mind clearer than ever, the clarity and focus a business person actually wants.
Common mistakes
Chest breathing under stress
Shallow, rapid chest breathing is the body's stress default and it feeds anxiety rather than relieving it.
Wearing tight clothes
Constricting clothing prevents the lungs from expanding fully, which undercuts the calming effect and increases anxiety.
Is it for you?
Best for
Anyone who wants a free, instant tool to reduce anxiety and sharpen mental clarity.
Not ideal for
Situations requiring clinical treatment for severe anxiety disorders on their own.
From the transcript
“imagine a balloon in your belly and when you breathe in blow it up so let your belly get big”
“take twice as long to breathe out as you breathe in”
From the episode
Dr. Daniel Amen: Brain Boosting Habits
Dr. Daniel Amen