Pranayama for Beginners: 8 Breathing Techniques and How to Start

What is pranayama?

Pranayama is the yogic practice of controlling the breath to steady the body's energy and calm the mind. The word joins two Sanskrit terms: prana, the life force carried by the breath, and ayama, to extend or regulate. In practice, pranayama for beginners means learning to breathe more slowly, more evenly and more consciously than you do during the day.

In Patanjali's eight limbs of yoga, pranayama is the fourth limb. It sits between asana, the postures, and pratyahara, turning the senses inward. That position explains its job: the postures settle the body, and the breath then settles the mind enough to meditate. Our guide to yoga teacher training explains all eight limbs.

The classical Hatha text, the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, describes eight breathing practices it calls kumbhakas, among them Ujjayi, Sheetali, Bhastrika and Bhramari. Most of the techniques taught in yoga schools today come from that list.

What are the benefits of pranayama for beginners?

For beginners, the main benefit of pranayama is a calmer nervous system: slow, steady breathing tends to lower stress and make it easier to focus. It also teaches you to notice your breath, which improves every other part of yoga practice.

The research on yoga as a whole, summarised by the US National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, suggests that yoga, including its breathing practices, can help with stress and is generally safe when learned from a qualified teacher. Beginners usually notice three things within a few weeks of daily practice:

• Calm on demand. A few minutes of slow breathing becomes a tool you can use before an exam, a difficult conversation or sleep.
• Better asana practice. When the breath stays smooth, postures feel steadier and you notice strain earlier.
• Easier meditation. A settled breath makes it far easier to sit still, which is why pranayama traditionally comes right before meditation.

Pranayama is not a treatment for any illness. If you have a heart or lung condition, high blood pressure, are pregnant or have had recent surgery, check with your doctor first and tell your teacher before class.

Which pranayama techniques should beginners learn first?

Beginners should start with gentle, slow techniques: yogic breathing, Nadi Shodhana, Ujjayi and Bhramari. Leave the fast, forceful practices such as Kapalabhati and Bhastrika until you have practised the gentle ones for a few weeks with a teacher.

All eight are part of the pranayama syllabus on our 200 hour yoga teacher training, taught step by step from the gentle ones to the strong ones.

How do you do yogic breathing?

Yogic breathing, sometimes called three-part breath, is a slow, full breath that moves from the belly up to the chest. It is the base of every other technique, so start here.

1. Sit comfortably with a straight spine, or lie on your back with your knees bent.
2. Place one hand on your belly and one on your chest. Breathe through the nose.
3. Inhale slowly. Let the belly rise first, then the ribs widen, then the chest lift gently.
4. Exhale slowly in the opposite order: chest, ribs, belly.
5. Keep the breath silent and unforced. Continue for 3 to 5 minutes.

If you feel light-headed, stop and breathe normally. That usually means you are breathing harder than you need to.

How do you practise Nadi Shodhana (alternate nostril breathing)?

Nadi Shodhana means "clearing the channels". You breathe through one nostril at a time, alternating sides, to balance and calm the mind. It is the single most useful practice for beginners.

1. Sit tall. Rest your left hand on your knee.
2. Fold the index and middle fingers of your right hand into the palm. You will use the thumb and ring finger.
3. Close the right nostril with your thumb and inhale slowly through the left.
4. Close the left nostril with your ring finger, release the thumb and exhale through the right.
5. Inhale through the right, close it, and exhale through the left. That is one round.
6. Do 5 to 10 rounds. Keep the breath smooth and equal on both sides; do not hold it yet.

Once this feels easy, you can make the exhale slightly longer than the inhale, for example a count of four in and six out, which most people find even more calming.

How do you do Ujjayi breath?

Ujjayi is a slow breath through the nose with a slight narrowing at the back of the throat, which makes a soft, steady sound like distant waves. It keeps your attention on the breath and is the breath used throughout Ashtanga Vinyasa practice.

1. Sit comfortably and breathe in through the nose.
2. Exhale through an open mouth as if fogging a mirror, and notice the gentle tightening in the throat.
3. Keep that same tightening, close your mouth, and exhale through the nose.
4. Now keep it on the inhale too. The sound should be soft enough that only you can hear it.
5. Practise for 2 to 3 minutes, then use it during your asana practice.

If you practise Ashtanga, or are deciding between styles, our article on Hatha vs Ashtanga yoga explains how Ujjayi links each movement to the breath.

How do you do Bhramari (humming bee breath)?

Bhramari is a humming breath: you breathe in through the nose and hum gently on the exhale. The vibration is soothing, and many people find it the quickest way to quieten a busy mind.

1. Sit tall and close your eyes.
2. Rest your index fingers lightly on the cartilage of your ears, or simply rest your hands in your lap.
3. Inhale through the nose.
4. Exhale slowly with your mouth closed, making a steady "mmm" sound like a bee.
5. Repeat 5 to 7 times, then sit quietly for a minute and notice how you feel.

