Box Breath 6-6-6-6 | 10 Minutes

Box breathing at six seconds a side. In for six, hold for six, out for six, hold for six, twenty one rounds across ten minutes.
Six brings you to roughly two and a half breaths a minute. Most people are breathing five or six times slower than usual here, and the body notices. This is the tempo I use when I want the practice to change my state rather than just steady it.
It asks a bit more of you. Stay curious rather than strained, and let the pause after the exhale be a pause rather than a grip.
Counted in at the start, then light cueing and silence. Work up from the four and five second tracks if six feels like a stretch.

Transcript

Welcome. So this is a 10 minute box breath at 6 seconds. To begin just settle into a position that you can hold for the next 10 minutes without being disturbed. Spine long, Shoulders heavy. See if you can soften the front of the body. You know, The eyes closed or a soft gaze toward the floor. You're also going to have the mouth closed, Breathing in and out through the nose. Today we'll be breathing for six seconds on each part of the breath. Each breath has four parts, The inhale, The hold, The exhale and the hold. This brings us right down to two and a half breaths a minute. Most people at rest are between 12 and 16, So you'll be breathing about a fifth of your usual rate. I'll count the first few rounds, Then I'll go quiet and the count is yours. And if six seconds feels like a stretch at times, That's the point of it. And stay curious about it rather than strained. Allow your next breath out to be long. And let's begin. Breathing in 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. And out 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Breathing in 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Hold 2, 3, Breathing in. Three, Four, Five, Six. That's it. I'll leave you now with that count. Keeping it going. Check the jaw, Check the shoulders, Let them be heavy. We're breathing here at about two and a half breaths a minute. A quarter of the normal rate. And so maybe as the breath slows you might start to notice the mind and the body follow. If six ever feels too long, Just bring it back to five seconds and keep the shape. It's really the rhythm here that does the work. Allow each exhale to be slow, So you're not pushing or forcing the air out. You're just letting it fall out or leave. In your belly to do the work. Bringing the breath low into the body. And again, The exhale is easy, Just falling out. If the mind wanderer is just coming back to the count. Back to the shape of the breath, In, Hold, Out and hold. The hold after the exhale is really where we can settle and drop into that stillness. I'm coming now into our last couple of rounds. Nothing to finish, Nothing to achieve. Just staying with your breath. Last round. And now just letting the count go. Allow the breath to find its natural Nothing to hold now, Nothing to count. So this was about 20 rounds of bread. Take your little time here. If you noticed during that the mind quietened a little. That was the carbon dioxide and the long exhale doing exactly what they do. This is a good tempo for the end of a working day when the head is still going and the body is stopped. 7 seconds is next in the series if you want more. Before opening the eyes, Just notice what feels different in body and mind. Bring back in some gentle movement. And when you feel ready. Gently open the eyes.