The US-american COPD Foundation recommends a breathing technique at which you exhale two to three times longer than you inhale. This guide will teach you the basics and show you how to customize the technique to your needs.
How to do the COPD Foundation’s breathing technique
Make yourself comfortable and start the COPD breathing exercise in Breath Ball.
If you haven’t downloaded the Breath Ball app yet, you can do so free of charge by following these links:
After starting the COPD breathing exercise, Breath Ball will show an animation similar to this:
COPD breathing technique with two seconds inhale and six seconds exhale.
Now breathe in the rhythm of the ball:
- Inhale through your nose into your belly for two seconds.
- Exhale through your mouth for six seconds.
- Please Note:
- Belly breathing is the most ergonomic way to breathe. Try to breathe deeply into your belly when inhaling.
- Purse your lips while exhaling. I.e. shape your lips like you’re kissing. This reduces the airflow and increases the pressure in your lungs. The increased pressure in your lungs supports the gas exchange, which improves you lung’s function.
Tips to practice the COPD Foundation’s breathing technique
The predefined COPD breathing exercise uses a two seconds inhale and six seconds exhale breathing rhythm. However, this may not be suitable depending on your age, daily mood, and personal breathing rhythm. Therefore it is recommended to adjust the COPD breathing technique to your personal breathing habits. If you do so, please consider the following:
- Breathe in at your usual rhythm. Note: Most adults inhale on average between two and three seconds.
- Exhale between two and three times longer as you inhale.
A little longer is better than a little shorter, but more important is that the breathing exercise feels good and is easy to perform. - The COPD breathing exercise can be combined with slow paced breathing, a technique, that slows the respiration rate down to six breaths per minute, which causes a deep relaxation and inner peace. However, do this only if your physician advises you to do so.
You can adjust the COPD breathing technique to your personal needs by creating a new breathing exercise with your preferred settings. For more information on how to do this, please refer to the tutorial “Adding your own breathing exercises“.
Downloads for the COPD breathing technique
The animation of the COPD breathing technique can be downloaded via the link. For best results, practice it with the Breath Ball app. Here are the links to the free downloads:
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Finally, a link to further breathing exercises. It’s well worth taking a look: