The Oxygen Advantage: Simple, Scientifically Proven Breathing Techniques to Help You Become Healthier, Slimmer, Faster and Fitter―Improve Your Health and Fitness with Efficient Breathing Techniques

I remember that when I was a little kid it was fun to see how long I could hold my breath. Fast-forward to today, and holding my breath for a fraction of the time I did as a child is not fun- in fact it feels like a desperate “brush with death”! The main premise of this book is that we become adapted to over-breathing with significant diminishment of our health and well-being. For the specifics of how and why we have adapted to over-breathing, please refer to the book if you find this review interesting. I believe this premise that we have adapted to over-breathing is true and self-authenticating , from reading and working with the book. This book is truly transformative and deserves to be widely known. There are three components to the Oxygen Advantage program which addresses this over-breathing. They are explained clearly and supported with anecdotal and scientific studies, and tips and exercises are given to develop them. I appreciate the scientific explanation (which is not tedious), because it provides real support and conviction for engaging the process. The three components could be summarized as: 1) Breathe through the nose while awake (including when exercising) and asleep 2) “Breathe Light to Breathe Right” 3) Increase your ability to comfortably hold your breath #1 Breathe through the nose- Personally I already took #1 for granted when I came across this book. The reasons for nose-breathing are explained thoroughly in this book, and a very persuasive case is also made in John Douillard’s “Body, Mind, and Sport”. Reading that book convinced me to learn to run without mouth-breathing, which has already convinced me that nose-breathing is calmer and healthier and more efficient than mouth-breathing. This book has shown me that I still have some work to do in this area, but what got me excited about the book immediately was working with breath holds. However, breathing through the nose at all times would have to be considered the most fundamental building block of the program, I believe. #2 Breathe Light to Breathe Right- In the book, a tai chi master is quoted as saying, “Generally speaking, there are 3 levels of breathing. The first one is to breathe softly, so that a person standing next to you does not hear you breathing. The second level is to breathe softly so that you do not hear yourself breathing. And the third level is to breathe softly so that you do not feel yourself breathing.” The author was told that at tai chi tournaments, judges pay particular attention to the breathing of the contestants, and if they can notice their breathing, points are deducted! More about this topic shortly. #3 Increase your ability to hold your breath- This topic is what initially captured my attention, because I experienced immediate positive effects from practicing breath holds. At my starting level, the exercises are simple and mild affairs, where the breath is held after an exhalation (while walking for example), only to the point of feeling a tolerable need for air (both words, “tolerable” and “need” being key). Breathing should be back to normal after the hold in 3 breaths or so, or the hold is overly intense. This simple exercise, practiced for 15 minutes a day, has had an immediate and continuing effect on my well-being. As the number of paces I can walk comfortably while breath-holding slowly goes up, so does the benign unfolding of this process. There are many things developing at once, but here’s an attempt to summarize my subjective experience so far: 1) The exercise influences my breath to calm and slow down throughout the day. This has brought my attention to the real importance of “Breathe Light to Breathe Right”, which initially went over my head. A deep breath is not something I TAKE, or grab, or force, or make an effort to achieve. I do not get “more” by breathing more! (The specifics of the exercises are in the book, but as the author says, “Breathe Light to Breathe Right is not just an exercise, it is a way of life”.) 2) There is a psychological stress around breathing that this process is helping to dissolve. The first tolerable need for breath is not a danger signal, any more than beginning to get hungry should lead to panic. As this stress unwinds, there is relaxation and calm mindfulness in its place, with more relaxation in movement and effort. 3) I have an undeniable increase in physical well-being. Of course, everyone who works with this book will have a different starting point and experience of the process. I feel that it is a fantastic boon to discover that I have adapted to over-breathing in my life (just the opposite of what I have been conditioned to believe), and begin to unwind it. I think therefore it is only kind to recommend that anyone find out for themselves if they over-breathe. I don’t think there can be many more fundamental discoveries than this to make about oneself - perhaps one or two profound spiritual discoveries would fill the bill! There is considerable information presented on the health benefits of this program, with almost 300 references to supporting theories and compelling evidence. And there are recommendations for how practically everyone can safely engage the process, from someone in poor health to someone in superb physical condition. Check it out!

