Five breaths for the commuter

You cannot unroll a mat on a Bangalore bus, but you can breathe anywhere. These five techniques are the ones our students actually use in traffic, in meetings and in the queue at the supermarket.

1. The three-part breath (everywhere)

Inhale into the belly, then the ribs, then the chest; exhale in reverse. Ten rounds, eyes open or closed. It is the fastest way we know to drop the shoulders and lower the heart rate in under a minute.

2. Box breathing (before anything stressful)

Inhale four counts, hold four, exhale four, hold four. Naval breathing exercises use this pattern before every sortie; you can use it before a presentation. Four rounds are usually enough.

3. Humming bee breath (the commute)

Seal the ears with the thumbs, cover the eyes with the fingers, and hum a low 'mmm' on every long exhale. The vibration settles the jaw, the eyes and the mind in about eight rounds. Looks odd in traffic; feels wonderful.

4. Left-nostril breathing (the evening unwind)

Close the right nostril and breathe only through the left for two minutes. The left channel is cooling and settling — the yoga texts associate it with the parasympathetic nervous system, and modern physiology mostly agrees.

5. The exhale (any time, any place)

When in doubt, lengthen the exhale. Breathe out for twice as long as you breathe in, five times. That single ratio — longer out than in — is the quiet engine behind most of pranayama's benefits.

The breath is the one autopilot you can manually override. Use it.