coherent breathing
five and a half seconds in, five and a half out. the pace many people find settles them fastest.
Coherent breathing means breathing evenly at around five to six cycles a minute — here, five and a half seconds in and five and a half out, with no holds. It is slower than most people breathe without thinking about it, and slow enough that the body notices.
This is the best-studied thing in the whole app. Breathing at roughly this rate brings heart rate and breath into step with one another, and that effect is consistent enough across studies to say plainly rather than hedge. We are careful about what we claim elsewhere; this one needs no decoration.
What the sound adds is a reason to stay. Counting works for about ninety seconds before the mind wanders off; following a shape that moves on its own works for much longer. The bed under this one is ocean and a quiet 432 Hz tone — traditionally associated with a natural, settled kind of calm, and chosen here mostly because it sits out of the way.
Nothing you hear on this page is a recording. The ocean is generated as it plays, so it never loops and never repeats, however long you leave it running.
questions
- Why 5.5 seconds and not 5 or 6?
- Five and a half each way gives about 5.5 breaths a minute, near the middle of the range where the effect is usually observed. Anything between five and six seconds works; the evenness matters more than the precise figure.
- Should I breathe through my nose?
- Through the nose if that is comfortable, and without forcing the depth. Coherent breathing is about the pace, not about filling your lungs.
- How is this different from box breathing?
- Box breathing adds holds at the top and bottom, which makes it feel more deliberate and a little more effortful. Coherent breathing is a continuous wave with no pauses, which most people find easier to keep up for longer.
also here
the rest of retune
every sound here is generated in your browser as it plays, so nothing loops and nothing repeats. the full app layers tones, textures, breath and spoken affirmations into a session you can keep.
open retune