I’ve had asthma since age two and being very health oriented, have tried EVERYTHING to manage/cure my chronic condition for years. I’ve tried every supplement, tincture, pharmaceutical, long term allergy shots, you name it to no avail. I approached it by eliminating triggers like rag weed, pet dander etc, diet, and trying to get to the root of it by approaching it as an inflammatory situation. Nothing worked, it’s been decades of suffering and no help from docs. From reading this amazing , comprehensive book, I learned my approaches have all been short sighted and would never work long term because they didn’t get to the root of the problem. Remedies we’re temporary fixed. Asthmatics hyperventilate/overbreathe, they breath enough for 4-6 people , counterintuitive for those of us with constricted airwaves who believe we’re not getting enough oxygen . We have low CO2, which allows oxygen to come unbound from platelets so that we can oxygenate properly. When we overbreathe, the body in its need to hold on to CO2 from being over expelled, tightens airways and forms mucus. This book , through teaching a new way of breathing, resets the CO2 set point so the respiration center then allows airways to relax. I was at my wits end, using my inhaler 10-15 times a day, and even on waking in the middle of the night, to using it once or twice a day and I’m only 3 weeks in to reset my CO2 set point with these exercises. I’m already off my steroidal inhaler and still can’t believe it ! It’s astounding that doctors don’t know about the Buteyko method and it’s not taught everywhere! Another failure of modern medicine no longer interested in healing just increasing pharma’s bottom line . Asthma can be cured 100% by anyone who undertakes this method. If you’re like me,have searched and experimented endlessly and in vain , you will never need another remedy or drug.This author is a life saver and it will be the best money you’ve ever spent. The book is comprehensive and easy to read and understand. This method is for everyone not just asthmatics. It gives an edge for competitive athletes and everyone in between because once you understand the reason and method to allow oxygen to be released instead of circulating in your body, and how it relaxes your airwaves and strengthens them, you will enjoy better health and exercise endurance and recovery for life. What would you pay for an asthma cure? 500$ ? 1000$? 10,000$ ? I would have, happily. Now you have that for $10!!!! Patrick M. has changed and probably saved my life!

A good mix of science (I cant believe I didn't know the facts about nitrous oxide explained here) and practical steps to improve breathing habit patterns. The only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is that the book seems to assume that everyone can breath easily through the nose (the cornerstone of the entire book). I cannot. It would have been nice to see even a part of a chapter where it said something like "Top 5 Reasons Why People Cannot Breath through the Nose" and then follow that up with "Suggested Course of Action" I have trouble breathing through my nose regularly, and it just would have been nice to see some background on common causes and best treatments/correctives., Something like: "If you have been diagnosed with a Deviated Septum, find a good Ear, Nose and Throat doctor and they can lay out corrective options for you that will allow you to finally breath properly through your nose. These treatments range from..." The entire focus of the book is about breathing through the nose, but other than one technique, the book does nothing to help those of us who cannot breath through our noses.

First, I would like to congratulate Patrick McKeown for writing another great book to add to his Buteyko breathing method series. By writing this book Patrick once again demonstrated his world’s leading role as the Buteyko breathing method writer and educator. I have been a Buteyko breathing educator for more than 20 years, and I found this book as an advanced step which puts the Buteyko method on a higher level of development and effectiveness. I would highly recommend the book to anyone, regardless of health level and goals. What makes this book special are three fundamental factors – knowledge, applications of breathing techniques, and how to get yourself in the Zone by using the power of mind. This book will give you power of new knowledge, particularly how to be much better prepared for sport performance regardless of your level of health. For example, you’ll learn “how to bring mountain to you” without extra equipment, by simulating high–altitude training, which would help you to significantly improve sport performance. This knowledge may empower you. The book well described the power of breathing. By learning and implementing a variety of breathing strategies, you may fuel each cell of your body to maximum oxygen capacity. It will make every cell, organ and system of your body healthier and stronger. You may significantly improve breathing control and increase endurance, which is one of the main factors for better performance. In addition to my training in the Buteyko method I have more than a decade of experience in training people in relaxation of mind and body. I found it really valuable how the book teaches you to use the power of mind to bring yourself into the Zone, quiet your mind, and improve focus and concentration. The techniques and ways to get into the Zone are explained very well. I can assure you that these techniques are highly effective and would help you to improve your skills to bring yourself into the Zone for highest performance. If you implement the power of knowledge, breathing, and mind at the same time, you may really experience their synergetic effect. And if you add your willpower, you may expect the highest outcome in areas of improvement that you are looking for. It can help you to achieve the highest level of your ability and capability which gives you an outstanding opportunity to achieve maximum enhancement in health, life style, and performance. So, the details are in the book and the benefits would be from your experience, possibly even in an area you might have never dreamed of yet! This is how “The Oxygen Advantage” may work for you!

