Beginner Friendly Breathing Exercises

In law school and throughout your life, you may find the following breathing exercises to be helpful for managing stress. Having some stress is normal and healthy, but it is important to find tools to help keep your stress at a manageable level. You can try the following:

Equal Breathing Technique

• Steps
  • Inhale for a count of four
  • Exhale for a count of four
  • As you advance, try 6 or 8 counts
• Tips
  • Remember to breath through your nose
• Benefits
  • Effective when you catch yourself having racing thoughts

Abdominal Breathing

• Steps
  • Place one hand on the belly and the other on the chest
  • Inhale deeply through the nose
  • Ensure the diaphragm inflates and creates a stretch in the lungs
  • Slowly exhale through the nose, allowing your diaphragm to deflate
• Tips
  • Try doing 8-10 rounds per minute
• Benefits
  • This breath is very useful to regulate your heart rate before and during tests, interviews, or any other stressful event.

Progressive Relaxation

• Steps
  • While taking deep breaths through the nose, focus on tensing then relaxing each muscle group.
  • Start with the feet and toes, then move up toward the knees, thighs, glutes, abdominals, chest, arms, hands, neck, jaw, and face.
• Tips
  • Try breathing in through the nose, hold for a few seconds while the muscles tense, then breathe out the mouth on release
• Benefits
  • Helps achieve deep relaxation