There’s no such thing as stress-free living. Sure, we can mitigate it through various mindfulness practices and lifestyle choices—meditating, getting good sleep, not overdoing the caffeine, etc. But still, there will inevitably be moments throughout the day that cause some sort of anxiety. And more often than not, we won’t be able to say, “excuse me, I just need to pop out for 20 minutes to do some yoga. Brb.”
Luckily, even those moments can be manageable. All you gotta do is breathe. Yes, really.
Recently, neuroscientist Andrew Huberman made a guest appearance on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” where he discussed a variety of topics frequently brought up on his popular podcast, including the benefits of being exposed to sunlight within the first hour of waking.
Huberman then guided Fallon and the audience through a simple breathing exercise that’s “the fastest and best way to de-stress” in real time.
First, everyone did a double inhale through their nose—a complete inhale that filled the lungs followed by one more inhale to “sneak in a bit more air.” Then they did a full exhale through their mouth, completely emptying out their lungs.
Watch:
As Huberman explained to Fallon, this type of breathing, called “physiological sighs,” was discovered by scientists in the 1930s. It’s something we do naturally throughout the day and during sleep, and it works by adjusting the levels of carbon dioxide to oxygen in our bloodstream, which affect the brain. Doing just 1, maybe 2, intentional physiological sighs “brings your level of stress down immediately.”
Huberman’s exercise (which he affirms is not a “hack”) was met by an exuberant applause from the audience, and lots of praise from online viewers.
Take a look at some of these comments:
“The silence of the audience’s focused attention is audible.”
“I love that he has no time for small talk and is determined to get across as much science as possible in the allotted time. Service to humanity.”
“Andrew Huberman is a national treasure! He teaches us so much about so many interesting topics and does it in a way that keeps us wanting more.”
“Huberman is the best thing that has happened on the internet in recent years.”
“I see Professor Huberman as the ultimate example. He does what he loves, tries to improve himself daily both as a professional and a person, shares his experience with people who have the same enthusiasm. More importantly, he shares this experience for FREE for the sake of sharing it.”
If we ever needed more proof that audiences are longing for more substance, this is it. If you’re not following Huberman but want more tips just like this, his Youtube channel is only a click away.