Straight and to the point: this book will give you the basic biochemistry & biomechanics you need to understanding the importance of breathing correctly. The Sparknotes version is: CO2 is actually the missed variable, not so much O2. The BOLT score & Breath Light exercises alone are worth the price of the book. Application to sports: as a football (American) coach, this has impacted how we view "cardio" & what "being in shape" means for our athletes. Football is a game of 4-6 second bursts of energy, followed by about 30 seconds of rest. When our athletes learn to control their breathing, nasal breath, & build up their CO2 tolerance (BOLT score improves), they will be able to sprint longer, more repeatedly, & at a higher maximum output. When athletes start hyperventilating (mouth breathing with a heaving chest), this takes a toll on their energy systems & reduces the quality of reps as well as quantity that they will be able to perform in one session or without a continued break. One of the coolest things about a book like this is that it can fit into other paradigms, for me that is the mental side of training athletes. Your mental state mimics your breathing: if you don't believe me, try to be calm & clear headed while hyperventilating. Conversely, when you breath diaphragmatically & under control, your mind becomes clear & calm. Anyone who does pre-game visualization or other "mental" exercises will find the Oxygen Advantage to be a great resource. Highly recommended for anyone looking to relax, clear their mind, sleep better, improve athletic performance, & there are many applications to team sports such as football.

Patrick McKeown has put together an educational book on breathing which got me thinking. The book is titled, "The Oxygen Advantage". I really like the title. I also liked that I learned something. There is a chapter in the book titled: "The Oxygen Paradox". It sounds like something out of science fiction (which I love); but make no mistake, it read like pure science. Mr. McKeown's writing style is easy to understand and digestible. He knows his subject. It's a good read. He writes about the Bohr Effect, which was (re)discovered in 1904 by the Danish physiologist Christian Bohr. Christian Bohr wrote, “The carbon dioxide pressure of the blood is to be regarded as an important factor in the inner respiratory metabolism. If one uses carbon dioxide in appropriate amounts, the oxygen that was taken up can be used more effectively throughout the body.” Maybe I missed that lesson in school; but as I read it made sense. The body works a certain way and we set up conditions that are sometimes contrary to optimal health. And the body tells us that what we are doing is wrong; but we don't seem to understand or don't have the knowledge to correct it. I think this book helps fill that gap. Patrick McKeown's book: "The Oxygen Advantage". has something for everyone. I mean, if you are alive, you probably know something about breathing, right? Many people probably feel this way. Breathing, particularly low CO2 tolerance, is taken so over granted that it is constantly overlooked as an indicator or barometer of health. What do we really know about breathing? What do I really know about breathing? I do know if I am cut from air for a length of time things can get really scary, really fast. I mean, "P- A - N - I - C". That's, panic. It's easy to say with breath, not so easy say - or spell - without the breath. And as Mr. McKeown explains in his book, depending how quickly you reach that need for air could be an indication a person who over breathes. In another chapter of the book, Mr. McKeown explained the B.O.L.T. (Body Oxygen Level Test) an individual can use to test his or herself as to their CO2 tolerance. It is a demonstrate the Bohr Model in action. I can go on and on about the book. The ideas presented in this book are applicable to the athlete, the person who talks for living, the person who just wants to get a better handle on his or her health, and health professionals. Many people can benefit from this.

The book has some excellent points on nose breathing, CO2 tolerance training and O2 training. And the BOLT score to measure the CO2 tolerance is excellent. Having experienced some freediving training in my past, I can vouch for the benefits of having a high CO2 tolerance. However, it seems that the author has fallen into the trap that “for a hammer everything looks like a nail” and the word cherry picking comes to mind when the author argues on basis of studies. When I started following the training and recommendations in the book I experienced a stressful situation at my job. My blood pressure was in this period dangerously elevated (above 160/100). Following the training, avoiding taking deep breaths, apnea walks etc. it got to a point where I had to stop doing it because I could feel my tension and headaches increase. Author strongly discourages deep breaths, sighs etc, but after looking into the literature, I discovered that there is quite a lot of evidence for lowering BP with deep breaths. I managed to get my stress in check and my blood pressure in tolerance by conducting 3x5 min slow deep breaths sessions per day. There is no support in literature for benefits of avoiding taking slow deep breaths and sighs - on the contrary there is evidence that deep breaths can lower blood pressure (there is an FDA approved device that facilitate this). It is after all a common technique among free divers to lower heart rate before a dive with slow deep breaths (not hyper ventilation). My biggest complaint about this book is that it is full of cherry-picking studies and dubious claims and correlations. For example, that over breathing is the main cause of cancer is implied. The documentation? Some African rats live in a CO2 high environment and they rarely get cancer. Not considering that there are other much more plausible explanations for this (genes for example.) The book also makes a bold claim that because of Nitrogen Oxide produced in the nasal cavities, nose breathing leads to harder erections and better sex life. The study mentioned is a study where patients with polyps removed improved their erectile dysfunction. Why not conduct a study were mouth breathers with Erectile dysfunction is instructed to breathe through the nose and compare this to a control group? I do not see strong enough evidence for this bold claim… at least not yet. Also, the author refers to a New York study of elite sportspeople, who supposedly dies younger than the general population. Without a screed of proof that there is a connection, the claim is made that it is because they breathe too much. Again, there could be 1000 other explanations for this. And by the way, there are other studies showing that Olympic athletes, live on average 2,8 years longer than public in eight of nine countries. If you look into freediving and CO2 training, it is important to give the body restitution after CO2 Training. Preferably a day after each training. Looking at the proposed training schedule for my BOLT score, the training load is just way to high compered to the recommendations from experienced free divers. The body needs restitution. The good part of this book is that it learned and convinced me to breathe through the nose, and yes, I sleep now with tape covering my mouth. Running, kayaking, kitesurfing, walking is done with breathing through my nose, great.. I do my apnea walks and CO2 tables based on my previous freediving experience in one session, but only every second day. An yes, I lost 1 kg of very stubborn fat, not much but I am fairly slim allready. I just wish that the author would stop being a hammer and look at everything like nails.

