Your breathing rate — the number of breaths you take per minute at rest — is one of the most underappreciated vital signs. The average adult breathes 12-20 times per minute, but the optimal range for health is 6-10 breaths per minute. Most people over-breathe without realizing it, and this chronic hyperventilation contributes to anxiety, poor sleep, reduced CO2 tolerance, and suboptimal oxygenation despite seeming counterintuitive.
To measure your breathing rate: sit comfortably, set a 60-second timer, and count each complete inhale-exhale cycle without trying to change your breathing. Do this three times and average the results for accuracy. If your rate is above 12, you likely have room for improvement. Below 10 suggests good respiratory efficiency. Below 8 indicates excellent breathing mechanics. Elite breathwork practitioners often rest at 4-6 breaths per minute.
Reducing your breathing rate is one of the highest-leverage health interventions available. Each breath-per-minute reduction improves CO2 tolerance, increases blood oxygenation efficiency (via the Bohr effect), enhances HRV, and reduces baseline anxiety. The process takes weeks of gradual retraining but produces compounding benefits across virtually every health domain.