Box breathing for the middle of the night, when you have already had a long week

How it works

In for 4, hold 4, out for 4, hold 4. The shape stays the same every round. Long weeks are cumulative. This is a small subtraction. The body is the most reliable place to begin.

Why it can help

The equal sides keep your breathing from drifting into the shallow, fast pattern that stress tends to produce.

The pattern, in seconds

One round is 16 seconds. At the default 8 rounds this practice runs 128 seconds — about 2 minutes — plus a breath or two of ordinary breathing between rounds.

Good for

• in the minutes before an appointment you are dreading
• at your desk, with the screen turned off for a moment
• when you wake at 3am and the room feels too quiet

Tips

• Two minutes done properly beats ten minutes done while checking your phone.
• Do it with your shoulders still. The movement should be in your ribs and belly.
• Holding your breath is optional in every exercise here. You can always breathe through instead.

Please note

If holding your breath makes you dizzy or uncomfortable, skip the holds entirely and breathe slowly and evenly instead. Never push through lightheadedness. If you are pregnant, or manage a heart, blood pressure or lung condition, check with a doctor before doing breath holds.