Hit 180 resting heart rate after 6 months of breath work

I started doing box breathing every morning back in January, just 5 minutes while my coffee brewed. My resting heart rate was sitting around 78 bpm for the last 3 years no matter what I tried. This morning my Garmin showed 61 bpm and I had to check it 3 times to believe it. Did anyone else see a big drop after sticking with a breathing routine for months?

2 comments

2 Comments

violag805d ago

...and you know what else nobody's talking about? The barometric pressure changes when you breathe that slow. I'm a carrier and I notice how the air feels different after a rain, it's heavier. When you box breathe for months, you're basically training your lungs to handle pressure shifts better. I bet your Garmin isn't just measuring a lower rate, it's picking up on how your heart doesn't have to work as hard against that resistance. Plus, 61 is wild for someone who started at 78, that's like your cardiovascular system finally got the memo to chill out after years of being on high alert.

fionafoster5d ago

Heard a physical therapist say something similar about how breathing techniques change the way your vagus nerve works (that's the big nerve that tells your body to calm down). Makes total sense that your heart rate would drop that much when you're basically hacking into your own nervous system on purpose. The pressure shift thing is fascinating too, I wonder if that's why some people get headaches before storms (their lungs are bad at adjusting). Your body finally realizing it doesn't need to be in fight-or-flight mode 24/7 is honestly the best kind of upgrade you can get.