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The ‘Take Five’ breathing technique for calming stress and anxiety is the best I’ve tried
There are countless hints and hacks to help reduce your stress and anxiety but the Take Five breathing technique is the best Ive tried so far.
In recent weeks, Ive trialed several meditation and breathing methods – such as alternate nostril breathing and finger breathing – that are designed to help soothe stress but none of them have come close to this technique.
The Take Five breathing method explained
The Take Five breathing technique has been shared online by Rachel Richards, a licensed massage therapist and author who shares self-massages, stretches and breathing exercises via her YouTube channel.
This is a great thing to do and this is so wonderful for both children and adults, she explains as her video tutorial begins. Because in addition to breathing – deep breathing always helps calm the body – you have a visual and a tactile component so it really pulls your focus and brings you into the moment.
The steps for completing the Take Five breathing are as follows:
- Start by holding your hand in the air with your palm facing away from you.
- Place the index finger from the opposite hand on the inner wrist of your outstretched hand.
- As you inhale deeply through your nose, use your finger to trace the inside of your hand until you reach the top of your thumb.
- After a brief pause, exhale through your mouth while using your finger to trace down the other side of your thumb until you reach the bottom of the gap between finger and thumb.
- As you inhale through your nose again, trace back up along your index finger.
- Continue this process for each finger on your hand, inhaling as you trace up and exhaling as you trace down.
- Feel free to repeat the exercise as many times as you need.
For a visual demonstration, please see the video from Rachel below.
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I tried it
Before trying out the Take Five breathing technique, I wasnt feeling too stressed – beyond general work-related thoughts – meaning my heart rate was sitting around 72 bpm according to my smartwatch.
So, to put the breathing method to the test, I did a few push-ups to raise my heart rate up to 90 bpm.
After waiting for a few moments to allow my breathing to settle, my heart rate dipped to around 80 bpm.
I then started the technique using the steps mentioned above.
After three rounds of repeating the process, my heart rate had dropped all the way down to 64 bpm, lower than my resting heart rate before I began.
As well as proving to lower my heart rate, I found that the hand movements of the technique were especially beneficial as they gave my mind something to focus on, which is something that standard meditation – sitting still and breathing deeply – doesnt involve.
Another benefit of the method’s hand movements is that they are really simple. Other techniques Ive tried, such as alternate nostril breathing and finger breathing, use more complicated hand movements and positions which makes the Take Five method far easier to remember and carry out in a moment of stress.
As a result, this makes the Take Five breathing method the best Ive tried so far.