When should beginners try Kapalabhati and Bhastrika?

Try Kapalabhati and Bhastrika only after a few weeks of gentle practice, and learn them from a teacher first. Both are fast, forceful techniques that build heat and energy, and both can cause dizziness if done too hard or too long.

Kapalabhati, "skull shining breath", uses short, sharp exhales from the belly with passive inhales. It is listed among the six cleansing practices of Hatha yoga, which we explain in what is Shatkarma. Bhastrika, "bellows breath", makes both the inhale and the exhale forceful.

How long should beginners practise pranayama each day?

Ten minutes a day is enough for beginners, and a short daily practice teaches more than one long session a week. Build up slowly over a month.

1. Week 1: 5 minutes of yogic breathing each day.
2. Week 2: 3 minutes of yogic breathing and 5 rounds of Nadi Shodhana.
3. Week 3: add Bhramari, 5 rounds, at the end.
4. Week 4: 10 minutes in total: yogic breathing, 10 rounds of Nadi Shodhana, Bhramari, and a minute of sitting still.

On a residential course the rhythm is fuller. At Triguna, every day starts with shatkarma, pranayama and naturopathy from 6:00 to 7:00 AM, before the morning Hatha class, and ends with meditation from 6:00 to 7:30 PM. Breathing practice opens and closes the day.

What is the best time and place to practise pranayama?

The best time is early morning on an empty stomach, in a quiet, airy room. Wait at least two to three hours after a large meal; a full stomach makes deep breathing uncomfortable.

• Sit upright, on a cushion with crossed legs or on a chair with both feet on the floor. A straight spine lets the breath move freely.
• Breathe through the nose unless the technique says otherwise.
• Practise before meditation, and after asana if you do both. This is the traditional order.
• Keep it comfortable. Pranayama should never feel like a struggle. If it does, slow down.

How is pranayama different from ordinary deep breathing?

Ordinary deep breathing is simply taking bigger breaths; pranayama is a structured practice with a set technique, ratio and order, done with full attention. The difference is control and awareness, not just volume.

In daily life, a "deep breath" is often a big gulp of air into the upper chest, followed by a sigh. In pranayama the breath is slow, usually through the nose, and shaped on purpose: one nostril at a time in Nadi Shodhana, a soft sound in the throat in Ujjayi, a hum on the exhale in Bhramari. Each technique also has a place in a sequence and a reason for being there.

The attention matters as much as the technique. Counting the breath, feeling where it moves and noticing the pause between inhale and exhale is what turns breathing into practice. That is also why pranayama leads so naturally into meditation: you are already sitting still and watching one thing.

Which pranayama should you practise for different goals?

Choose calming techniques when you want to slow down and energising ones when you want to wake up. As a beginner, keep to the gentle side of the list and use timing to match your goal.

Whatever your goal, finish with a minute of normal breathing and sitting still. That short pause is where most people first notice the effect.

How does pranayama prepare you for meditation?

Pranayama prepares you for meditation by slowing the breath, which quietens the body and gives the mind one simple thing to follow. When the breath becomes steady, thoughts usually slow down with it.

That is the traditional order of a yoga session: asana to release tension, pranayama to settle the breath, then meditation. Patanjali places pranayama directly before pratyahara, withdrawing the senses, and the three limbs of concentration, meditation and absorption. In practice, five minutes of Nadi Shodhana followed by sitting quietly and watching the natural breath is already a complete beginner's meditation.

If meditation is your main interest, our meditation teacher training in Rishikesh builds on exactly this sequence over 12 days.

What mistakes do beginners make with pranayama?

The most common mistake is trying too hard: forcing the breath, holding it too long or doing fast techniques too soon. Breathing practice works through ease, not effort.

• Forcing the breath. A strained breath makes you more tense, not less. Aim for smooth and quiet.
• Holding the breath too early. Breath retention (kumbhaka) is an advanced practice. Learn it from a teacher.
• Collapsing the posture. A slumped spine squeezes the lungs. Sit higher on a cushion if you need to.
• Practising on a full stomach. Wait a few hours after eating.
• Skipping the rest afterwards. A minute of stillness after each technique is where you notice its effect.

Where can you learn pranayama properly?

A teacher who can watch you breathe is the safest way to learn, especially for the stronger techniques. Videos are a useful reminder once you know the basics, but they cannot tell you that your shoulders are tense or that your exhale is forced.

On our courses in Rishikesh, pranayama is taught every morning, with Vikas Bisht leading the shatkarma and pranayama sessions. The 100 hour yoga teacher training is a 12-day introduction, the 200 hour course covers all eight techniques in the table above, and the meditation teacher training goes deeper into breath awareness and meditation. If you are thinking about a course, read our 8-week plan to prepare for a 200 hour yoga teacher training, which includes a daily breathing routine, and check the best time of year to train in Rishikesh.