Day 18
Energising and Expanding Nervous System Adaptability
Today We Will Learn:
- The difference between foundational and advanced breathwork techniques.
- How foundational breathwork sets the stage for advanced outcomes.
- The science behind Intermittent Hypoxia and Breath of Fire with Chin Lock.
- When and how to integrate advanced breathwork into your routine.
Exploring Foundational and Advanced Breathwork
Breathwork techniques range from gentle, foundational practices to more intense, advanced methods that engage different aspects of the nervous system. Understanding when and how to use these techniques ensures safe and effective integration into your breathwork practice.
Advanced Breathwork
Enhancing Autonomic Flexibility & Cellular Adaptation .
Uses specific breath manipulation to achieve targeted physiological states, such as increased alertness, endurance, or altered states of consciousness
- Slower, controlled breathing that activates the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS).
- Promotes relaxation, reduces cortisol, and increases heart rate variability (HRV) (Lehrer & Gevirtz, 2014).
- Builds CO₂ tolerance and lung capacity, making advanced breath retention techniques more effective (Zaccaro et al., 2018).
Foundational Breathwork Exercises
Establishes Nervous System Stability: Trains diaphragmatic control, nervous system regulation and stress resilience.
- Slower, controlled breathing that activates the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS).
- Promotes relaxation, reduces cortisol, and increases heart rate variability (HRV) (Lehrer & Gevirtz, 2014).
- Builds CO₂ tolerance and lung capacity, making advanced breath retention techniques more effective (Zaccaro et al., 2018).
How Foundational Practices Support Advanced Breathwork
Foundational breathwork create the physiological conditions necessary for deeper breathwork practices.
Foundational Breathwork - Diaphragmatic Breathing
Primary Benefit - Enhances vagal tone, relaxes the nervous system
How It Prepares for Advanced Techniques - Builds oxygen efficiency for hypoxia training
Foundational Breathwork - 4-7-8 Breathing
Primary Benefit - Extends exhalation, reducing cortisol and stress
How It Prepares for Advanced Techniques - Builds oxygen efficiency for hypoxia training
Foundational Breathwork - Alternate Nostril Breathing
Primary Benefit - Enhances cerebral blood flow, balances hemispheric activity
How It Prepares for Advanced Techniques - Strengthens autonomic flexibility, necessary for endurance-based breathwork
The Science Behind Advanced Breathwork
Breath of Fire & Chin Lock
- Regulates blood pressure and stimulates the vagus nerve.
- Enhances oxygen exchange and detoxification, improving brain function.
Intermittent Hypoxia Breathwork (IHB)
- Enhances mitochondrial efficiency, improving cellular energy metabolism (Navarrete-Opazo & Mitchell, 2014).
- Regulates inflammatory cytokines, reducing oxidative stress and immune dysfunction (Mateika & Narwani, 2009).
Advanced breathwork techniques train the nervous system to respond to stress more efficiently—improving resilience and recovery.
Day 18 Breathwork
Breathwork: Advanced Techniques for Adaptability & Resilience
These techniques introduce controlled stimulation and stress adaptation, increasing your ability to shift between states.
1. Breath of Fire with Chin Lock (Jalandhara Bandha) – Energy & Mental Clarity
A rapid, rhythmic breath technique that increases oxygenation, circulation, and mental alertness.
Jalandhara Bandha, or the Chin Lock, is a yogic technique used in pranayama (breathwork) and meditation. It involves tucking the chin into the chest while holding the breath, creating a lock at the throat that influences nervous system function, circulation, and respiratory efficiency.
Best for:
- Morning activation, cognitive clarity, circulation boost.
- Stimulates the SNS (Sympathetic Nervous System) → Increases oxygenation, alertness, and metabolic rate.
- Improves diaphragmatic strength and respiratory efficiency.
- Use when you need a quick energy reset or to improve mental sharpness.
Physiological Benefits:
- Stimulates the baroreceptors (pressure sensors in the throat), which activate vagal tone and regulate blood pressure (Telles et al., 2013).
- Enhances oxygen retention, improving breath control and increasing tolerance to hypoxia.
Breath of Fire enhances circulation, focus, and metabolic efficiency, without stimulants.
2. Intermittent Hypoxia Breathwork (IHB) – Cellular Adaptation & Resilience
A breath retention practice designed to train the body to function with lower oxygen levels.
Best for:
- Building stress resilience, oxygen efficiency and immune function.
- Improves endurance, detoxification and cellular repair.
- Enhances mitochondrial function, reducing oxidative stress and inflammation.
Key Takeaways
- Foundational breathwork builds nervous system stability; advanced techniques enhance adaptability and resilience.
- Breath of Fire with Chin Lock sharpens focus, boosts circulation, and strengthens the respiratory system.
- Intermittent Hypoxia trains the body for resilience, improving oxygen efficiency and immune function.
- Knowing when to use each technique ensures a balanced, optimised breathwork practice.