The Vegan Breathing Coaches

09/08/2026

For the avoidance of all doubt, it would be grammatically more accurate to talk about breathing lightLY. Are the pedants among us a little happier now? (Yes, we are 😆).

Light breathing is often the cornerstone of an individual's breathing retraining. Why? Because many of us are over-breathing whether that's due to breathing through the mouth, breathing a little bit too fast, too hard, too shallowly or, more likely a combination of a few or all of the above. More often than not, this is a consequence of various aspects of modern life. It's typically self-perpetuating, not just because the stresses of modern life persist and not just because it's become a habit.

Over-breathing leads to the loss of too much CO² and subsequently a change in the brain's respiratory centre. Despite the simplistic labelling of carbon dioxide as a waste product and nothing more, any scientific publication on the subject will confirm that it's essential to us.

The consequences of the unfavourable balance of gases are far-reaching and can impact on sleep, anxiety, resilience, oxygen delivery to cells (cold extremities and / twitching can be an indication of this). The body is constantly having to work hard to counteract these effects, expending energy that could be used elsewhere.

Practising light breathing with tolerable air hunger several times a day is one of the simplest (although not always easiest) ways to address this.

08/08/2026

Do you know this exercise? Apparently it's used by some military personnel to encourage calm focus, and although we tend not to include it in our classes, quite a few of the people who do breathing retraining with us like the exercise as an intervention when needed.

So, what is it? It involves breathing in for a count of, say, 4 (the count can be higher or lower if appropriate), holding the breath for the same count, exhaling for the same and then holding it again for the same count. Hence the 'box'). The sequence is then repeated several times. The beauty of this exercise is that while the inhale and subsequent breathhold are upregulating, the exhale and subsequent breathhold are downregulating such that it creates a balance between the two and therefore the calm focus referred to above.

Are there any downsides? Only if it's used inappropriately. It's not unusual to want to go big and use 6 or 8 seconds as the count. There are certainly people who can do this successfully, but anyone with less than optimum breathing (a far higher proportion than you might imagine) will over-breathe to achieve those numbers, may even feel dizzy and then conclude that it doesn't work 😏

There's more about breathwork versus breathing retraining in a recent blog post focusing on 4-7-8 breathing.
www.henryandhenryeu.com/post/4-7-8-breathing

07/08/2026

'Take a deep breath' is good enough advice when feeling calmer is called for. However, the interpretation of it is often incorrect. 'Deep' really means deep, a long way from the top, not 'big'. A true deep breath goes in gently through the nose and mostly engages the diaphragm, not the upper chest and shoulders. Breathing out slowly, through the nose, helps to put the nervous system into rest and digest, which adds to the calming effect.
Ideally, the diaphragmatic movement should be more of a 360° affair than a simple in and out movement of the belly. Belly breathing is a good start, but ensuring that the in-breath also expands the lower ribs at each side along with some movement at the back will give you more.
Good diaphragmatic breathing:
- stabilises the spine
- improves functional movement
- increases lung volume and oxygen uptake
- helps with lymphatic drainage and
- calms the body

05/08/2026

It may be controversial, but mouth taping can play a very positive role in eliminating mouth snoring, which is good news all round! Sleep quality is better, and there's no likelihood of waking up with an excessively dry mouth in the morning. BUT, taping yourself up like a parcel is not something we ever recommend. A simple piece of skin friendly tape placed vertically across the lips is enough. AND it isn't right for everyone.
We've weighed up the pros and cons and included our own experience in a blog post, To Tape or not to Tape? The blog link is here: https://www.henryandhenryeu.com/post/to-tape-or-not-to-tape-that-is-the-question

28/06/2026

Alternate nostril breathing is a common yoga practice that helps to reduce stress and balance the nervous system.

👃Nose breathing doesn't just belong in the yoga studio though. Breathing through the nose should be our default at all times - when we exercise, at rest, and during sleep.

The nose is made for breathing. Here are just some of the things that happen when we breathe through our nose :
✅️ moistens the air we inhale
✅️ filters the air we inhale
✅️ warms the air we inhale
✅️ slows down the inhalation, allowing better exchange of O2 and CO2
✅️ brings the air we breathe deeper into our lungs
✅️ improves circulation and oxygenation of our organs, muscles and tissues
✅️ produces the gas NO which is
➡️ a vasodilator
➡️ antipathogenic and antiviral

If possible, try to maintain nose breathing at all times. It's worth it, it's what we were born to do.

27/06/2026

Our brain and nervous system are intimately connected with our body.

Whenever we experience stressful thoughts, it puts our nervous system into a high-alert state and our breathing becomes faster and more shallow and our heart beats faster as our brain signals to our body that we need to prepared to confront a perceived danger ⚠️

🦁 But this isn't a danger in the physical sense. There's no lion or tiger prowling close by. But our brain doesn't differentiate.

