This article is an excerpt from the Shortform book guide to "The Wim Hof Method" by Wim Hof. Shortform has the world's best summaries and analyses of books you should be reading.
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Looking for a guide to Wim Hof breathing for beginners? Why and how should you practice it?
Wim Hof breathing is a type of patterned breathwork developed by Hof to improve health both physically and mentally. Hof describes how to do this breathing technique in his bestselling book, The Wim Hof Method.
Keep reading for a beginner’s guide to Wim Hof breathing, according to the advice in Hof’s book.
Wim Hof Breathing: Beginner’s Guide
For beginners, Wim Hof breathing is a simple way to gain the health benefits associated with the Wim Hof Method. In The Wim Hof Method book, renowned motivational speaker Wim Hof (a.k.a. The Iceman), who gained fame and baffled scientists with his record-breaking ability to survive dangerously low temperatures, argues that the Wim Hof Method can transform your health, reduce your pain and stress, and maximize your mental energy.
In his book, Hof explains that after dropping out of school, he moved into a squatter’s home at 17 and spent his days living as he chose. He soon became intrigued by an icy pond at nearby Beatrixpark—and one day, he went into the water naked. Despite only staying in the water for a short time, Hof felt invigorated. So he returned regularly and began experimenting with staying in the water longer and trying different breathing patterns to see how they affected his body. He did this every day, every winter, for 25 years and learned about cold exposure and conscious breathing.
(Shortform note: In a separate interview, Hof elaborates further on exactly why he started experimenting with breathwork in the cold water. After dropping out of school at 17, Hof spent some time in India before returning to the Netherlands. When he went into the water in Beatrixpark, he decided to experiment with different breathing patterns using yogic breathing exercises inspired by Indian culture.)
In this article, we’ll explain why and how to do Wim Hof breathing for beginners.
Why Practice Wim Hof Breathing?
We breathe all the time—so why bother learning how to practice Wim Hof’s specific brand of breathing? Hof argues that, even for beginners, his breathwork has three main benefits: It increases your energy, it reduces disease, and it reduces inflammation.
First, Hof explains that breathwork increases your energy by altering your biochemistry. By controlling your breathing as Hof suggests, you increase the amount of oxygen in your body, which in turn increases the number of energy molecules (called adenosine triphosphate, or ATP) in your cells. This leads to more energy.
(Shortform note: In addition to Wim Hof breathing, beginners can try several other methods for increasing ATP—and consequently, energy. For example, experts recommend consuming more fats and protein from meat and fish and increasing your water intake.)
Second, Hof argues that breathwork can reduce disease. This is partly due to the increase in energy described above: By increasing your stores of energy, your body has extra energy to fight off diseases. (Shortform note: Exercising may also increase your energy levels and boost your immune system; researchers recommend working out for an hour each day.)
Third, Hof explains that breathwork helps you regulate your immune response to reduce inflammation, which is thought to cause both disease and pain. (Shortform note: How does inflammation cause disease and pain? Researchers explain that when you’re injured or ill, your body sends “inflammatory cells” to the affected organs to help you recover. For example, if you cut your hand, your body sends it white blood cells to heal the cut and attack infection. But sometimes, your body mistakenly believes that you’re sick even when you’re not—and it sends white blood cells to attack nearby organs, causing disease and pain.)
Conventional science has long thought that your immune response is part of your autonomic nervous system, over which you have no conscious control: Your body perceives a threat and sends out inflammatory markers to fight it. But a study in the 2010s proved the opposite: Hof and 12 practitioners of his breathwork technique successfully suppressed their immune response after being injected with harmful bacteria. In this way, Hof implies that breathwork may allow you to control your autonomic nervous system, thereby controlling your immune response and reducing the inflammation that causes disease.
(Shortform note: Hof’s description of the study referenced above is slightly misleading. First, he writes that none of the practitioners of his method “became sick,” but the study authors specify that the practitioners “experienced fewer flu-like symptoms” (in other words, not zero). Second, Hof implies that you can control your immune response in a way that might benefit chronic conditions caused by inflammation. But the study authors emphasize that they only looked at the immediate, short-term inflammation caused by a specific bacteria and that their results may not be applicable to chronic conditions.)
How to Do Wim Hof Breathing
As Wim Hof notes, his breathing exercises are relatively difficult and may cause fainting for beginners. Prior to performing the exercise, sit or lie down, and don’t do the exercise anywhere near water (just in case you faint).
(Shortform note: Why might Hof’s breathing exercises make you faint? Experts suggest two possibilities: First, you may get lightheaded from too much oxygen as you repeatedly take in breaths. Second, you may not have enough oxygen when holding your breath—but since you also lack the carbon dioxide that triggers you to inhale, you won’t feel the need to inhale more oxygen and may instead faint.)
When you’re comfortable, take about 30 deep breaths. Once you start to feel tingly and lightheaded, take up to 10 more breaths—40 breaths total.
After breathing out the final time, hold your breath for as long as feels comfortable. The moment you feel you want more air, inhale deeply and hold for 10 to 15 seconds before exhaling again.
Repeat the process above (starting with the 30 deep breaths) up to three more times. With each repetition, you’ll likely be able to comfortably hold your breath for a few seconds longer.
Relax until you feel ready to face the rest of your day.
(Shortform note: Wim Hof’s breathing technique is similar to tummo breathing, a technique practiced by some Tibetan Buddhists that also involves repeatedly taking several deep breaths before holding your breath for a prolonged period. However, the tummo technique differs from Hof’s in a few key ways. Notably, tummo breathing involves a religious component, a fire visualization, and more specific instructions regarding the shape of your mouth as you breathe—none of which are present in Hof’s techniques. Tummo breathing also involves fewer deep breaths; practitioners recommend inhaling only five times—not 30—before holding your breath.)
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Like what you just read? Read the rest of the world's best book summary and analysis of Wim Hof's "The Wim Hof Method" at Shortform.
Here's what you'll find in our full The Wim Hof Method summary:
- The story of renowned motivational speaker Wim Hof (a.k.a. The Iceman)
- How Hof learned to survive dangerously low temperatures
- Why and how you should practice Hof's breathing exercises
