Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art

Must read book for everyone . Must means must. Great insight into breathing . Awesome stuff.

Wonderful book to get in depth analysis on the benefits of nose breathing. The author had done a fantastic job of walking through various aspects in a manner to understand by ordinary people. Easy steps to follow to correct some common ailments.

"Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art" is part historical narrative, part journal of the author’s personal health exploration, and part guidebook to breathing techniques. While the topic might seem mundane, this combination, along with the book’s brevity, makes it an easy and interesting read. For me, the historical narrative was the most captivating part. Nestor peppers the book with fascinating stories, including how human evolution — becoming brainier, learning to speak and to cook — actually impaired our ability to breathe properly. He discusses ancient Indian yogis, the perfect teeth of Native Americans, the use of breathing techniques on Civil War battlefields, and how tough chewing gum can help with breathing. The book is filled with various breathing techniques and the science behind aerobic and anaerobic respiration. While this information can be quickly found online, Nestor provides valuable context for these different methods (he also includes a helpful appendix at the end). However, this book shouldn't be used for self-medicating various ailments. Some of the breathing techniques contradict each other, and there are clear risks to following them without medical supervision. Nestor also describes some of his personal experiments in the book. These sections are detailed and repetitive, which can drag. Nonetheless, his overall exploration of the subject still makes the book worthwhile. The best tip in the book: The perfect breath is an inhalation for about 5.5 seconds, followed by an exhalation for 5.5 seconds, which is about 5.5 breaths per minute. And yes, if you're interested, you will likely take 670 million breaths in your lifetime! Pros: Interesting exploration of a seemingly ordinary topic, historical anecdotes Cons: The description of his personal experiments

Must read!!

Understood more about the power of breath. For anyone who want to turn their life around. Bit of a drag though at times.

Excellent book. Every one should buy and read it if they care for their health

A practical book which explains why breathing slow, less and exhaling long through the nose promotes good health. It also discusses the breathing technique wherein we consciously breathe fast to train our systems to adapt to stress.

Reading with holding my breath