Alternate nostril breathing (nadi shodhana)

How to do it

1. Sit tall with your shoulders relaxed. Bring your right hand to your face: thumb beside the right nostril, ring finger beside the left. If your index finger is more comfortable, use that.
2. Breathe out through both nostrils, without pushing, so you start from empty.
3. Close the right nostril with your thumb and breathe in through the left for 4 seconds.
4. Close the left nostril, release the right, and breathe out through the right for 4 seconds.
5. Keeping your fingers where they are, breathe in through the right for 4 seconds.
6. Close the right nostril, release the left, and breathe out through the left for 4 seconds. That's one full cycle: 16 seconds.
7. Repeat for 5 minutes, which is about 19 cycles. Finish on an exhale through the left, lower your hand, and breathe through both nostrils for half a minute before you get up.

What alternate nostril breathing is

It's a pattern of four equal phases, all through the nose, where the only thing that changes is the side: in through the left, out through the right, in through the right, out through the left. One rule keeps you from getting lost: you switch sides after breathing in, never after breathing out.

At 16 seconds a cycle you take about seven and a half breaths a minute, slow but not demanding. What sets it apart from its neighbors is the route. Moon breath and sun breath always use the same nostril for the inhale and the other for the exhale. Alternate nostril breathing goes there and back, so both sides do equal work. The version with holds adds a pause with the air in and a longer exhale.

Where it comes from

The description cited most often is in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, a hatha yoga manual composed by Svatmarama in the 15th century. Its second chapter, on pranayama, says that air drawn in through the left nostril goes out through the right, and that you then breathe in through the side you just breathed out of. Practiced this way, the text says, the nadis become clean after three months or more.

That's where the name comes from. In yoga the nadis are the channels that carry prana, the vital energy, and Cleveland Clinic translates nadi shodhana as channel-cleaning breath. It's a traditional way of describing the body, not anatomy.

The classical practice is far more demanding than this one. It calls for holding the breath as long as each person is able, four times across the day and night, building up to eighty holds a session. What you'll find here is the starter form taught today, with no holds.

What people use it for

The hand gives your attention a concrete job. Between closing, releasing and counting, there isn't much room left for anything else, which is why many people use it as a break between two tasks, before studying or before sitting down to meditate.

People also use it to slow down without getting drowsy. Cleveland Clinic suggests five minutes a day and notes that it can leave you more alert, so it doesn't recommend it right before bed. If sleep is what you're after, a breath with a long exhale is usually a better fit.

What the studies say

There are plenty of studies, nearly all of them small. A 2017 systematic review gathered 44 randomized trials and concluded that the practice affects the autonomic nervous system and cardiorespiratory function. The same review cautions that each trial used a different variation, that no standard method exists, and that nobody yet knows how long or how often to practice.

A 2024 meta-analysis pooled six trials with 525 participants. People who practiced alternate nostril breathing had systolic blood pressure about 7 mmHg lower than control groups. The authors ask readers to interpret that carefully: results varied enormously from trial to trial, most trials weren't blinded, and better-quality trials are needed.

None of this makes it a treatment. If you have high blood pressure, follow your care provider's guidance.

What it feels like and what to notice

The first thing you'll notice is that one nostril lets less air through than the other. That's normal. Your nose switches its clearer side on its own, a pattern known as the nasal cycle. A 2016 study tracked it for a full day in 33 healthy adults and found an average cycle of a little over two hours, with huge differences from one person to the next.

On the tighter side the air moves slowly and makes more noise. Don't force it: let that phase be smaller. After a few cycles the breath tends to even out and the hand moves almost by itself. If you get dizzy or feel short of breath, lower your hand and breathe normally through both nostrils.

Variations

• Easier (3-3 variation): count 3 seconds per phase by yourself, without the guide, until 4 feels comfortable.
• Hands-free: if your arm gets tired or your hands are busy, imagine the air going in one side and out the other. It's less precise, but it holds your attention.
• Longer exhale (4-8 variation): breathe in for 4 and out for 8 through the other nostril. Some schools teach it as the step before adding holds.
• With holds: alternate nostril breathing with holds adds 4 seconds with the air in and breathes out for 8. It has its own page.

Common mistakes

• Pinching the nose. A light touch on the side of the nostril is enough to close it off.
• Switching sides at the wrong moment. The switch comes after the inhale. If you lose track, breathe out through both nostrils and start again on the left.
• Tilting your head toward your hand. Your head stays centered and the hand comes to it. If the arm gets heavy, rest the elbow in your other hand.
• Forcing the blocked side. Pushing air through a congested nostril only adds tension. Less air, more slowly.
• Stopping mid-cycle. Ending on the exhale through the left gives both sides the same amount of work.

How often and how long

Five minutes once a day is enough to learn it, and it's the amount Cleveland Clinic suggests. If you like it, add a second short session in the middle of the afternoon.

There's no proven dose: the reviews say we still don't know how long or how often is best. A sensible plan is to practice at calm moments for a couple of weeks and see how it sits with you before making sessions longer.

Before you start

• If your nose is badly blocked by a cold or allergies, save it for another day. Don't force air through a closed nostril.
• If you feel dizzy or short of breath, lower your hand and breathe normally through both nostrils.
• Don't practice while driving or any time you need both hands.
• If you're pregnant or have a lung, heart or blood pressure condition, check with your care provider first.