Let’s begin with what mindfulness is. It is a state of being aware, attentive, and focused with both mind and body. Mindful breathing leads to mindfulness, which is attentive to the breath sensation coming in and out of your body—paying attention to the unconscious activity called breath and how you usually feel. Mindful breathing is a deep breathing exercise that uses big breaths and controls the length and time of the breath taken.

The whole objective of mindful breathing is to harbor and channel your mind to the present moment without thinking about your past or future. There are multiple benefits of conscious breathing: pain relief, more energy, focus and attention, pain relief, and so on.

Next time you are stressed, try calming yourself down by inhaling a deep breath through your nose for about three seconds, holding the breath for two more seconds, and finally exhaling a breath for about 4 seconds.

This is one essential mindfulness exercise; learn more from this video on five minutes of mindful breathing.