Before I purchased this book, I had watched a few of this author's videos online, including a long interview in which he presented some of the basic principles of breathing which had helped him so profoundly. He was evidently so appreciative of the transformation in his own health, he left his corporate career and decided to make the investigation and dissemination of this information his life's calling. I am grateful for that decision because I believe this work can help others by offering simple, safe, and practical exercises and concepts that can be remarkably helpful in addressing a number of troubling and rather serious health problems without the use of medications, surgery, and doctors visits, etc. As for me, when I began practicing these exercises and this way of breathing, it occurred to me that this is how I was able to breathe only in rare instances in the past when I was particularly relaxed; it is how I always would have wanted to breath if I had ever known how, but everything I had read previously about breathing was, for me, impossible to sustain-- so effortful and ultimately exhausting that I would never stay with it. In this book, Mr. McKeown, weaves his theories and exercises around the topic of increasing athletic performance and fitness, which was of particular interest to me since I have always sort of been in shape but would nonetheless become breathless so easily with exertion that I couldn't really enjoy playing sports. I would be exhilarated at the start, but before long just struggling to get it over with. This fitness approach is a work in progress, but there have been immediate results with snoring, apnea, periods of insomnia, and most interestingly, a general sense of calmness that seems more consistent and perhaps deeper than I have known before.

Only after reading the book that I realized the significance of nasal breathing over mouth breathing. This improves a lot of the well being of my body.

The following text was part of an e-mail sent to the author of the book in which I shared my experiences with him. I just wanted to share my experience with the breathing techniques with you and my thoughts about the innovative insights for people like me who don’t yet have any specific health problems. And I’m looking forward to stay healthy with all the great information out there, including your knowledge and your shared experiences with thousands of people, working with them and changing their lives to the better. For me the formula „Breathe Light to Breathe Right“ helped to get more focused in everyday live. I can concentrate better while working on my tasks on the computer. But more important, I first just had to stop breathing through my mouth while working on the computer. I would never have thought it myself that my mouth breathing while working impeded my concentration, my productivity and probably finally my career (or at least my wellbeing). I’m so glad that I discovered your book (thanks to Amazon recommendations). Now to my insights with breathing reduction and my heart rate variability, which captured my attention 3 years ago and began to really change the view of my health and my autonomy in this area of my life. With the HRV analysis using the Autonom Health tool and using the Elite HRV App on my iPhone, I found out that the best way for me to heighten my heart rate variability is to do the exercise „Breathe Light to Breathe Right“. Compared to a guided breathing session (with Elite HRV) my HRV is even better doing reduced breathing (contrary to the notion that coherent breathing with 3–6 breaths per minute is the best way to train your nervous system and heighten the HRV). It gets higher when my SpO2 drops to 93% and lower. Maybe it is a stress response and the effect is not the same in the long run as with the coherent breathing technique without breathing reduction? I’ve also been practicing the exercise „High Altitude Training“ since last Sommer and changed my BOLT Score from under 20 seconds to 30 until 40 seconds or more (additionally I keep this Score using a tape on my mouth while sleeping, as recommended by you). According to my HRV analysis with Autonom Heath, my health and my fitness is really good (unfortunately I just began to measure this seriously some weeks ago and not already last summer before I began to implement your exercises). However, I had some problems to heighten my BOLT Score sustainably and it dropped under 30 after having stopped the regular exercise of breathing light to breathe right (just keeping the mouth breathing day and night and High Altitude Simulation while walking at least 3–4 times per week). At the moment I do the exercise every morning and evening for 15 minutes and heightened the score to 40 seconds again, which corresponds with my feeling of being able to stay focused longer in my working day and to get things done better and with more energy and enthusiasm.

Livro sobre técnicas de respiração para melhora da saúde.

This book can be a life-changer if applied in real life. It is written very clear in a quite humoristic style sometimes, which makes it a very 'down to earth' scientific book and very easy to read. You get lot of great scientific background information, case studies and exercises. It should be on everybody's book shelf. And after reading, you can easily apply it in your daily lives, whether you' re at work, playing with the kids, running, cycling, watching TV, and even sleeping!

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