Breathing Timers — Online Collection
Guided breathing exercises with visual timers. Pick a fixed technique, build your own single-pattern circle timer, or create a full multi-step breathing program.
4-7-8 Breathing
Inhale 4s — Hold 7s — Exhale 8s. Powerful for acute anxiety and
falling asleep faster.
4-2-4 Breathing
Inhale 4s — Hold 2s — Exhale 4s. Balanced and beginner-friendly for
daily practice.
HRV Breathing
Equal inhale & exhale, no holds. 6s per phase = 5 breaths/min for optimal
Heart Rate Variability.
Custom Breathing Circle
Build one custom pattern — add phases, set seconds per phase, pick inhale / hold / exhale. Circle animation, same UX as Box & HRV timers.
Nei Gong Abdominal Breathing
Inhale 4s — Exhale 6s. Natural belly breathing (Fu Xi 呼吸) from Daoist Nei Gong and Yiquan. No holds, awareness in the lower dantian.
Long Exhale Breathing
Inhale 4s — Exhale 8s. The 1:2 ratio sedates the nervous system, releases excess qi from the head, and calms the shen. Daoist sedation method for sleep and deep decompression.
Reverse Breathing Relaxation
Inhale 4s — abdomen draws inward. Exhale 6s — abdomen releases. Gentle Fan Hu Xi (反呼吸) to gather qi and settle before sleep.
Breathing Program Builder
Chain multiple breathing patterns into a timed sequence. Each step has its own durations and run time. Includes 3 ready-made Daoist programs — open in one click.
Which Breathing Technique Should You Choose?
Each technique has a distinct purpose. Here is a quick guide:
| Technique | Best for | Pattern |
|---|---|---|
| 4-7-8 Breathing | Sleep, acute anxiety | 4s in — 7s hold — 8s out |
| 4-2-4 Breathing | Daily calm, beginners | 4s in — 2s hold — 4s out |
| Box Breathing | Focus, stress reset | 4s in — 4s hold — 4s out — 4s hold |
| HRV Breathing | Heart rate variability, recovery | 6s in — 6s out (no holds) |
| Nei Gong Abdominal | Daoist Nei Gong, parasympathetic calm, dantian awareness | 4s in — 6s out (no holds) |
| Reverse Breathing | Pre-sleep qi gathering, settling internal agitation | 4s in (abdomen in) — 6s out (abdomen out) |
| Long Exhale | Daoist sedation, release qi from head, calm shen | 4s in — 8s out (1:2 ratio) |
| Custom Breathing Circle | Any single technique | You define the phases and seconds — circle animation |
| Breathing Program Builder | Buteyko, progressions, multi-stage routines | Multiple steps sequenced in order — waveform view |
Ready-made Daoist Breathing Programs
These three programs run in the Breathing Program Builder. Click a link to open the program directly — all steps load automatically.
| Program | Steps | Total | Purpose | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Descending Qi | 4-6 → 4-7 → 4-8 | 12 min | Move qi downward, dantian settling, pre-sleep | Open |
| Shen Quieting | 4-2-6 → 4-2-7 → 4-2-8 | 12 min | Calm heart-mind (安神), parasympathetic activation | Open |
| Tai Xi Preparation | 4-6-2 → 4-7-2 → 4-8-3 | 12 min | Embryonic breathing prep (胎息), post-exhale stillness | Open |
Common Features Across All Timers
- Circle SVG animation — a moving dot and growing/shrinking inner circle guide each phase visually.
- Focus / OBS mode — fullscreen overlay that hides navigation and text, ideal for streamers and screen overlays.
- Timer duration — set a session length (5m, 10m, 15m, 25m, 30m, 1h) or run infinitely.
- Sound on phase change — optional audio cue at the start of each new phase.
- Shareable URLs — Box, HRV, and Custom Circle timers update the URL on change. The
Program Builder encodes full multi-step programs into a short
?p=link that restores the complete sequence on load.