Breathwork is an emerging healing practice that can offer a variety of benefits, including improved mental and emotional health, reduced stress levels, and relief from physical pain.
However, finding a qualified practitioner can be time consuming and expensive. Luckily, there are a number of ways to get started with breathwork online on your own for free!
Table of Contents
Before Starting Breathwork Online
Learn the Basics
The first step is to learn the basics of breathwork. There are a number of resources available online that can teach you the basics of diaphragmatic breathing and other breathwork techniques. Once you have learned the basics, you can start practicing them regularly.
A few things I’ll note here…
First, there are several types of breathwork. The type of breathwork I’m referring to here is trauma informed healing breathwork, sometimes known as conscious connected breathwork. This differs from breathwork that originated in yoga, referred to as pranayama. Pranayama focuses more on grounding, while conscious breathwork refers more to the meditative and healing aspects of breathwork.
Find a Space
The second step is to find a comfortable place to practice breathwork when practicing online. This could be in your home, in nature, or in another peaceful setting. Make sure you have plenty of time to relax and focus on your breathwork exercises.
Get Comfortable
The third step is to find a comfortable position to practice in. You may want to try different positions until you find one that feels best for you. Some people prefer to sit or recline while others prefer to do breathwork lying down.
Find Something You Enjoy, And Begin!
The fourth step is to begin your breathwork online practice. Start by taking a few deep breaths and allow yourself to relax into the exercise. As you continue, focus on the sensations your body is experiencing and allow yourself to explore them fully.
The various options below will guide you, but that’s all you need to know to get started.
Pause Breathwork App
One of my favorite breathwork tools is the Pause Breathwork app. While it’s not free, the cost is low, and you can get started with a free trial.
What I like about the app is that you can search for breathwork sessions by category depending on what you want to focus on or where you feel you need support.
You can also sort the sessions by length, as little as 3 minutes! I love this feature as I often do breathwork between meetings.
Another thing to note that isn’t good or bad is that for MOST of the sessions, they don’t breath with you through the whole session. This is a trauma informed approach that encourages you to go at your own pace, but I personally find myself falling asleep during the long silences in the sessions over 7 minutes.
If you decide to buy the app after the trial you should know…they sent me a whole ass goody box of gifts after I purchased the year for $40. Pretty sweet!
Breathwork App – 1 Month FREE Trial
Breathwork Videos on YouTube
My next favorite way to practice breathwork is YouTube videos. The way I started breathwork was with Wim Hof’s simple 11 minute sessions.
He has both beginner and advanced sessions and I loved being able to progress, but I also loved how simple and repetitive his sessions are.
I then discovered “Breathwork Beats”, and I’m obsessed with breathing to music. This channel capitalized on the buzzy feeling you sometimes feel, and they structure most of their sessions to optimize your chance of feeling this.
I’d say Breathwork Beats are some of my favorite videos, but I’m not always up for the challenge of rapid breathing.
I have a couple other videos saved as well, such as a nervous system reset.
Other Ways to Practice Breathwork Online for Free
There are other apps for breathwork, so I would do a quick search if you’re looking for other options. Many of them will have paid upgrades like Pause does.
The next way to practice breathwork for free is by using a guided meditation audio or video. Now that you know the type of breathwork I like and recommend, you can do your own searches on YouTube and online. There are many of these available online, and they can be a great way to learn the basics of breathwork.
Another way to do breathwork for free is by attending a local class or workshop. Many yoga studios offer occasional breathwork classes, or you may be able to find a group that meets in your area.
Finally, if you have some experience with breathwork, you can try doing it on your own! I like to use Wim Hof’s circular breathing when I practice on my own. I do 30 breaths, followed by a breath hold at the bottom for as long as I can, then a 15 second hold at the top.
There are many guided practices available online, and once you understand the basics, you can experiment with different types of breathwork.
Moving Forward
No matter how you choose to practice breathwork, it’s important to take things slow and easy at first.
Don’t push yourself too hard, and always listen to your body. With time and patience, you’ll learn how to use breathwork as a tool for healing and self-care.