Pursed-lip breathing

How to move

1. Sit comfortably with your shoulders relaxed. If you're breathless, lean forward with your forearms resting on your thighs.
2. Breathe in gently through your nose with your mouth closed. It doesn't need to be a big breath.
3. Purse your lips, as if you were about to blow out a candle or whistle.
4. Breathe out gently through your pursed lips, for longer than you breathed in and for as long as is comfortable. Let the air go; don't force your lungs to empty.
5. Repeat for 5 to 10 breaths, letting them settle into a slow, calm rhythm.
6. Use it on the move: breathe in before an effort and out through pursed lips during it (blow as you go), or breathe in for 1 step and out for 2 as you walk or climb stairs (paced breathing).

Form cues

• Gentle, like cooling a spoonful of soup, not blowing out a bonfire.
• Make the out-breath longer than the in-breath.
• Keep your shoulders down and relaxed.
• Avoid: holding your breath, forcing the air out or puffing out your cheeks.

Practice and cautions

Use it whenever you're breathless or about to do something that makes you breathless. To learn it, practise 5 to 10 breaths sitting down, once or twice a day, until it comes naturally: an editorial starting point. In trials, pursed-lip breathing during exercise slowed the breathing rate, and in one study of people who didn't use it naturally it added about 35 metres to a 6-minute walk. Across 8 studies its effect on walking distance was inconsistent, and some people benefit much more than others. Breathing exercises on their own don't consistently reduce breathlessness, so use it alongside walking and strength exercise, not instead of them.

Stop and breathe normally if you feel dizzy or light-headed. It doesn't replace your inhalers, your oxygen or your flare-up plan. Call 999 if you're finding it very hard to breathe or can't speak, your chest feels tight or heavy, your lips or skin turn very pale, blue or grey, or you feel suddenly confused. This is movement education, not an assessment or treatment prescription. Stop for sharp or increasing pain, dizziness, numbness or tingling; seek individual guidance for symptoms, injury or restrictions.