🥺 This happens frequently in our modern always-on lives. Social media, world events, problems at work, bills to pay. There's no let-up. This is how life is today, and it's not going to change. It's the reason why so many of us are living with chronic stress and it's taking its toll on our physical and mental wellbeing and our ability to perform at our best.

But we CAN do something about this. Though we may not be able to change our external environment, we CAN change how we respond to it and learn how to become more resilient to life's inevitable ups and downs.

One of the ways we can do this is consciously using breathing.

⬇️💨 By slowing our exhalation, we stimulate the vagus nerve, thereby releasing chemicals that relax our heart.This tells our brain that we are safe.

Whenever we feel assaulted by worrisome thoughts, by focusing on our breathing and slowing down our breath in this way for as little as 5 or 10 minutes at a time can make a world of difference!

The next time you feel stressed and overwhelmed, why not try it for yourself and see how it feels.

20/06/2026

When it's hot and humid, how do you breathe?

High humidity prevents our body from being able to cool as well and so we usually end up feeling even hotter, uncomfortable and stressed.

It's likely that our breathing becomes a little harder, which can lead to overbreathing. This can then make us feel even more stressed and tired.

When this happens, it's worth remembering to breathe in and out through the nose, and to slow down and soften your breathing. It also and pays not to overtax yourself.

A tip! Aim to walk if possible under tree cover, as trees cool the air and reduce pollutants that can worsen breathing. We're very lucky, Berlin has lots of trees!

11/06/2026

Do you usually swerve the stairs and take the lift instead, even if it's just a few flights?

It certainly applied to me. It simply felt too much of an effort, and I hated the feeling of getting out of breath, it reminded me of those cross country runs that I was forced to do when still at school, my lungs gasping for air.

If it's the same for you, what would it feel like if you could turn things on their head? If you could climb 2, 3, 4, 5 or even 6 flights of stairs and feel like you could do the same twice over?

This was me after I'd retrained my breathing. I'm now 63 and the sixty steps that I regularly climb 4 or 5 times a day to my Berlin apartment are now routine. I love the fact I can do this without feeling the need to catch my breath and defer that conversation with my wife for the next few minutes.

It made the coaching I underwent from a world-renowned breathing instructor worth every penny. I now train others to improve their breathing and reap the benefits not only of less breathlessness, but more calm, more focus and improved sleep.

If you'd like to know how you could enhance your performance by improving your breathing, send me a message or check out our Breathing Space at https://www.henryandhenryeu.com/breathingspace

~ Graham Henry

04/06/2026

“For breath is life, and if you breathe well you will live long on earth.”
(Sanskrit Proverb)

It's estimated that up to 30-50% of modern adults breathe through the mouth, especially during the early morning hours. But this is not what nature intended, and somewhere along the line, many of us have got out of the habit of nose breathing.

The reasons for this are multifaceted. Anatomical or structural issues may be to blame (eg. a severely deviated septum, enlarged adenoids, nasal polyps). But Western civilisation and the way we live today is also a factor. Allergies that lead to the nose being permanently congested nose can push us into the habit of mouth breathing. Airtight modern homes may also exacerbate the problem.
But it's likely that the thing that has really made the most difference in recent times is our 'always on the go' information-obsessed culture which has increased our stress levels and led to accelerated breathing rates and breathing through the mouth to accommodate this.

The health benefits of nose breathing vs mouth breathing are well documented.

As long ago as 1903, Hoppe wrote the following in an issue of The Naturopath and Herald of Health:
"As guardian of health the nose … performs invaluable services in preventing diseases of the lungs, as it frees the inhaled air from impurities. … All breathing should, therefore, be through the nose, and none whatever should be done through the mouth.”

Even earlier, back in 1870, in his observations of Native American people, George Catlin wrote that they breathed with their noses and kept their mouths closed, except for eating and talking. This habit of keeping the lips closed began with the infant in the cradle. Catlin notes: “I have seen an Indian woman in the wilderness, lowering her infant from the breast, and pressing its lips together as it falls asleep, and fixing its cradle in the open air.”

To echo the words of James Nestor in his superb book 'Breath', it's clear that breathing is a lost art and there is no better time to reclaim it than right now. This is what we are dedicated to doing as breathing coaches, and we are here to support anyone who wishes to reap the benefits of better breathing!

04/06/2026

Schlafstörungen haben verschiedene Ursachen unter anderem unnatürliche Atem Muster. Wenn die Atmung nicht optimal ist dann sind Schlafprobleme wahrscheinlicher mit oder ohne andere Ursachen.

Wir helfen Ihnen Ihre alltägliche (und auch nächtliche) Atmung zu optimieren und wir bieten Ihnen Übungen an, die wirklich helfen in den Nachtstunden in denen Wachsamkeit unvermeidlich ist.

Immer mehr Menschen in Deutschland kommen Nachts nicht zur Ruhe. Laut einer Studie des Robert Koch-Instituts hat mehr als jeder Dritte mit Schlafproblemen zu kämpfen. Eine Ursache sehen die Experten im Smartphone-Gebrauch.